English Curriculum 

Aim

We believe that it is our role to provide our children with opportunities to become excellent communicators, through speaking, understanding texts and writing in different genres.  We believe that high levels of achievement in English are central to ensuring our pupils have access to the widest range of individual choices as they continue to grow and develop.

Our Nursery and Reception curriculum draws on the Development Matters framework.  Within the Foundation Stage, our staff are conscious of the important role they play in addressing children’s  Communication and Language skills. Within Reception there are three role play areas (one in each class and one in the playhouse). Children are often more receptive to open dialogue with others when engaged in play and these provide excellent opportunities to express themselves.

Our curriculum for Years 1 to 6 draws on the National Curriculum, with lessons planned to develop children’s understanding of texts, writing in a range of genres and speaking with confidence.  In addition, our children learn about the structure of the English language, through weekly grammar lessons and the skills are then applied and revisited in daily English lessons.

What does reading look like at St Fidelis?

Phonics is taught daily in Recption to Year 2. As a school we follow the Little Wandle programme which concentrates on activities to promote speaking and listening skills, phonological awareness and oral blending.  These phonics lessons follow the DfE structure:

• Revisit and Review

• Teach and Practice

• Practise and Apply

Any child who needs additional practice has daily keep-up support, taught by a fully trained adult. Keep-up lessons match the structure of class teaching, and use the same procedures, resources and mantras, but in smaller steps with more repetition, so that every child secures their learning. Further information and resources can be found at https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/

Reading Plus is used in all KS2 classrooms. This exposes the children to engaging short pieces of text and children need to answer comprehension and vocabulary based questions. Reading Plus is also used by the children in KS2 at home as part of their home learning provision. Reciprocal Reading is also implemented in each KS2 classroom. One group of 6 children reads with the class teacher and the groups are rotated throughout the week. Oxford Reading Owl ‘Project X’ books are used and the children take on the reciprocal reading roles.

High quality class texts/novels are studied each half term in English lessons in every class to challenge and engage children. All the books accessible to the children to take home and read have been book banded to ensure the children are reading books that challenge them as readers. Opportunities for independent reading are provided to encourage children to develop reading stamina and reading for pleasure.

What does writing look like at St Fidelis?

Children start each half term with a 'hook' lesson linked to the book they are studying. Following this, children are immersed in examples of texts from a particular genre so they can draw on what they have read. The weekly grammar lessons link directly to the genre of writing for the two week period. Children and adults have a shared understanding of what success will look like for each genre/outcome by using writing strips which children can self-assess against. Writing is displayed and celebrated throughout the school and is taught as a carefully sequenced activity. Teachers provide regular helpful feedback through marking and time is given at the beginning of each lesson to respond to marking and feedback. 

We ensure progression in knowledge, complexity of tasks and expectations year on year. Writing genres are chosen to match the writing expectations from the National Curriculum and to build on prior learning. We build stamina for writing by providing opportunities to write independently and for extended periods and all children from Year 2 onwards are aware that editing forms a significant part of the writing process with a lesson dedicated to editing their work each cycle.

The children are exposed to a range of texts through the years to influence, inspire and stimulate the writing process with the use of picture books in nursery to Year 2, short stories in Year 2 to Year 4 and novels in Year 5 and 6. The National Curriculum is used to support the transcription and composition of written work.

Grammar, punctuation and sentence work is taught every week on Monday. This theme is carried through into the writing for the rest of the week or two weeks if it is part of a two-week writing cycle. The National Curriculum is used to plan and teach the grammar in the appropriate year groups.

Reading Curriculum Overview: Reception to Year 6