English
Phonics and Early Reading (See English Policy)
All children will have a true passion for reading that stays with them for life
At Great Wakering Primary Academy we use phonic teaching as a core approach to the teaching of early reading and spelling alongside the development of reading comprehension skills and developing a love of reading in our children. It is essential to us that all pupils leave our school being able to read fluently and with confidence.
Phonics is taught following the Little Wandle Programme which aims to build children's speaking and listening skills in their own right as well as prepare children for learning to read by developing their phonic knowledge and skills, especially focusing on blending and segmenting.
Phonics progress is tracked regularly through the completion of a phonic tracking grid. Children will receive 'keep up' sessions every day as needed and 'catch up' sessions in the form of extra tuition to ensure all of our children can become fluent readers. In June, Year One children take the Phonics Screening Test. In Year Two, any children who have not passed the phonics screening test in Year One will have phonics interventions to consolidate earlier phase phonics. Our aim is for all children to leave Year 1 being able to read at a 90% fluency rate and leave KS1 with a good level of comprehension.
English
All children will be fluent, effective writers and communicators so they are confident in the literary world.
At Great Wakering Primary Academy we understand a high quality English education will teach pupils to speak, write and read fluently, which is essential to prepare children for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life and the society around them.
English teaching is based around Talk for Writing because it enables children to imitate the language they need for a particular topic orally before reading and analysing it and then writing their own. Alongside this, reading skills are also taught explicitly in whole class reading sessions, to improve both word reading and comprehension. It is important children are encouraged to read widely across fiction and non-fiction texts to develop a rich vocabulary and feed imaginations.
Class Novels
Each year group has a selection of high quality literature that is read to the class by the class teacher. These include books that explore archaic plots, non-linear time sequences, the complexity of the narrator, resistant texts and the complexity of the plot/symbols used. In Year 1 and 2, a number of books are read each half term from a different author. From Year 3 onwards, the class novel is an extended chapter book that is read regularly to the class by the class teacher. Each year group has a different class novel each half term or term depending on the size of the novel. The sessions encourage ‘book talk’ and allow children to comment on the characters and plot if they wish. It gives children the opportunity to hear, question and enjoy extended high quality books.
Grammar and Spelling
Children at Great Wakering Academy are encouraged to speak and therefore write using standard English. A rich vocabulary is discussed through the children’s reading and writing and relationships and meanings between words are investigated. Spelling and Grammar is planned from a whole school progressive plan so children acquire new knowledge and build upon what they already know so they will be equipped with a strong command of the spoken and written word in the future. We have developed a whole school vocabulary spine of transferable words that are explicitly taught through vocabulary sessions. The vocabulary spine is well sequenced to build on prior knowledge.
Spelling Objectives
We follow a mastery approach to the teaching of spelling through the programme ‘Pathways to Spell’. It is a programme designed to deliver the statutory content of the Primary National Curriculum for spelling in key stages 1 and 2. Through weekly teaching of spelling objectives and development of a whole school approach to word transcription, vocabulary development and proof-reading, the programme aims to develop children as proficient spellers.
You will find the end of year expectations for spelling for each of our year groups in the attached documents. For further detail on the skills that your children are learning on a weekly basis, please contact your class teacher.
Handwriting
Clear handwriting helps with clear and effective communication so at Great Wakering Primary Academy we use the Nelson Handwriting Scheme to help all children develop a confident, legible and personal handwriting style and meet higher curriculum expectations. Teaching includes pattern practice, letter formation, motor skills work and joins as well as fun activities to bring handwriting to life.