English
Glossary for the programme of study in English
Reading
"Reading is the passport to countless adventures."
Mary Pope Osborne
Our Reading Lead is Mrs L Ford
Reading Intent
Reading is a life-time skill which will be needed by all. We want to inspire a love, enthusiasm and passion for reading within the school, in children and parents. We will provide high quality texts and authors in order to feed pupils’ imagination and inspire wonder, joy and curiosity.
We want our readers to become fluent, accurate and expressive readers who can confidently read to gather more information and develop their learning for future education and life in general. We want our children to be able to ‘attack’ unknown words, both with regards to decoding them but also working out the meaning of unknown words so that they are reading for meaning.
We want all our readers to be active participants in this skill and to have good inference skills to allow them to predict events in a book, visualise scenes, infer meaning and to give the gist of texts in order to use texts effectively for gleaning new knowledge and vocabulary for use in discussion and their cross-curricular writing.
We want all our pupils to become fluent, confident readers able to access increasingly difficult texts in all areas of the curriculum.
Reading Implementation
Reading is highly valued and included daily as a part of children’s learning. Classroom displays promote reading and support children’s understanding of vocabulary. Staff recommend books each week on our newsletter.
Reading is enjoyed across school, in the form of class reading books, individual and peer reading. ERIC is part of the daily routine at DJS and is seen in a variety of forms. Cross-curricular lessons include links to develop vocabulary and adults model the use of adventurous vocabulary. Children are encouraged to read at home and to share their views, however, rewards will not be given for this as not all children have the same level of support.
All Year 3 pupils and new pupils are assessed on entry for known phonemes, streamed and then work in a group to receive the phonetic input they need. Children identified with phonetic gaps take part in Read, Write, Inc (Y3-4) or Fresh Start (Y5-6) sessions, three times per week. Booster lessons are
sent home electronically to support parents.
Reading inference skills are displayed in each class, refreshed at the start of
each year and referred to in lessons. Those children with the largest gap between their chronological and reading ages, will be heard read more regularly in school in order to boost their fluency.
When possible, authors and illustrators are welcomed into school to promote a love of reading. We celebrate World Book Day but also participate in online meetings with writers and foster good links with our local library.
Accurate termly assessment takes place in each year group using PIRA test
papers. Progress is tracked and interventions put in place for those not making substantial/expected progress. High quality texts, both fiction and non-fiction are available for children to access in class and at home.
Reading Impact
Children demonstrate a love or appreciation of reading and talk confidently about a range of literary genres and authors. Children enjoy reading lessons and are confident to read aloud in front of others and discuss their understanding of the text. Children confidently apply their reading skills across other areas of learning and talk about their learning in reading using appropriate and technical vocabulary. Children have a widened vocabulary and can apply strategies confidently to work out the meaning of unfamiliar words.
Children develop their imaginations and actively engage with a range of different texts enthusiastically. They show an understanding of culture and history in relation to literature as well as how books across different cultures differ.
Children will read regularly at home to embed skills and knowledge.
Outcomes at the end of Key Stage 2 are in line, or above, national average
and progress is generally good with an increasing number of pupils reaching greater depth.
Reading progression map
Phonics and Spelling
Phonics and Spelling Intent
Using the Read, Write, Inc (RWI) programme, we support pupils in learning their sounds so they can segment, and blend, to read words. We support pupils in developing a range of decoding strategies so they can read words, sentences and books.
For those accessing Read, Write, Inc, we provide decodable books in order to allow success when practising reading and to thus build reading fluency and confidence. We aim to fully equip pupils with the basic reading skills they need to enable them to be successful beyond primary school and to achieve their aspirations.
We support children to develop an understanding of spelling patterns and rules which they can then apply in their writing to become fluent, and independent, writers.
Phonics and Spelling Implementation
We believe that learning to read is key to academic success and this is supported by research from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF). Phonics teaching is recognised as an important component in the development of early reading skills.
We want to enable pupils to read for practice, read for meaning and read for pleasure. High quality phonics teaching provides pupils with skills to learn how to read (reading for practice), which enhances reading for meaning and makes reading more pleasurable. Therefore, phonics is a vital part of our curriculum as it is the building block on which our reading curriculum is based.
All staff show fidelity to Read, Write, Inc. and provide fast-paced, fully-inclusive lessons. All Year 3 pupils and new pupils are assessed on entry for known phonemes; from this, they are streamed and then work in a group to receive the phonetic input they need, through high-quality teaching that is appropriately differentiated to meet the needs of the group. The pupils are regularly assessed in order to determine those who require additional support. They move group according to the outcome of the assessments. Where a pupil is not making the expected progress, they will receive additional support in the form of daily Fast Track Tutoring in addition to their group sessions.
In Years 3 and 4, pupils will access three Read, Write, Inc sessions per week and read decodable storybooks. In Years 5 and 6, pupils will work on Fresh Start modules which provide more age appropriate texts in the form of modules and pupils take home decodable anthologies to read. Pupils also will take home a book to share with an adult at home which may not be decodable. When gaps in phonetic knowledge are ascertained, a short video clip for each, is sent home via Class Dojo to allow further practice to take place.
For pupils not requiring phonetic input through RWI, the No Nonsense Spellings programme is used as a learning tool for the Y3-4 or Y5-6 National Curriculum spellings. This programme teaches different strategies to learn spellings meaning pupils are able to choose their preferred learning style. In addition, we practise the relevant 100-word spellings. Some pupils may work on common exception words from Y1, Y2 or Y3 if needed, in order to enhance their recall of words in their independent writing. Where appropriate, pupils will be scaffolded with their spellings, eg given spelling mats, phoneme mats and all pupils have a personal word dictionary. Pupils are taught how to effectively use a dictionary. Pupils are taught the etymology and morphology of words with dictionaries purchased to enable this. Links are made to this in cross-curricular work, eg when studying The Romans, links are made to Latin roots.
Phonics and Spelling Impact
Pupils are phonetically secure and read fluently. Pupils have a range of strategies to correctly spell, and read, familiar and unfamiliar words and are able to make age appropriate attempts at spelling common exception words and high frequency words. They confidently apply their reading skills across all areas of learning and can apply their phonics skills across reading and writing in other areas of the curriculum, eg by using Fred fingers to help sound out, and spell, a word.
Outcomes at the end of Key Stage 2 are in line, or above, national average
and progress is generally good.
No Nonsense Spelling Progression Map
National Curriculum Spelling Progression
Writing
"If there is a book you want to read but it hasn't be written yet, then you must write it."
Joni Morrison
Our Writing Lead is Mr R Mason
Writing Intent
At Dronfield Junior School, we encourage, and provide, the opportunity for all pupils to flourish and shine in their writing. Pupils experience writing in a variety of styles and contexts. We strive to inspire a love, enthusiasm and passion for writing. We want our pupils to engage critically with a wide range of different genres of literature so they can appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage. We support pupils in developing a range of composing skills so that they can write confidently and independently. We want to develop pupils’ understanding of language and vocabulary so that they can write texts with engaging language choices. We will provide high quality texts and authors that feed pupils’ imagination and inspire wonder, joy and curiosity.
We aim to develop pupils who are confident with: planning and composing texts using the appropriate features, structuring texts accurately, writing for a purpose, using punctuation accurately, using a range of spelling strategies, editing and improving their work and making adventurous language choices. We aim to fully equip pupils with the writing skills they need to enable them to be successful beyond primary school.
Writing Implementation
Writing is highly valued and included daily as a part of pupils’ learning. We use ‘The Write Stuff’ by Jane Considine which follows a clearly sequenced and progressive programme of study based on the National Curriculum objectives.
By implementing The Write Stuff medium term view for teaching writing, we provide a balance across teaching story types, e.g. adventure/science-fiction, non-fiction types, e.g. balanced argument/ persuasive letter and poetry. The approach also means we consider curriculum coherence through making cross-curricular connections to history, science, geography etc. The Write Stuff breaks the learning pathway down into a logical sequence from complete whole, then into plot points (narrative) or way points (nonfiction), that are taught as paragraphs or meaning domains respectively. Over time, these sections join up to make a complete piece that lead into independent writing.
The Write Stuff enables pupils to understand the different functions of writing. When working on the ‘The Thinking Side’ pupils learn to understand this is the space for quick jottings and vocabulary building. In turn, ‘The Writing Side’ is a space to practise their sentence construction via the support of the teacher’s model. They also understand this is part of a larger process of getting ready to show strength in their own independent writing as they move from planning, drafting and editing.
The Writing Rainbow acts as a colourful and concrete representation of writing strategies that is deployed by the pupils. This enables pupils to file information and, through worked examples, create a deep understanding of different techniques, e.g. metaphor
Using The Write Stuff, the teacher makes good use of explicit instruction and composition writing ‘live’ in the classroom using scaffolding that ultimately diminishes as pupils move into the teaching sequence for independence. The teacher models the writing process whereupon pupils see two things at once: a sentence unravelling before them, as well as, the internal writing voice of the teacher who is making the invisible process of constructing writing visible.
We have high expectations of quality for writing. The Write Stuff ensures that each small step is explained and modelled during the teaching sequence and allows for practise time so that pupils can refine and rehearse their own personal writing style.
We ensure high quality teaching that is appropriately differentiated to meet individual needs. Our writing lessons are based on whole class direct instruction teaching, however the teacher will provide extra language sentence scaffolds, frames or additional adult interaction to support those pupils who need it. For pupils who demonstrate deeper thinking skills, they are encouraged to showcase what they know and apply ‘without a model’ into their current writing by deepening the moment. ‘Deepen the Moment’ challenges pupils to choose any lens from The Writing Rainbow and be aware of the positive or negative writing intent of the piece and insert sentences that do not plot push (narrative) or shape shift (non-fiction).
Lively and engaging editing sessions are built into our writing lessons. We involve pupils in editing their work using a green pen and provide checklists to support them with improving their own writing. Pupils read each other’s work, provide feedback and advice to replicate teacher behaviours to support their peers.
High quality texts are available for children to access for inspiration, both in the classroom and in the library. Experience days are built into the teaching sequence to enhance enjoyment, raise excitement and preparedness for writing. Our classroom displays promote writing and support pupils in making adventurous language choices. Dictionaries, word mats and thesauruses available in all classes. We continually assess writing by considering all pupils’ writing against a progressive list of specific criteria for each year group.
We recognise a Writer of the Week and share this with parents on Class Dojo. Children’s writing is shared at Parent Consultation Evenings and Parent Coffee Afternoons as well as being displayed in classroom.
Writing Impact
Our pupils develop their imaginations and actively engage with a range of different texts enthusiastically. They enjoy English lessons and are confident to share their ideas with others in the classroom and can talk confidently about their learning in writing using appropriate, and technical, vocabulary. They can write for a range of different purposes. They have a widened vocabulary and can write texts which include rich vocabulary choices. They can apply all their writing skills independently (including spelling and grammar, punctuation and spelling skills) to create a well-balanced text. They confidently apply their writing skills across other areas of learning. Outcomes at the end of Key Stage 2 are in line with national average and progress, from Key Stage 1, is improving.
Our pupils have an understanding of culture and history in relation to literature as well as how books and writing styles across different cultures differ. They demonstrate a love, and passion, for writing and talk confidently about a range of literary genres and authors. They are prepared for the next stage of their writing learning journey.