Curriculum

« Back to School Life

English

At Christ Church School, we believe that English is fundamental to all learning. It equips pupils with the skills and knowledge to access all learning and make progress across the curriculum. English provides opportunities for pupils to express themselves in both written and spoken form in a variety of contexts and enables pupils to formulate and organise their thoughts. The school follows the National Curriculum for English and we aim to promote and challenge all children in developing a wide range of English skills that they are able to apply independently both now and in the future. The children are expected to develop an interesting and comprehensive vocabulary and use this when speaking. They are given a range of opportunities both in class and outside the classroom to develop as confident speakers and communicators.

In KS1, children build of their Phonic knowledge they gained in EYFS by learning the Phase 5 sounds; different ways of spelling sounds they already know, as well as investigating different pronunciation of the same spelling.

Phonics learning is linked with English lessons, so every English lesson embeds sounds that have previously been learnt, as well as linking in the Year 1 and 2 spelling rules. Children begin to take more considered approaches to spelling, making choices between certain spellings, (grapheme choices), using their reading eyes when writing (does it look right?) and investigating how words are made up (root words).

Children develop their word reading and comprehension skills through 1:1 reading with their class teacher as well as during whole class reading sessions. All children are supplied with a reading log and a reading book which can be changed as frequently as they are read, in order for children to practise their reading skills at home as well as in school

Children are provided with opportunities to write in different styles from a variety of stimuli. These include various texts and stories ranging from Traditional Tales; such as Cinderella and Princess and the Pea, to contemporary texts; such as Where the Wild things are and Fantastic Mr Fox. Children are exposed to writing in different genres, such as story writing, poetry, and information writing. Within these genres, children are encouraged to use a range of writing styles and to include elements of spelling, punctuation and grammar previously taught.

In Key Stage 2, children are taught spelling, vocabulary, grammar and punctuation which they combine when producing a ‘Big Write’ in a variety of genres and topics.

English is taught for an hour each day and is evident throughout the curriculum. All children have challenging and creative writing sessions where they learn about the joy and importance of writing in a wide range of genres. They write in response to a wide range of stimuli including stories, plays and poems and for a variety of purposes and different audiences. In writing, we want pupils to know how to edit and improve their work in unison with describing what they feel they have done successfully. Our children praise their peers and encourage each other to do the best they can.

The children have access to a wide variety of fiction, non- fiction and poetry around the school and in the school library and we help them to become confident readers and where relevant, we present them with challenging texts to extend their thinking and to become confident and eager readers who are engaged in their own learning journey through reading.

All pupils in Key Stage 2 are provided with a spelling log and a reading book and keep a written record of their reading both at home and at school. They write book reviews giving reasons for their book choices and evaluating the book they have read.

Spellings are given on a weekly basis and pupils are expected to learn these and be tested on them the following week. They are also encouraged to use these spellings in context in the course of their writing during the week and to extend their vocabulary.

Children are encouraged to develop a fluent and cursive style of handwriting and they are encouraged to present their work neatly and carefully.

It is important to us that all children are aware of the progress they are making in English and that they continue to strive for further development through their own hard work and enjoyment.