English Policy

A high-quality education in English will teach pupils to speak and write fluently so that they can communicate their ideas and emotions to others and their reading and listening, others can communicate with them.

(National Curriculum, September 2013)

Aims and Objectives

To use a diverse range of high quality core texts that offer a rich context for learning spoken language, reading and writing;

● To enable children to develop oracy skills allowing them to speak clearly and audibly, and to take account of their audience;

● To encourage children to listen with concentration, in order to identify the main points of what they have heard;

● To show children how to adapt their speech to a wide range of circumstances and demands;

● To teach children effective communication, both verbal and non-verbal, through a variety of drama activities, including the communication of their ideas, views and feelings.

● To help them become confident, independent fluent readers, through an appropriate focus on word, sentence and text-level knowledge;

● To develop enthusiastic and reflective readers, through contact with challenging and substantial texts;

● To develop a love of reading for all children;

● To foster the enjoyment of writing, and a recognition of its value;

● To encourage accurate and meaningful writing, be it narrative or non- fiction;

● To encourage children to write with an awareness of the audience and purpose of their writing;

● To improve the planning, drafting and editing of their written work, with emphasis on spelling, punctuation and grammar.

Teaching and Learning

At North Ealing Primary School we use a variety of teaching and learning styles in our English lessons in order to meet the needs of all our pupils. Our principal aim is to develop children’s oracy, and literacy skills.

In the Early Years Foundation Stage language and literacy development are incorporated in all areas of learning. Opportunities are provided for children to communicate thoughts, ideas and feelings. Purposeful role-play and oracy are used to develop language and imagination. Children are given opportunities to share and enjoy a range of diverse rhymes, songs, poetry and books.

An environment is provided which reflects the importance of language through signs, notices and books. Children are provided with opportunities to see adults writing and they can experiment with writing themselves.

In Key Stages 1 and 2 children receive a daily English session in which they experience a variety of activities including speaking and listening; reading and writing; focused grammar, punctuation and spelling activities (SPaG); guided group work, independent work and drama activities.

In all classes children have a wide range of abilities, and we seek to provide suitable learning opportunities for all children by matching the challenge of the task to the ability of the child. Staff have high expectations that all children can achieve their full potential. Wherever possible, teaching assistants work in class, supporting all ability groups, specific individuals or groups of children, ensuring that work is matched to the needs of the child.

Oracy activities are embedded throughout the Curriculum. Children have the opportunity to experience a wide range of texts, and to support their work with a variety of resources, such as dictionaries, thesauruses and individual word banks. Staff provide balanced and varied learning opportunities within the classroom, meeting the needs of different cohorts and learning styles.

Curriculum Planning

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Curriculum 2021 is followed to ensure continuity and progression from entering Nursery, moving on to Reception and then through to the English Curriculum 2014 in KS1 and KS2. The Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum is divided into prime and specific areas of learning & development.

‘Communication & Language’ is one of 3 prime areas that are fundamental to support the development in all other areas.

‘Communication & Language’ is made up of the following aspects: listening & attention, understanding & speaking. ‘Literacy’ is one of 4 specific areas which include essential skills & knowledge. They grow out of the prime areas and provide important contexts for learning. ‘Literacy’ is made up of the following 2 aspects: reading & writing. Pupil provision is related to attainment, not age. In EYFS, all aspects of literacy are taught. Children learn using a culturally diverse range of resources through play, speaking and listening activities, teacher modelling, group work and self-direction.

English is a core subject in the National Curriculum and we use the principles of the ‘Art of Teaching Writing’ Programme in Years 1-6, as the basis for implementing the statutory requirements of the programme of study for English in Key Stages 1 and 2.

We carry out curriculum planning in English in three phases (long-term, medium-term and short term). We devise our own plans, in accordance with the Art of Teaching Writing, identifying key objectives in English that we teach and, where possible, with purposeful cross-curricular links to other subjects.

Our medium-term plans give details of the main teaching objectives for each unit. These plans define what we teach, and ensure an appropriate balance and distribution of work across each unit covering a range of genres, including explicit teaching of oracy and fluency in reading.

Our short term planning details the learning objectives, teaching input, the differentiated activities, including support where appropriate, success criteria and assessment against the learning objectives. Each unit of learning is underpinned by exploring a high quality text. Deconstruction of these texts enables pupils to identify key features of the text type which in turn assists children to develop the proficiency and precision required to write their own high quality, extended texts.

The National Curriculum sets out expectations for children’s writing skills from year one to year six. For each key stage, children need to be exploring a variety of sentence structures and drawing on these when composing their own writing. Therefore we incorporate the teaching of ‘Alan Peat’s Sentence Types’ into unit plans which can then be applied and extended in their own writing.

Our plans are continually adapted by teachers in order to suit our children’s learning and so are very much working documents.

Drama

Children participate in a range of purposeful drama activities, where they use language and actions to explore and convey situations, characters and emotions, creating and sustaining roles individually

and when working with others. Afterwards, the children have opportunities to comment constructively on drama they have watched or in which they have taken part. Children develop their drama to convey action and narrative to convey stories, themes, emotions, ideas and devise scripts. They explore dramatic techniques and comment on how authors use these techniques in their writing.

Reading

Throughout our Early Years and Key Stage 1 pupils’ interest and pleasure in reading is developed as they learn to read confidently and independently. They learn to read words and sentences and then whole texts. They learn how to retell stories they have read and work out the meaning of straightforward texts. Once children have completed the RWI Phonics program, which is usually by the February half-term of Year 2, children are taught to develop their reading fluency skills using the following format:

● Extracts from the core texts, poetry and other high-quality, age-appropriate texts are firstly read by the class teacher, with an emphasis on how to read with expression, accuracy, rhythm and smoothness (EARS) – with the teacher reading an ‘an expert’.

● The text is then studied in greater depth, with the teacher and pupils working together to highlight the text with appropriate pauses for punctuation and effect, and where the emphasis should be placed on words or phrases.

● The text is read through again by the teacher, with pupils echoing the ‘expert’ reading, before the text is read chorally.

● Once the text is fully understood and digested, the class teacher will ask a series of questions on the text to help develop the pupils’ comprehension skills.

Pupils who need further support to read and understand a text are provided with in-school interventions and a copy of the text is sent home to allow them to read it throughout the week. We recognise that for some pupils, the opportunity to repeatedly read a text can have a positive impact on their reading confidence and abilities.

Phonics and reading

Reading is the key that unlocks the whole curriculum, so the ability to efficiently decode is essential. Children at North Ealing are taught to read primarily through the Read Write Inc (RWI) Phonic Programme, which is aimed at emerging readers and teaches synthetic phonics. RWI is a method of learning centred round letter sounds and phonics, and we use it to aid children in their reading and writing.

Using RWI, the children learn to read effortlessly so that they can put all their energy into comprehending what they read. It also allows them to spell effortlessly so that they can focus more on composing) what they write. The children are grouped by ability within their year group and receive a daily session of planned systematic phonics delivery, with a wide opportunity for application of skills through the curriculum.
When using RWI to read, the children will:

● Learn that sounds are represented by written letters

● Learn 44 sounds and the corresponding letter/letter groups using simple picture prompts

● Learn how to blend sounds

● Learn to read words using Fred Talk

● Read lively stories featuring words they have learned to sound out

● Show that they comprehend the stories by answering questions.

Our aim is for children to complete the RWI Phonics programme by the end of Year 2. Children then consolidate their phonic knowledge by following the RWI Spelling programme. Children throughout years 3-6 are given weekly spellings to learn and are then tested via a weekly spelling test.

RWI Phonics is also taught in KS2 to children who are new to English or have specific learning needs.
As part of the English curriculum in Reception and Key Stage One, each child takes part in at least one guided reading session each week outside of the English lesson, encouraging children to further develop their fluency and comprehension skills.

Throughout Key Stage 2, pupils are exposed to a range of materials and use their knowledge of words, sentences and texts to understand and respond to the meaning. They increase their ability to read challenging and lengthy texts independently. They reflect on the meaning of texts, analysing and discussing them with others and building comprehension skills. The principles of our reading fluency program also apply to reading across the curriculum.

At this stage, children have the opportunity to discuss various assessment foci in a supportive way delving in between the lines to gain further meaning, inference and deduction. Children are also taught to look for meaning beyond the words and make connections between different parts of texts. In Years 1 to 6, reading comprehension skills are included weekly within the English curriculum.

Reading is assessed against national guidelines allowing teachers to make accurate judgments regarding a child’s reading ability.

Writing

Pupils start to enjoy writing and see the value of it. From EYFS onwards, they learn to communicate meaning in narrative and non-fiction texts and spell and punctuate correctly.

Throughout our school, the children learn vocabulary, grammar, sentence construction and how to plan their writing. Children are taught rich composition skills using adventurous vocabulary, sequencing ideas and events and recounting information in a clear structure to a high standard to suit the purpose and its reader. Children are then taught to draft and redraft their work, making substitutions, developing their ideas and vocabulary with right discussions which then extends their writing into exciting texts. The children have discussions about their writing as if they were authors as well as readers.

Punctuation is also taught within English lessons in order to clarify or enhance meaning. In addition, spelling, grammar and punctuation are also taught discretely to ensure full coverage and understanding.

As they develop, children gain an understanding and appreciation for non-fiction and non-literary genres such as: persuasion argument, explanation, instruction and descriptive writing. They are also taught how to write diaries, autobiographies, biographies and letters. Children are taught to identify and use the most appropriate vocabulary for each text type as well as structural and organisational features such as paragraphing and sub-headings.

Children are also exposed to a range of modern fiction by a diverse range of significant children’s authors, long-established children’s fiction with exciting new texts too. They study high-quality poetry, classic poetry, play scripts, fiction from different cultures and traditions, myths, legends and traditional stories.

Children are set a range of writing tasks throughout the academic year, to ensure a broad range of outcomes are achieved. Each half term, children will write at least 2 pieces of extended writing, based on their core text. At the end of an extended piece of writing, the pupils will conduct a ‘reflect and review’ session, which gives them the opportunity to be exposed to quality writing by their peers, as well as discussing their own successes and reflecting on areas for improvement.

Handwriting and presentation

At North Ealing Primary we follow the Nelson handwritingprogramme. We ensure the children take pride in their work and from Reception children are taught how to:

● write by holding a pencil properly,

● write from left to right across the page

● form letters in an appropriate size with finger spaces,

● produce clear, well formed, legible writing that is consistent and neat in appearance.

Teachers have high expectations in the presentation of work in all areas of the curriculum. Handwriting is modelled daily and is specifically taught during discrete, weekly sessions.

A teacher should demonstrate the correct letter formation and the children should practise it. The teacher should monitor the formation of the letters. As children master joining and correct formation, the focus should be on writing neatly, consistently and at a reasonable speed. In the Early years and Key Stage 1, letter formation is linked to phonics teaching. When ‘special friends’ are taught, two or more letters making one sound, letter joins are introduced. Therefore, by the end of Year 1 children should be able to join most letters consistently.

Cursive handwriting is consolidated in Year 2 and from Year 3 and 4, children are awarded a pen licence, when they demonstrate a consistent handwriting style. All children should use pens from Year 5 onwards. This should be used consistently in all curriculum areas except numeracy.

Handwriting intervention groups are provided for those children who require further support. Once children master joined handwriting, they should use it in every piece of work.

Spelling

RWI phonics is taught in EYFS and KS1 therefore children learn to spell alongside learning to read using synthetic phonics as the main strategy. Tricky, non-decodable words are also learned in accordance with national guidelines. The RWI Spelling Programme is used from Year 2 onwards for the majority of pupils.

Spellings are given for homework weekly and tested in class regularly. Older children are given spellings in accordance with the National Curriculum 2014. English lessons; these may cover the spellings given for homework, key words, topic or science vocabulary or common errors made by children.

The use of dictionaries is taught and encouraged and has been built into the English units of work. The children learn to self-correct when re-drafting their writing.

Contribution of English in other Curriculum areas

The skills that children develop in English are linked to, and applied in, every subject of our curriculum. The children’s skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing enable them to communicate and express themselves in all areas of their school work.

Assessment of English

Assessment is a continuous process integral to teaching and learning. It is how teachers gain knowledge of their pupils’ needs, achievements and abilities, enabling planning and delivery to be more effective; thereby raising attainment for every child.

Writing assessment

In the EYFS, pupils’ achievements are ongoing and assessed against the Early Learning Goals. All EYFS staff use Assessment for Learning (AfL) techniques and formative assessment occurs daily. We use an online platform called Tapestry, which allows us to share pupils’ achievements and progress directly with parents, providing a celebratory digital learning journal and the means to help forge strong, collaborative partnerships with families.

In KS1 and KS2 continuous assessments of writing progress are made throughout the year. Summative assessment is carried out once a half-term through assessing writing tasks against assessment marksheets in order to determine whether children are working towards, working at, or exceeding the year group expectations for writing. This data is captured in SIMs for reporting.

Children utilise success criteria on a regular basis to assess their own writing and peer marking provides opportunities for pupils to reflect on each other’s achievements and identify areas for improvement. Teachers also mark against the success criteria and provide feedback to develop children’s writing.

Reading assessment

In EYFS and Key Stage One, children are assessed daily in RWI phonic lessons. Partner work is a key feature of learning in these lessons giving the teacher opportunities to assess the reading skills of

individuals as they read out loud to their partner. The teacher assesses how children can read decodable and non-decodable words and comprehend ditty/story books.

Formal assessment is carried out periodically using the RWI phonic checks. This allows for achieving homogeneity within each group and indicates the correct access point for new entrants.

National guidelines are used to track the progress of all children in reading across different areas of the curriculum. This assessment information is used to inform planning, identify targets and estable the children’s level of reading. Formal reading tests are carried out from Year 2 – Year 6 on a termly basis. Data generated is stored on SIMs for reporting.

MAINTAINING CONSISTENCY

Standardisation

Teachers use the end of key stage objectives set by The National Curriculum when making grade judgments to ensure they are consistent with national standards.

Moderation

Teachers and support staff meet regularly to discuss evidence and to moderate pupils’ work. This is undertaken to review the accuracy and consistency of level judgements made by teachers and to confirm that these judgements are consistent and in line with the national standards. Moderation sessions are built into the phases and staff meeting timetables in order to ensure that there is consistency of grading throughout the school. Consistency of grading with other schools in Ealing is ensured through paired moderation with other schools, cluster group and borough wide moderation sessions.

National external moderation occurs on a 4 year rolling programme for the EYFS and for KS2 writing, which is coordinated through Ealing Borough.

Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEND)

Where barriers to learning are identified, the class teacher will work closely with the SENDCO and the English Co-ordinator, to ensure that difficulties are swiftly addressed as quickly as possible and a programme of learning is put into place to remove the barriers. If appropriate to their needs, the targeted children may access intervention groups including phonics, reading sessions, handwriting and grammar work. If the child is on the Special Educational needs register they will have an IEP with SMART targets that are regularly reviewed.

Roles and Responsibilities

Head Teacher and Governing Body

• Support the use of appropriate teaching strategies by allocating resources effectively

• Ensure that the school buildings and premises are best used to support successful teaching and learning

• Monitor teaching strategies in the light of health and safety regulations

• Monitor how effective teaching and learning strategies are in terms of raising pupil attainment.

• Ensure that staff development and appraisal policies promote good quality teaching.

● To have an impact on raising standards of attainment for English across the whole school.

● To ensure programs used by NEPS are planned and taught in accordance with National Curriculum expectations.

● To ensure that teaching and learning in English in NEPS is consistent and of a high standard.

● To monitor the whole school and individual needs to be able to assess individual professional development opportunities and needs.

● To maintain the availability of high quality resources.

● To maintain an overview of current trends and developments within the subject.

● To ensure, together with the head teacher, a rigorous and effective programme of monitoring is in place

● To ensure a regular and effective programme of analysis of children’s work samples and moderation of attainment is in place.

● To ensure a regular and effective programme of analysis of short-term planning is in place.

● To ensure there is regular reviewing and monitoring of children’s individual targets.

● To effectively manage the English budget.

● Make effective use of assessment for learning within English.

● To ensure work is differentiated to enable all children to reach their full potential.

We believe that parents/carers have a fundamental role to play in helping children to learn. We do all we can to inform parents about their children’s learning and the progress they are making by:

● Reading 1:1 with their pupils throughout the week in EYFS, asking questions to the children to ascertain and help guide their understanding of texts and recording this.

● Having a weekly phonics folder in Key stage 1.

● Having a Reading Record in Key stage 2 to communicate progress in reading.

● Keeping information on school pupil tracking tool up to date and holding parents’ evenings to discuss pupil’s progress.

● Explaining to parents how they can support their children with homework, through parent briefings and informal meetings and curriculum workshops.

● Sending an annual report to parents in which we explain the progress made by each child, celebrate their successes and look at next steps

● Assessment
● Equal Opportunities
● Inclusion
● S.E.N.D
● Teaching and Learning
● Handwriting
● Antiracism