English
Writing
The Writing Process
At St. Mary of the Angels, we believe that a child’s learning should be meaningful and contextualised. All of our learning is organised according to a whole-school theme which focuses on key texts that link to our Learning Means the World curriculum, developed in partnership with Dimensions Curriculum. The themes put communication, conflict, culture and conservation, four important and highly relevant world issues known as 'The 4 C’s', at the heart of learning. Our curriculum is connected, evidences clear progression and demonstrates a consistent approach to teaching and learning throughout the school.
Teachers carefully plan English units linked to the theme, considering the knowledge, skills, vocabulary and cultural experiences that the children will need.
Every English unit starts with a ‘HOOK’ a real-experience to inspire awe and wonder in the children, for example the arrival of a mysterious parcel or a discovery within the school playground. Hot and Cold Tasks are planned at the beginning of a unit and are recorded in our Writing Assessment Books. Children produce various written outcomes across the curriculum as part of each unit. Writing in every subject is recorded in our Learning Journals-bar science.
We believe that high-quality texts are essential in raising children’s attainment in writing. We ensure that all children are exposed to celebrated children’s authors and develop a respect and appreciation for books. Key texts are chosen to accompany each thematic cycle and these usually have strong links to the theme for that term. Grammar and spelling are always embedded into English lessons. We use the Literacy Curriculum (Teach Primary Award 2022 Finalists) to support our English planning and staff training.
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English Policy Statement (The Literacy Curriculum) | [pdf 224KB] |
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Intent
At St.Mary of the Angels we believe the exposure of children’s literature within the primary school setting is vital as a rich context for learning; not only within English as a subject but to support building a reading culture throughout the school.
In order to prepare our children for the future, our goal is for every child to develop a love for Literacy and to leave our school as confident writers who are able to:
- enjoy the activity of writing across the curriculum.
- develop the knowledge and skills need to become critical thinkers and informed writers.
- use composition, grammar, spelling and handwriting skills to become effective communicators in writing.
We aim to:
- teach a wide range of exciting and real writing opportunities, e.g. narratives, explanations, descriptions, comparisons, summaries and evaluations.
- developing pupils’ vocabulary actively, building systematically on pupils’ current knowledge.
Implementation
What does Writing look like at St Mary of the Angels?
A unit of study may last 2-6 weeks
A Cold Task is planned for pupils’ to reveal what they currently know about a specific genre and is completed after discussion and stimulus from the teacher.
Recommended writing process:
- Lesson 1- Cold Task
- Lesson 2- Hook involving drama, film, speaking and listening, event etc
- Lesson 3- Vocabulary/Star words
- Lesson 3- Reading/Exploring the text-stealing/generating/plotting ideas/story mapping/sequencing (range of activities based on our READING VIPERS)
- Lesson 4-Grammar lesson- based on the genre
- Lesson 5- Extended piece of work-writing a quality piece of narrative/poetry/non-fiction/diary entry based on the genre
- Hot Task-End of topic Writing Assessment to be recorded in our Purple Assessment Book
At St. Mary of the Angels we have developed our curriculum maps and teaching of writing so that it is relevant, engaging and challenging to all.
Click here to see the Whole School English Curriculum Map.