The English Lead is Mrs Fenton

At Pirehill First School, we place English at the very heart of our curriculum. Literacy is all around us and underpins every aspect of learning, making it essential that our pupils develop the knowledge, language and skills they need to thrive. We believe that competence in reading, writing and spoken language is not only key to academic success, but also to building self-esteem, independence and resilience so that children are prepared to grow and adapt in an ever-changing world. As Phil Beadle wrote, “Literacy is the road to human progress and the means through which every child can realise his or her full potential.”

English is taught daily through a high-quality, text-based approach that inspires children to read widely, develop and use rich, ambitious vocabulary and write with confidence and purpose. Grammar and punctuation objectives are recapped at the beginning of each academic year, in the same way that place value is taught at the start of each year in mathematics. They are then taught in context within a unit of work. Handwriting and spelling are taught through the Little Wandle programme and our own carefully sequenced progression map.

The English curriculum is carefully structured to ensure that our children are exposed to a wide variety of genres, enabling them to write with a clear understanding of audience and purpose. They are provided with regular opportunities to plan, rehearse, draft and refine their ideas, producing high-quality written outcomes. Speaking and listening skills are also prioritised, with children encouraged to engage in meaningful conversations, debates and discussions both in the classroom and through whole-school opportunities.

From September, a two-year rolling cycle will be introduced in Key Stage 1 to support our mixed-age class, ensuring that all pupils are taught the full range of objectives from the National Curriculum over the two-year cycle.

Handwriting is taught in Reception to Year 2 using the programme, Little Wandle.

Children in KS2 are taught both directly in handwriting sessions and discretely within lessons across the curriculum.

Children in KS2 are assessed in September on their handwriting and may need to follow the Little Wandle Handwriting Scheme as an intervention.