English Curriculum
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English Curriculum Intent
"English sits at the heart of our curriculum and develops our children’s love of reading, writing and the spoken word.
Reading has a central place in the learning experience of all children so we make reading the key focus of our English curriculum. Children are immersed in the wonders of high quality texts, combined with learning reading skills that are embedded across the whole curriculum. We instil a life-long passion for reading, unlocking a rich reading culture drawn from a varied literary heritage. Alongside this, our systematic approach to synthetic phonics ensures that all children are able to learn to read regardless of ability and background.
Using what they have read as a stimulus for their writing, our intent is for our pupils to become fluent, articulate and enthusiastic writers for a variety of purposes and audiences. We provide the children with a range of opportunities to combine the formal conventions of the English language, such as spelling and grammar, whilst continuing to fuel their creativity.
Spoken language underpins the development of reading and writing so we encourage children to be confident in the arts of speaking and listening and to use discussion to develop their learning."
"English sits at the heart of our curriculum and develops our children’s love of reading, writing and the spoken word.
Reading has a central place in the learning experience of all children so we make reading the key focus of our English curriculum. Children are immersed in the wonders of high quality texts, combined with learning reading skills that are embedded across the whole curriculum. We instil a life-long passion for reading, unlocking a rich reading culture drawn from a varied literary heritage. Alongside this, our systematic approach to synthetic phonics ensures that all children are able to learn to read regardless of ability and background.
Using what they have read as a stimulus for their writing, our intent is for our pupils to become fluent, articulate and enthusiastic writers for a variety of purposes and audiences. We provide the children with a range of opportunities to combine the formal conventions of the English language, such as spelling and grammar, whilst continuing to fuel their creativity.
Spoken language underpins the development of reading and writing so we encourage children to be confident in the arts of speaking and listening and to use discussion to develop their learning."
Phonics Intent/Implementation:
At GFES, our phonics is taught using a ‘synthetic phonics’ approach.
This is a method of teaching where words are broken up into the smallest units of sound (phonemes). Children learn to make connections between the letters of written texts (graphemes, or letter symbols) and the sounds of spoken language. Children are taught how to break up words, or decode them into individual sounds, and then blend all the way through the word.
In order to teach phonics in this way, we use a variety of resources to match the learning needs of our children. We use resources from a synthetic phonics programme called ‘Floppy’s Phonics’ created by Oxford Reading Tree.
Our phonics programme brings together quality resources and high levels of expertise in our phonic teaching. We also believe that our planning allows us to ensure that there is whole school consistency in teaching phonics which is in the best interests of our children.
Teachers in EYFS, Years 1 and 2 work from daily phonics plans which identify:
Reading books (using Floppy's Phonics and Oxford Reading Tree texts), which are directly aligned with the phonic learning sequences, are also used to support children's reading development.
Through the teaching of phonics, our aim is for children to become fluent readers by the end of Key Stage One. This way, children can focus on improving their fluency and comprehension as they move through the school.
Children in Year 1 sit the Phonics Screening Test in the summer term. Those children who do not achieve this standard are reassessed in the summer term of Year 2.
At GFES, our phonics is taught using a ‘synthetic phonics’ approach.
This is a method of teaching where words are broken up into the smallest units of sound (phonemes). Children learn to make connections between the letters of written texts (graphemes, or letter symbols) and the sounds of spoken language. Children are taught how to break up words, or decode them into individual sounds, and then blend all the way through the word.
In order to teach phonics in this way, we use a variety of resources to match the learning needs of our children. We use resources from a synthetic phonics programme called ‘Floppy’s Phonics’ created by Oxford Reading Tree.
Our phonics programme brings together quality resources and high levels of expertise in our phonic teaching. We also believe that our planning allows us to ensure that there is whole school consistency in teaching phonics which is in the best interests of our children.
Teachers in EYFS, Years 1 and 2 work from daily phonics plans which identify:
- Revision of learnt sounds
- The sound to be taught
- Sample words to segment and blend
- Key words to be taught
- Cumulative texts to write
Reading books (using Floppy's Phonics and Oxford Reading Tree texts), which are directly aligned with the phonic learning sequences, are also used to support children's reading development.
Through the teaching of phonics, our aim is for children to become fluent readers by the end of Key Stage One. This way, children can focus on improving their fluency and comprehension as they move through the school.
Children in Year 1 sit the Phonics Screening Test in the summer term. Those children who do not achieve this standard are reassessed in the summer term of Year 2.
Reading Intent/Implementation:
Reading allows us to be transported from our own world to another. Between the pages of a book, we can become immersed in the lives of fictional characters and learn about a culture entirely different from our own. We can also learn new words and phrases, experience a range of emotions, and acquire skills and knowledge.
We firmly believe that reading is the key to all learning and so the impact of our reading curriculum goes to the heart of our curriculum. We give all children the opportunity to enter the magical worlds that books open up to them. We promote reading for pleasure as part of our reading curriculum. Children are encouraged to develop their own love of genres and authors and to review their books objectively. This enhances a deep love of literature across a range of genres, cultures and styles
The effects of reading on child development are vast and multiple studies have highlighted its benefits. As such, the reading curriculum at GFES ensures reading is a key part of our children’s journey in school.
Alongside opportunities to read for pleasure, we teach and support the children’s development of the reading skills required to allow children to access high-quality texts across the school. These texts are drawn from a variety of genres and, together, create a varied literary culture for our children to enjoy. Our aim is to ensure all children are life-long readers.
The reading skills taught can be summarised as follows:
Key stage 1:
Reading allows us to be transported from our own world to another. Between the pages of a book, we can become immersed in the lives of fictional characters and learn about a culture entirely different from our own. We can also learn new words and phrases, experience a range of emotions, and acquire skills and knowledge.
We firmly believe that reading is the key to all learning and so the impact of our reading curriculum goes to the heart of our curriculum. We give all children the opportunity to enter the magical worlds that books open up to them. We promote reading for pleasure as part of our reading curriculum. Children are encouraged to develop their own love of genres and authors and to review their books objectively. This enhances a deep love of literature across a range of genres, cultures and styles
The effects of reading on child development are vast and multiple studies have highlighted its benefits. As such, the reading curriculum at GFES ensures reading is a key part of our children’s journey in school.
Alongside opportunities to read for pleasure, we teach and support the children’s development of the reading skills required to allow children to access high-quality texts across the school. These texts are drawn from a variety of genres and, together, create a varied literary culture for our children to enjoy. Our aim is to ensure all children are life-long readers.
The reading skills taught can be summarised as follows:
Key stage 1:
Key Stage 2:
The texts used are listed here: English Reading Curriculum Map
The reading of the text is intertwined with the learning of reading skills and our children relish the challenges of unpicking a book and understanding not just the story but the use of language and authorial intent.
The importance of reading for children cannot be underestimated. Reading for pleasure can benefit a child’s education, social and cognitive development, their wellbeing, and their mental health. At GFES, our rich reading curriculum allows the children to appreciate the power and wonder of reading, giving them the confidence to explore their own reading choices independently.
Attainment in reading is measured using the statutory assessments at the end of Key Stage One and Two. These results are measured against the reading attainment of children nationally.
The reading of the text is intertwined with the learning of reading skills and our children relish the challenges of unpicking a book and understanding not just the story but the use of language and authorial intent.
The importance of reading for children cannot be underestimated. Reading for pleasure can benefit a child’s education, social and cognitive development, their wellbeing, and their mental health. At GFES, our rich reading curriculum allows the children to appreciate the power and wonder of reading, giving them the confidence to explore their own reading choices independently.
Attainment in reading is measured using the statutory assessments at the end of Key Stage One and Two. These results are measured against the reading attainment of children nationally.
Writing Intent/Implementation:
Learning to write is one of the most important things that a child will do at primary school. Almost all other areas of the curriculum are assessed through writing, so we believe that the ability to articulate thoughts and express ideas through written work is one of the keys to academic success.
The National Curriculum divides writing into two broad areas:
At GFES, we focus on effective transcription and creative composition. Our writing curriculum is based around key texts, which complement the reading curriculum.
The texts used are listed here: English Writing Curriculum Map
Handwriting is taught through the Nelson Handwriting scheme. Further information can be found by clicking here.
Spelling is taught through acquisition of key word spellings alongside the ‘No Nonsense’ spelling programme.
Grammar and Punctuation is taught in line with the National Curriculum and is taught both as a discrete subject and as embedded skills to be reflected in the writing produced by our pupils.
Please see below for an overview of both composition and transcription aims for the GFES writing curriculum:
Learning to write is one of the most important things that a child will do at primary school. Almost all other areas of the curriculum are assessed through writing, so we believe that the ability to articulate thoughts and express ideas through written work is one of the keys to academic success.
The National Curriculum divides writing into two broad areas:
- Transcription covers the technical aspects of writing: handwriting, spelling, grammar and punctuation.
- Composition is about sharing their ideas and thinking about the purpose for their writing.
At GFES, we focus on effective transcription and creative composition. Our writing curriculum is based around key texts, which complement the reading curriculum.
The texts used are listed here: English Writing Curriculum Map
Handwriting is taught through the Nelson Handwriting scheme. Further information can be found by clicking here.
Spelling is taught through acquisition of key word spellings alongside the ‘No Nonsense’ spelling programme.
Grammar and Punctuation is taught in line with the National Curriculum and is taught both as a discrete subject and as embedded skills to be reflected in the writing produced by our pupils.
Please see below for an overview of both composition and transcription aims for the GFES writing curriculum:
In addition to these composition skills, we expect the children to develop these grammar skills.
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Attainment in writing is measured using the statutory assessments at the end of Key Stage One and Two. These results are measured against the writing attainment of children nationally.
