English at Eastrop
At Eastrop, our Writing leader is Mrs Chappell-King.Our English Vision for Eastrop
At Eastrop Infant school we want all children to develop a life-long love of reading, writing, language and communication. We believe that reading should be at the centre of the children’s learning and we deliver our English curriculum as part of our book led curriculum. Through our book led curriculum we ensure that all children explore high quality children’s literature which will interest, inspire and excite their learning.
Our approach to teaching English is underpinned by engaging learners in curriculum that places high quality children’s literature in the centre of their learning. By exploring these texts, children of all abilities develop the skills to become confident speakers and then transfer these skills into their written compositions.
We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum and National Curriculum for KS1 across our school.
Outside of our English lessons, we also deliver discreet phonics, handwriting, spelling and reading sessions.
For more information about reading and phonics at Eastrop please see our separate page.
Writing
At Eastrop Infant School we want to make sure every child enjoys being a creative and skilled writer. We aim for all children to be excited about the effect that their writing will have on anyone who reads it. To make writing purposeful for the children, we plan writing opportunities which are based around a range of high quality stimuli including books, visits, video clips or experiences.
Through our English lessons we engage the children’s learning by exploring different genres of writing, such as; narratives, instructions, explanations, persuasion, descriptions, comparisons, summaries and evaluations. We aim to make writing fun, creative, purposeful and stimulating for our children by engaging their interests.
We value and celebrate all children’s efforts and achievements in writing in many ways. This includes rewarding certificates during our celebration assemblies, class books, sharing pieces with other classes and displays on the walls around the school.
Approaches to Supporting Writing
At Eastrop Infant School we use a range of approaches to support and extend all children's writing.
- Modelled write - A piece of writing is prepared by the class teacher who models and demonstrates the skills required to the children.
- Guided write - A piece of writing completed as a group with the adult scribing and using questioning to develop their writing choices.
- Paired write – A piece of writing which the children complete in pairs to enable them to discuss their writing choices.
As I walked slowly along the shore, my feet started to sink into the sand. I quietly whispered to myself, "There's no hope here". But when all hope seemed lost I slowly felt my feet again. They felt like they were stronger. I crawled onto the sand and saw the water crashing. I felt like I could taste the salty air on my tongue and I could almost hear the slightest sound of quiet. That was literally the only thing I could hear, but then I heard the waves too. I felt like I was going to fall in...
Jack, Year 2 - Independent, descriptive writing based on 'The Storm Whale' by Benji Davies.
Spelling
In Year 1 and Year 2 we use the Spelling Shed which is a progressive spelling scheme based upon objectives from the National Curriculum. This outlines the spelling patterns for each year group, the order they should be taught in and spelling lists for the children to practise at home. Teachers in Year 1 and Year 2 plan and teach discrete spelling lessons. Each week a new spelling pattern is introduced and the children investigate this through a range of engaging activities and resources. The spelling patterns are often revisited and referred to in English lessons and Topic Writing lessons to deepen the children's understanding.
Handwriting
At Eastrop Infant School we believe that every child should be enabled to develop a fluent legible style of handwriting. Through our Handwriting and English lessons we ensure that children use capital and lower case letters appropriately and the letter size is consistent. In the week, we will provide opportunities for children to develop and practice the relevant skills and we ensure that we provide targeted support to any child experiencing difficulty.
In Reception the children take part in squiggle whilst you wiggle sessions. This is where the children will learn a new gross motor movement to a piece of music. They will dance using this movement and use it to make marks, this can be in foam, on paper, in sand etc. These sessions are great fun but most importantly help the children to be confident mark makers. The children then use and apply these skills to print letters accurately.
In Year 1 and Year 2 we introduce and use the Debbie Hepplewhite pre cursive and cursive handwriting resources when the children are ready to join their letters.
Progression
We have created progression document to show how the teaching of Writing changes and evolves from Nursery to the end of KS1 (ages 2-7)
Please click this link to see our Progression document for Writing.
Key Information for Parents
Meeting age related in KS1