English

Reading

Whilst word reading and phonics are important; we know that you cannot have reading without comprehension and vice versa. Information about word reading can be found in the phonics section of the website.

High-Quality Texts

Each year group has a carefully selected collection of core books, which are used in both writing and reading sessions. These texts have been chosen based on the ‘Plagues of Reading’ to ensure that children are provided with high-quality texts across a broad range of genres, rich in language. Each of the chosen texts increases in complexity as pupils move up through the school.

Comprehension

Comprehension is an essential skill in reading. Children in the GEM Federation begin to learn key strategies and skills for comprehension from as early as two years old. Across the school, children are taught seven key comprehension skills, known as VIPERS. These are taught in a variety of sessions, from story time and Book Chat in Nursery to whole-class reading and Book Club sessions in KS2.

The VIPERS skills taught are:

Vocabulary
Inference
Prediction
Evaluation
Retrieval
Sequencing
Summarising (KS2 only)

Daily Story Time

Each class has daily story time at some point during the day. These books are chosen by the class and read by the teacher. Children love daily story time; it is an integral part of our day.

Book Chat

At the GEM Federation, we pride ourselves on giving children plenty of opportunities to develop their language skills and to foster a love of reading. Book Chat begins in Nursery and is a key part of our reading curriculum.

These sessions take place weekly in small groups, and children revisit the same book over five to six sessions. Each session focuses on a different reading skill—for example, turning pages one at a time, understanding that text is read from left to right, or following along with the words as they are read. These targeted skills help children become fully immersed in a text, exploring vocabulary and storytelling in greater detail. Throughout these sessions, the questions are carefully planned to ensure that children are asked a variety of questions relating to each of the VIPERS skills.

Children absolutely love Book Chat. In simple terms, it is an opportunity to share and talk about a book while the teacher gently guides the conversation to support their reading development and comprehension. As you can see from the photographs, it truly is one of the highlights of the children’s week.

Whole-Class Reading

From Years 2 to 6, children are taught comprehension skills as a whole class. Teachers model strategies for answering questions that relate to one of the seven VIPERS skills. During the sessions, children practise answering comprehension questions related to their core literacy book and have the opportunity to ‘uplevel’ one of the more challenging questions together in each session.

These sessions focus on the skills and strategies needed to comprehend texts, with a large proportion of the lesson based around discussion and linking the text to pupils’ wider experiences and knowledge.

Book Club

From Year 3, children also take part in weekly Book Club activities. They work in small groups to read a section of a text and are given a question to discuss among themselves. This develops not only their comprehension and understanding but also their oracy skills through group discussion.

It is also an opportunity to expand pupils’ reading repertoire, motivate them to read more or try new genres, and provide greater challenge for those who are confident readers. It also helps to foster confidence in those who may otherwise struggle or who are not yet finding as much enjoyment in reading.

Reading for Pleasure

We foster a love of reading among our children through a range of approaches, including:

Celebration days such as World Book Day and National Poetry Day
Author talks and visits
Library visits
Cosy and inviting book corners in all classes
Book giveaways
Certificates for home reading

Home Reading Policy

We expect children to read at least five times a week at home using their home reader. Parents are required to sign when their child has read to them and, where possible, leave a comment.

Children who are following the phonics scheme will read with a member of school staff once a week and will receive a comment in green pen outlining a simple target or something to practise for next time.

Any lost books or reading diaries will incur a £5.00 charge, which must be paid to the office before a new book can be issued.
Home reading is an integral part of your child’s progress. We actively encourage children to read a wide range of books and would love parents to help foster a lifelong love of reading.

Writing

At the Gem Federation, we are inclusive and believe that our writing curriculum should prepare all children for the next stage of learning, whether this be to a new year group, a new key stage or when they transition into secondary school. Our curriculum is constructed to be ambitious and designed to give all learners, no matter the individual need, ability or background, the knowledge and skills they require to succeed in life; it is coherently planned and sequenced in order to fulfil this aim.

We have high expectations of all children and intend for them to leave Year 6 as confident, fluent, independent writers who not only understand the purpose and importance of writing within the wider society but that they positively engage in the process; taking pride and personal responsibility for their part in this.

We intend for our children to be able to communicate effectively through their writing across a range of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, genres and themes, including being able to write for different levels of formality, purpose and audience - this applies to all writing opportunities, including when writing across the wider curriculum where the children are expected to apply the written and spoken language skills they have acquired from the English curriculum. We intend to immerse the children in a range of quality texts and media; exposing them to a wealth of rich vocabulary and grammatical structures that enable them to be creative and risk-takers, while maintaining a critical and reflective approach.

We intend for our curriculum to be reflective of the school community and wider world; enabling our children to not only see themselves but to develop culturally, emotionally, socially and spiritually.

Learning Across the Year Groups

EYFS

We have a strong focus on language development for our children because we know that speaking and listening are crucial skills for reading and writing. Reading and sharing stories plays a fundamental role in supporting children's language development. Children are encouraged to join in with familiar stories, and orally retell stories with each other and as a class. Throughout the learning environment, there are role play areas and activities that encourage talk.

We support and encourage children to develop their fine motor skills through a range of activities, such as using tweezers, threading beads and playing with playdough.

Children are exposed to systematic phonics teaching; they identify sounds in the environment, begin to stretch out words and identify the different sounds that make up words. Children recognise that sounds link to graphemes, and begin mark-making, building up to forming letters, writing their own name, and in Reception, joining these letter strings to make words, then constructing sentences. They can write their own ideas during their play in structured activities. Adults create opportunities that encourage language development: growing their vocabulary, giving them models for talk, and leading into writing.

Year 1

Within Year One, we aim to engage all pupils in writing activities that stimulate their creativity and imagination. Oracy is used to help foster an inclusive environment where every child feels valued and encouraged to express their thoughts within writing by saying aloud their sentences before writing them. This also gives pupils the opportunity to develop their vocabulary and to speak clearly and confidently.

Phonics is taught every day so that children can develop their understanding of spelling patterns and rules. The children are assessed every six weeks so any misconceptions can be identified and addressed.

Teachers model writing and use shared writing to demonstrate structure, language and writing techniques and give pupils a chance to see their own ideas expressed.

By the end of Year One, pupils should be able to:

write simple sentences using capital letters, finger spaces and full stops; use their phonic knowledge to spell words and segment sounds in their writing; form letters correctly and understand that presentation is important; begin to use a range of vocabulary to enhance their writing; start to use basic punctuation including question marks and exclamation marks.

Year 2

Within Year Two we aim to develop pupils’ confidence and enjoyment of writing across a range of genres. Pupils are encouraged to use oracy to help them communicate their ideas effectively and with clarity. This will also support pupils understanding of explaining ideas and events in chronological order and to give reasons for their opinions.

Opportunities are given for pupils to develop a secure understanding of the writing process, which include planning, revisiting and editing their work. Pupils are provided with opportunities to build on a piece of writing over a number of days. This helps build writing stamina and a chance for pupils to re-read, reflex and edit their writing to make improvements.

Handwriting is taught every day, with a focus on letter formation leading into joined handwriting and writing on the line. An expectation of presentation can be seen by the teacher’s model throughout a range of subjects.

Phonics or spelling pathways is taught every day to enhance pupils understanding of spelling patterns and rules. Pupils are taught grammar concepts which helps them to write accurately and learn the correct terminology to discuss writing with precision.

By the end of Year Two, pupils should be familiar with the concept of nouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs and their role in sentence construction. Pupils use the four basic sentence types: statement, question, command and exclamation sentences.

Pupils spell common exception words correctly or apply their phonetic knowledge. Pupils will independently use a range of conjunctions to create a more complex sentence.

Year 3

In year three, children begin to develop their writing across a wider range of text types, writing for real purposes and audiences. They write in more detail about settings and characters, and develop their plot in narratives.

They begin to use speech within narrative, using inverted commas based on modelled writing. Children introduce adverbs to their writing and begin to use more precise prepositions. They should begin to use more adventurous vocabulary as they begin to read more advanced texts. Sentence structure should now be embedded and used correctly. Handwriting should be joined.

Year 4

In year four, children have an increasing awareness of the correct language and form required for different fiction and non-fiction text types. They can create their own characters, setting and plot for narratives, and employ the conventions of speech with greater accuracy. Writing for a range of purposes, children demonstrate a greater awareness of grammar features, such as: prepositions, fronted adverbials and conjunctions.

They also begin to use possessive apostrophes. They maintain the use of joined handwriting throughout independent writing, and continue to learn rules for spelling words with a variety of prefixes and suffixes. They should be editing their work for spelling and using a dictionary to help with this.

Year 5

In year five, children continue to write for a range of purposes and audiences, showing a greater awareness of the intended reader. Children learn to make choices about grammar and vocabulary to use within their writing, and to select appropriate layout features for the text type. They begin to make choices around the use of sentence types for effect.

Children show greater confidence in selecting adverbials, prepositions and conjunctions to build cohesion within and between paragraphs. In narratives, children consider the balance between dialogue and action, and how dialogue can be used to move a story along. More complex punctuation is introduced. Handwriting continues to be practiced and perfected, with a focus on the tricker joins. Children continue to practice and master known spelling patterns.

Year 6

In year 6, children learn to confidently write for a range of purposes and audiences, including a focus on formal and informal writing features. They broaden their vocabulary through shared class texts, exploring how writers develop characters and plots, make decisions about vocabulary and grammar within their texts, and how different layout features are employed for different text types. They incorporate these ideas into their own writing.

They will confidently self-edit and improve their writing. Children secure the correct use of the full range of punctuation, including the use of brackets and dashes for parenthesis, and colons and semi-colons.

Speaking and Listening

Intent

Speaking and listening is vital within the Gem Federation curriculum and is developed from EYFS. We believe spoken language underpins the development of reading and writing and understanding across the curriculum. The quality and variety of language that pupils hear and speak are vital for developing their vocabulary and grammar and their understanding for reading and writing. Through developing their skills and ability in spoken language and listening, pupils are enabled to communicate their understanding and clarify their thinking.

Implementation

Through our curriculum, the learner as a speaker & listener is taught to:

listen carefully and attentively in a range of contexts
speak clearly and convey ideas confidently using Standard English including reading aloud
justify ideas with reasons
ask questions to check understanding;
develop vocabulary and build knowledge across the curriculum
negotiate; evaluate and build on the ideas of others
select the appropriate register for effective communication.
give well-structured descriptions and explanations
develop their understanding through speculating, hypothesising and exploring ideas.
use and explore the spoken word in a range of contexts, including presentations, debates and drama
speak audibly and confidently before an audience

Impact

Children will leave the Gem Federation able to listen carefully and attentively and speak clearly. They will be able to ask deep and meaningful questions to improve their understanding and take part in collaborative discussions. They will be confident in speaking in a range of situations, in front of a range of audiences and be able to express their ideas clearly. Children will demonstrate the ability to use a range of vocabulary, which will mean they can fully understand what they are hearing and they are able to articulate what they want to say. They will be equipped, not only with the skills to speak and listen effectively using standard English but to be able to apply these in their everyday lives and in their next stages of education- for research, information and to explore the world.

Spelling

In Early Years and KS1, spelling is embedded within phonics lessons, as well as taught discretely in three Spelling & Handwriting lessons per week. Additionally, the children learn spelling patterns and rules through high quality texts during their English lessons. In KS2 we have introduced 'Spelling Pathways’ where the children are taught different spelling patterns and rules weekly. These are modelled through common words related to each spelling pattern, with the children then having to apply the spelling rules to known words. These words are sent home as homework each week. The following Friday, we practise the week's words in a collaborative spelling quiz in small groups. Common exception words are also identified and explored.

Handwriting

Handwriting is taught three times each week, alongside the weekly spellings, for a period of 10 to 15 minutes. In Early Years and KS1, handwriting is taught alongside phonics, while in KS2 handwriting is embedded alongside word level work and spellings. We also use the Letter-join Handwriting Scheme: https://www.letterjoin.co.uk/

Letter Join at Home

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Phonics Scheme

Introduction to Phonics at Goodrich

At Goodrich Primary School, we believe that all our children can become fluent readers and writers. This is why we teach reading through Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, which is a systematic synthetic phonics programme. We start teaching Little Wandle Foundations in our Nursery and then, from Reception, we follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised progression which ensures children build on their growing knowledge of the alphabetic code, mastering phonics to read and spell as they move through school. As a result, all our children are able to tackle any unfamiliar words as they read.

What is Phonics?

Phonics teaches children to link the sounds (phonemes) in spoken language to the letters (graphemes) that represent them in written language. This helps children to decode (read) new words and develop early spelling skills.

For example, the word “cat” can be broken into three sounds: c – a – t. By learning to blend these sounds together, children can read unfamiliar words and begin to write independently.

The Gem Federation

The GemFederation