English
Intent
At St. Bernadette’s our intention is to provide an English Curriculum, which allows children to acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, understanding and enthusiasm to become lifelong learners. We believe reading, writing and speaking and listening are vital skills which will support the children across the whole curriculum and beyond.
We strive to ensure our pupils receive an enriched learning experience when studying all aspects of the English curriculum through high-quality teaching and the use of high-quality texts, discussion, resources and learning environments. It is our intention to instil a love of reading and lifelong learning by ensuring a strong foundation of skills and knowledge and by introducing to children the rich and diverse literary world that awaits them.
Reading, writing and speaking and listening come hand in hand. The development of one relies on the development of the other. As such, strategies for reading, writing, speaking and listening form an integral part of our planning and teaching across the curriculum.
As a school we ensure that our children are taught to read with fluency, accuracy and understanding through a variety of discreet and cross-curricular learning opportunities. Above all, we want our children to become enthusiastic, independent and reflective readers who learn to question what they read, and learn that they can find answers in what they read.
We strive to provide children with exciting, purposeful and inspiring contexts in which to write and develop their skills. In order to write effectively children must first be able to verbalise their thoughts and ideas in a coherent manner. As such, we provide a supportive environment where children are free to share their ideas; this can be done through Drama, Engagement and Active Learning (DEAL); question what they hear and work collaboratively with teachers and peers to organise their thoughts into a more coherent form appropriate for writing. We aim to ensure there is coherence and progression within our teaching so that children have the necessary foundation stones in place so that they can fully access their curriculum and write with freedom and enthusiasm.
Throughout the school, it is our intent that pupils can see the passion and enthusiasm that staff possess for English as a whole. Our love of reading, writing and lifelong learning is key to enthusing the children we teach.
Our aims:
Speaking and Listening:
We hope that our children will:
- be able to speak confidently to different audiences using appropriate language;
- listen attentively to others and respond appropriately;
- use spoken language to explore their own experiences and imaginary worlds.
Reading:
We hope that our children will:
- become enthusiastic about books and develop a love of reading;
- read a wide range of texts and genres with confidence and independence whilst developing opinions about what and who they enjoy reading;
- read with understanding and enjoyment;
- be able to analyse meanings and share their opinions of various texts.
Writing:
We hope that our children will:
- enjoy writing and see the value of it;
- be able to communicate meaning, thoughts and feelings through their written work;
- be able to write for different purposes and audiences;
- be able to reflect, criticise and amend their own written work;
- be able to draw on their own real life experiences as well as their experiences from the books they have read, and the experiences of other people, in their writing.
