Intent
Reading and phonics are at the heart of our curriculum. Our curriculum is design to embed a love of reading for all children and to engage them with language rich, high quality texts. We understand that children enter our school with limited vocabulary so the intent is to promote the mastery of language through structured teaching of vocabulary. A consistent well planned curriculum ensures depth within a teaching sequence and overtime. A love for literacy will develop a child’s creativity and imagination enabling children to write for a purpose and express themselves. Our English curriculum will open up the whole curriculum for our children and take them beyond into their adult lives.
Implementation
Powerful Knowledge and Literacy
Reading is the priority at Jackfield Infant School, since it is vital for access to the rest of the curriculum. The children’s progress will depend on high- quality teaching of reading. Reading is taught through guided reading which takes place 3 or 4 times a week in a reading squad style. The fully decodable Jolly Phonics scheme books are used in Guided reading. ‘Share with me’ decodable books are sent home to enable children to practise and embed their learning. This will enable them to practise the skills they have learnt until they can use them automatically. High structured teaching of phonics takes place using the ‘Jolly Phonics’ programme. The consistency of the programme ensures children feel secure and confident through the established routines. This allows them to focus on the new learning introduced whilst building upon the foundations of previous learning. Direct teaching of phonics takes place every day for all children from the start of the reception year, including teaching correct letter formation. Phonics in Nursery focuses on fundamental aspects of sound discrimination. There is also a high importance placed upon the development of gross and fine motor skills through implementation of Dough Disco and Squiggle time. The use of songs and rhymes is embedded in the school day to support early phonics and reading. Daily ‘Love to Read’ (story time) sessions promote a love of reading by using Pie Corbett’s Reading Spine to ensure progression. The Reading Spine is a store of classics and essential reads that help children engage at a deeper level and enter the world of the story. Oracy is taught using through structured teaching of vocabulary using a mastery approach. The teaching of vocabulary is planned across all subjects. This ensures an increased rate of word acquisition which supports both reading comprehension and writing. Expectations are developed from use of the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework and the National Curriculum for KS1.
Excellence for All
Teachers will use all available tools to ensure the teaching is pitched at the correct level and any gaps in children’s phonic knowledge will be identified. Children who need extra support will be identified and additional daily phonics practice will be planned with a well-trained adult.
Wider World
Literacy links are made within the local area through links with the National Literacy Trust, Rotary Club and any other opportunities that become available.
Through a wide range of texts and Author visits children begin to develop a thirst to know more about the world beyond their own experience.
Impact
Our Reading curriculum is at the heart of all learning and the impact of our high quality and carefully constructed curriculum allows the children to have the opportunity to enter the wide and varied worlds that reading opens up to them. Through the teaching of systematic phonics and reading skills, our aim is for children to become fluent and confident readers who can apply their knowledge and experience to a range of texts.
The impact of our writing curriculum is that all pupils enjoy writing across a range of genres, can write for a range of purposes and audiences, whilst embedding core knowledge, grammar, spelling and punctuation. They become confident and effective communicators. They acquire varied vocabulary. We aim to ensure that our pupils are proud of their writing and have the opportunity to share it with others.
We measure the impact of our curriculum through the following methods:
• Jolly Phonics assessment check
• Pre and post learning quizzes based upon our vocabulary taught
• Pupil discussions about their learning demonstrate what they remember
• Standardised assessments.
