Writing
Intent
All children are provided with many opportunities to; develop and apply their writing; to plan, revise and evaluate their writing, focusing on developing on both transcription and composition. They will also develop an awareness of the audience, purpose and context, and an increasingly wide knowledge of vocabulary and grammar. We aim for all pupils to leave school being able to use fluent, legible and speedy handwriting.
Implementation
At St Cuthbert's, writing begins from a very early age - as soon as a child can mark make. Gross and fine motor skills are developed through our provision within EYFS, ensuring all children developmentally prepared to form letters correctly (taught in Read Write Inc).
Across all key stages, children flow the Talk for Writing approach. In EYFS, this is primarily through oral storytelling and discussion. This supports them to structure the text and independently write in the chosen genre. In Key Stage 1 and 2, children write in various genres for a range of purposes. They analyse the model text and unpick the grammatical features and organisation, in order to apply these in their own writing.
Throughout all year groups, we teach writing through engaging and challenging texts. This supports them in the application of vocabulary and structure.
Talk for Writing is a three-week process in which the children;
| Imitate | Innovate | Independent Application |
| Children spend the week imitating the model text and being immersed in its features through games and story retelling. |
This is a guided write in which the children and the teacher work together to create a new version of the model texts, picking up on the features and skills needed to write in a particulate genre.
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The third week is spent planning and writing their own version of the story. The children are assessed on their independent writing skills.
The use of Alan Peat sentence types helps to develop the structural and technical knowledge of language and provides a framework for progression to more discerning use of different sentence constructs. |
Spelling:
Our spelling curriculum follows RWI spelling. This is short burst, daily spelling activities that follow a different rule each week. Every week, the children take home a log book that enables them to rehearse the spelling pattern at home.
Handwriting:
Children in EYFS practise letter formation as part of their daily phonics. This is carried through to Year 1 where children receive handwriting sessions. In year 2, children will learn to join their handwriting. In Key Stage 2, children continue to work on joining, legibility and writing at length, receiving a pen licence in Year Three when they can fluently write in a neat, cursive style through the curriculum. By the time children get to the end of Year Three, all children are expected to be writing in pen.