At Wistaston Church Lane, we believe that reading is fundamental to a child's love of learning. Whether reading for pleasure or for independent study, we want children to develop the skills necessary to become confident and competent readers.

Intent

At Wistaston Church Lane Academy, we ensure our children are able to develop their love reading, writing and discussion through high quality teaching and learning. We equip our children with the skills necessary to allow them to be independent, inquisitive learners through our English curriculum which allows the children to build upon prior learning, year on year.

During their time at Church Lane, our children will develop their reading abilities, becoming enthusiastic and confident communicators. They will explore texts and discuss the similarities and differences between them; they will discuss, summarise and make predictions; they will learn how to infer information by reading between the lines; they will develop an expansive vocabulary and enjoy playing with language for various effects on the reader. Our children will explore new and classic, high-quality texts to inspire their writing and help them to develop their own style and individual flair with language.

At Church Lane, we believe that a secure grounding in literacy skills is crucial to gaining the best education; an education that will allow our children to stand out and participate fully as valued members of our society. Our English curriculum aims to ensure that:

  • read easily, fluently and with good understanding
  • develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
  • acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language
  • appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage

Implementation

At Church Lane, we use the Pathways to Read programme of study from Year 2 to Year 6 to deliver our reading sessions. EYFS and Year 1and 2 focus on the teaching of phonics through the Rocket Phonics scheme with class reading books which instil a love of books and reading in the children.

At Church Lane, we identify children who need support and provide intervention in the most effective and efficient way that we can. We run intervention reading groups and are fortunate to have parents, governors and volunteers who come in regularly to hear children read. Most children on the SEND register have reading and comprehension as one of their targets. Teachers plan and teach three 20-minute whole-class lessons, using quality text examples, which focus heavily on developing vocabulary and practising the key reading skills of inference; prediction; explaining; retrieval; summarising. We help each child maximise their potential by providing help and support where necessary, whilst striving to make children independent workers once we have helped to equip them with the confidence, tools and strategies that they need.

In Key Stage 2, we use Accelerated Reader to inform teachers of the attainment and progress of the children in their class. Accelerated reader offers the children an opportunity to check their understanding through quiz questions based on the texts they have read.  This encourages children to read more, whilst also allowing teachers to see how well children are answering specific question types. This allows for targeted work in reading lessons and interventions in order to hone the skills the children are finding most difficult.

We love to celebrate success of all learners and strive to help all children achieve their goals. Reading is celebrated in classrooms and around school at Church Lane, where our bright and colourful displays celebrate children’s writing, their favourite books and reading reward schemes. 

Impact

Through the teaching of phonics at Church Lane, our aim is for children to become fluent readers by the end of Key Stage One. This way, children can focus on developing their fluency and comprehension as they move through the school. Attainment in reading is measured using the statutory assessments at the end of Key Stage One and Two. These results are measured against the reading attainment of children nationally. Attainment in phonics is measured by the Phonics Screening Test at the end of Year 1. However, we firmly believe that reading is the key to all learning and so the impact of our reading curriculum goes beyond the results of the statutory assessments. The children are regularly assessed throughout the year using NFER and accelerated reader ‘star assessment’ which informs teachers of the attainment of the children. This can support interventions or challenges to ensure the children reach their full potential in reading. We give all children the opportunity to enter the magical worlds that books open up to them. We promote reading for pleasure as part of our reading curriculum. Children are encouraged to develop their own love of genres and authors and to review their books objectively. This enhances a deep love of literature across a range of genres, cultures and styles.

Cultural Capital

At Church Lane, our children are equipped with the necessary skills to become excellent communicators. Through reading, they will develop an appreciation of the nuances of language that make ours so interesting. As reading is so integral to becoming independent learners and creative and informative writers, we aim to ensure that our children are given the best start possible in becoming valued members of society. 

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Intent

At Wistaston Church Lane Academy, we WRITE like AUTHORS!

We see writing as a fundamental life skill and intrinsic to our children’s educational achievement. Therefore, we place a strong emphasis on the teaching and learning of all aspects of the subject including: composition, vocabulary, spelling, handwriting, punctuation and grammar. All children are encouraged to become creative and fluent writers, who are able to communicate their ideas effectively and express their thoughts, feelings and ideas in a range of contexts.

Quality texts are used to inspire children and build a wide and varied knowledge of authors and genres. Pupils use these to shape their own writing, as they learn new skills to help them plan, draft and organise their work in a variety of ways. They are encouraged to become reflective learners, who are able to proofread, edit and improve their own work, and take pride in producing high quality writing.

We believe that children should be given the opportunity to write for a range of purposes, which will enable them to become active members of the wider community, both now and in the future. We aim to instil a love of writing that lasts a lifetime and encourage pupils of all backgrounds and abilities to recognise themselves as successful writers.

Implementation

At Wistaston Church Lane Academy, follow a programme of study called Pathways to Write by The Literacy Company. This is supplemented with our own additional units of work. 

We use a text-based approach to the teaching and learning of writing, providing a context for children to base their work around. Each half term, year groups are provided with a high-quality picture book as their focus. They explore the book using a range of activities which develop their understanding of the text as well as their writing skills. 

At the start of a unit, pupils will engage in a warm-up write to assess their previously taught skills. They will then learn a range of punctuation and grammar skills, which they will apply to various written tasks that allow them to master each one in a range of contexts.  Each unit culminates in the children producing an extended piece of writing which will bring together all of the skills they have learnt.  They will then go through a short editing process.

Spelling/Phonics and Handwriting lessons are taught discretely.

Impact

At Wistaston Church Lane Academy, units of work for writing are designed to be inspiring and engaging, allowing pupils an opportunity to express themselves in a variety of ways. High quality teaching and learning in the subject means that a good level of progress is evident throughout, and that all needs are catered for.

Pupils will:

  • Develop an appreciation for a range of writing styles and genres.
  • Understand the process of writing and take pride in producing high quality work.
  • Learn skills and concepts that allow them to write with accuracy and meaning, including aspects of spelling, punctuation and grammar.
  • Broaden their vocabulary to express themselves clearly and effectively.
  • Use their imaginations and adopt a range of strategies to write with creativity.
  • Reflect on their own writing and that of others, and revise their work where necessary.
  • Become confident writers, who feel empowered to communicate their ideas successfully for a range of different purposes.

Cultural Capital

At Wistaston Church Lane Academy, we recognise that writing is an essential life skill, and as such, we ensure that pupils leave school with the following characteristics for a successful future.

Pupils will:

  • Have an awareness of purpose and audience when undertaking a written task, and have the ability to adapt their writing accordingly.
  • Plan their writing to meet the needs of the reader and their overall aim and purpose.
  • Have the confidence to share their thoughts, feelings and ideas through writing in a range of contexts.
  • Express themselves clearly, accurately, concisely and effectively to evoke a desired response.
  • Use a rich and varied vocabulary.
  • Communicate successfully with others, allowing them to make a positive contribution to their local and global communities.
  • Gain a love and appreciation for the power of the written word and use this to inspire and share with others.

Children learn to read by using phonics throughout the EYFS and KS1. At Wistaston Church Lane we use the ‘Rocket Phonics’ scheme.

Rocket Phonics has a simple mission: to ensure every learner becomes a lifelong reader and writer.

The proven story-based approach by literacy expert Abigail Steel puts a love of reading at the heart of phonics. By working with primary schools, they have created a next-generation programme that will raise phonics attainment, develop wider literacy skills, ignite a love for books in our learners, and put the joy back into  teaching. Rocket Phonics is aligned to Letters and Sounds and validated by the DfE. 

Intent

At Wistaston Church Lane we strive to teach children to read effectively and quickly using The Rocket Phonics teaching programme. This includes teaching synthetic phonics, sight vocabulary, decoding and encoding words, as well as spelling and accurate letter formation. In addition to this, it also creates a wonderful platform for discussion and comprehension around texts. This structure of teaching uses the phonic phases that are outlined in the ‘letters and sounds’ programme. The scheme uses lots of repetition to embed learning and progresses in difficulty.

Implementation

At Wistaston Church Lane, we recognise that reading and writing is an essential life skill and we are dedicated to enabling our children to become enthused, engaged and successful lifelong readers and writers. Successful readers have better self-esteem and confidence in other subjects. 

The Rocket Phonics programme teaches the letter/sound correspondences of the English alphabetic code explicitly and comprehensively for reading and spelling.  The sounds and key vocabulary words are colour coded and match to our corresponding reading books. 

Initially children's listening skills are developed through the use of music, environmental sounds and rhyme, during their journey through nursery. Throughout the Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1, they are taught the 44 phonemes (sounds) that make up all the sounds required for reading and spelling. These phonemes include those made by just one letter 'b as in bed' and those that are made by two 'ai as in rain or three letters 'igh as in high'. 
Children are taught the key skills of blending sounds together for reading and segmenting (breaking up) words for spelling. 

As the children grow in confidence and experience, they are introduced to alternative ways of representing the same sound, eg 'ee' can be represented as 'ee, as in bee', 'ea as in tea', 'e-e as in theme' and 'e as in we'. They also learn when to apply simple spelling rules and use verbs in the correct tense. 

We ensure that our teaching of phonics is rigorous, structured and enjoyable. In Reception to Year 2, children have discrete, daily phonics sessions where they are introduced to new phonemes, explore, practise and revise previous learning and have plenty of opportunities to apply the knowledge they have. We teach phonics in classes but differentiate into smaller groups when necessary. 
We use a range of multisensory strategies to enthuse and engage the children, including the use of interactive whiteboards, speaking and listening games, and practical activities. Children work with pace and are encouraged to apply their knowledge across the whole curriculum.

Impact

By the time children leave KS1 and progress into KS2, children have a good understanding of the alphabetic code and have become confident resourceful readers and writers who reflect upon their learning.  Children have been subjected to a wide variety of texts, both from their own individual reading as well as those shared with the class. As a result, children have a thirst for reading and are able to participate in discussions, ask probing questions and apply their skills across the curriculum.

Throughout the teaching of Rocket Phonics we are able to measure the children’s attainment after each colour level and provide children with correct additional support to either help embed their learning or provide them with the next level of challenge.  In addition, we are able to see the impact of this programme with their progress in the Year One phonics screening check. We are able to use all this to make sure that the teaching of good synthetic phonics continues to follow those children that need it throughout their primary education.

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