English
At Meadow View Academy, we are fully committed to delivering the National Curriculum.
Please click below for more information.
Key skills in English permeate all areas of the curriculum and contribute to the social, emotional and educational development of each child.
Children need to be able to communicate effectively and express themselves with confidence, read fluently and accurately, with understanding and with enjoyment and communicate through written language showing a clear understanding of grammar.
‘English is both a subject in its own right and the medium for teaching: for pupils, understanding the language provides access to the whole curriculum. Fluency in the English language is an essential foundation for success in all subjects’ The National Curriculum in England, July 2014.
Intent
At Meadow View Academy, we passionately believe that writing is an essential, life-long skill. We endeavour to inspire our pupils to write, igniting their imaginations and giving them the tools to help them write competently and confidently. We want our pupils to leave Meadow View with the ability to write independently, fluently and with stamina, adapting their language and style for a range of meaningful contexts, purposes and audiences. We believe that all children should be encouraged to take pride in their presentation and pupils will be encouraged to develop their own handwriting style, showcasing their work to the highest standard.
Implementation
We use the ‘I am a Clever Writer’ approach (from Reception to Year 6) which ensures a consistent, streamlined approach to writing. We closely follow a skills progression document which we teach explicitly giving the children the opportunity to then use these skills daily in their writing. Each week, in years 2-6, the children complete a star write which gives them a platform to showcase all the skills they have been taught. Year 1 pupils will complete star writes when they have completed appropriate skills. Texts are carefully chosen to ensure our pupils are exposed to a wide variety of authors and genres which are aimed to inspire their creativity and writing. Assessment for learning is a key driver when planning lessons and teaching is adapted to suit the needs of the class, embedding previously taught skills whilst also introducing new skills. Nursery have also taken the principles of this approach and have incorporated these into their daily English sessions. There is an emphasis on ensuring correct letter formation and developing language skills to support the writing process.
Impact
We believe this approach has been instrumental in raising standards of writing across the school and has led to high levels of engagement from our children and staff. Both pupil and staff voice show that there is a pride in work that is being produced and progress has been accelerated from the starting points in the year. Learning walks, book monitoring, summative and formative assessments and moderation all support evidence to show the impact of our writing curriculum and allow us to monitor progress across all year groups.
At Meadow View, we use a bespoke handwriting curriculum which provides a consistent approach to letter formation across our school. Children in our Foundation Stage begin using print for their letter formation, concentrating on correctly forming their letters. In Year 3, children begin to join their writing.
Spelling are incorporated in our daily writing lessons. Children are given the opportunity to practice their spelling patterns several times a week.
How we support children with SEN
Our English curriculum is designed to ensure that all pupils can access their learning, make progress and develop a positive attitude towards the subject. We provide a broad range of opportunities to develop key skills, including letter formation and handwriting, reading, comprehension, writing, speaking and drama, helping pupils to build confidence across all areas of English.
Lessons are carefully adapted through appropriate scaffolding so that pupils can take part in similar learning experiences while receiving the support they need to be successful. This may include the use of visual prompts, writing frames, vocabulary support, practical resources, modelled examples and additional adult guidance. Support is tailored to the individual needs of pupils while maintaining high expectations for everyone.
Where pupils require additional support, we also provide targeted pre-teaching and post-teaching interventions. Pre-teaching helps pupils become familiar with key vocabulary, concepts or skills before encountering them in the classroom, while post-teaching provides opportunities to revisit and consolidate learning afterwards. These approaches help pupils to develop their confidence, strengthen their understanding and become increasingly independent in their learning.
Our aim is to ensure that every pupil feels included, supported and able to experience success in English.
How we challenge children in English
In English, we aim to challenge all pupils by having high expectations and providing regular opportunities for them to think deeply about what they read, write and discuss. Lessons include high-quality texts, thought-provoking questions and activities that encourage pupils to explain their thinking, consider different viewpoints and make meaningful connections across reading, writing and spoken language.
Pupils are encouraged to develop their responses through carefully targeted questioning, examples of high-quality work and constructive feedback. They are given opportunities to edit, improve and extend their work, using increasingly ambitious vocabulary and developing their ideas in greater depth. Extended writing, independent tasks and opportunities to explore ideas beyond the immediate lesson help pupils to become confident, resilient and independent learners.
We also recognise the importance of applying English skills across the wider curriculum. Pupils are given opportunities to read, write and communicate purposefully in subjects such as Science, History, Geography and RE. This may include completing reading challenges linked to a current topic, researching independently or producing extended pieces of writing based on people, places or events they have studied. These opportunities allow pupils to transfer the skills taught in English and apply them confidently in different contexts.
Challenge is not reserved for a particular group of pupils. Tasks and additional challenges are planned with the needs of the class in mind and are available to all pupils, enabling each child to work towards greater depth and independence.
Spelling
Please click on the documents below to view the spellings your child should know by the end of each year group.