Intent

At Castor Church of England Primary School, we believe that literacy and communication are key life skills. Through the English curriculum, we will help all pupils develop the skills and knowledge that will enable them to communicate effectively and creatively through spoken and written language and equip them with the skills to become lifelong learners. We want pupils to enjoy and appreciate literature and its rich variety and use their skills across the whole curriculum.

Implementation

We aim to deliver an English curriculum that meets the overarching aims as set out in the National Curriculum. We aim to develop pupil’s abilities, enjoyment and confidence in speaking, listening, reading and writing for a wide range of purposes and audiences.  As pupils become enthusiastic and critical readers of stories, poetry, non-fiction and media texts, our aim is to encourage them to express themselves creatively, imaginatively and succinctly.  Furthermore, access to literature from a variety of styles, cultures and ages, enables pupils to enrich and broaden their experiences and understanding of the world around them.

As in the national curriculum for English, our aims are to ensure that all pupils:

• 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
• write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences
• use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas
• are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate.

Impact

 Our school aims to develop literate pupils who:

• speak clearly and audibly in ways which take account of the listener.
• adapt their speech to reflect a range of circumstances and audiences.
• listen carefully to others and reflect on their ideas.
• read with confidence, fluency and understanding – orchestrating a range of independent strategies to self-monitor and correct.
• understand the phonetic alphabet and use this to decode accurately.
• read from a wide range of texts for enjoyment and information.
• write with confidence and fluency, organising the content and style of what is written to suit the purpose and audience.
• develop creativity and imagination.
• use spelling, punctuation and grammar accurately and appropriately.
• develop a fluent, joined and legible handwriting style