“Write to be understood, speak to be heard and read to grow.” – Lawrence Clarke Powell

The INTENT of learning English at Clearwell

At Clearwell we believe that a quality Literacy (English) curriculum should foster and develop children’s love of reading, writing and discussion. We aim to inspire an appreciation of our rich and varied literary heritage and a habit of reading widely, often and for pleasure. We recognise the importance of nurturing a culture where children take pride in their writing, can write clearly and accurately and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts. We want to inspire children to be confident in the art of speaking and listening and who can use discussion to communicate and further their learning.

We believe that children need to develop a secure knowledge-base in Literacy, which follows a clear pathway of progression as they advance through the primary curriculum. We believe that a secure basis in literacy skills is crucial to a high-quality education and will give our children the tools they need to participate fully as a member of society.

Celebrating World Book Day

How English is taught at Clearwell (Implementation)

High quality texts (including visual) are used to engage children. A range of both fiction and non-fiction texts are used throughout each year to ensure breadth of learning. Teachers follow a clear process for writing: Activate prior knowledge, Discuss it, Model it, Make it your own, Support it, Independent writing. Planning is well differentiated to ensure inclusivity, high expectations and challenge. Editing is built in to lessons (both as discrete editing lessons and through proof-reading of their own work to correct spelling and punctuation errors and checking for grammatical sense) to ensure children learn this valuable skill and are able to use it more independently.

The reading scheme that we follow is ‘The Oxford Reading Tree’.  Children and parents have free access to Owford Owl for digital books. In addition to this children are read to as well as being expected to read to us and books are integral to the delivery of writing.  Teachers use aspects of Pie Corbett’s Talk for Writing, the Power of Reading to inspire children and VIPERs to practise comprehension skills.

The IMPACT of learning English at Clearwell

Our pupils enjoy reading regularly, for information, for enjoyment/pleasure and discuss books with excitement and interest. They enjoy writing and use the features of different genres and styles. They can write for different purposes and audiences and are proud of their writing. Pupils know that others value their writing. Skills progress (grammar and punctuation) throughout the school is evident in children’s books. Pupils are being adventurous with vocabulary choices.  Writing across the curriculum is the same standard as in English books. A range of genres are taught across the school resulting in pupils being exposed to, and knowledgeable about, literary styles, authors and genres. They can express preferences and give opinions, supported by evidence, about different texts.