English
At Stepney Greencoat, we understand that developing a love of reading has an incredibly important impact on the future success of our pupils, both academically and in terms of their wellbeing. With this in mind, we thread stories into all aspects of our curriculum and have introduced carefully designated reading spines in each class that are designed to develop our pupils love of reading.
From Kipper’s Party in Reception - read to support the termly topic ‘Let’s Celebrate!’ - to Fireweed by Jill Paton Walsh - read by Year 6 pupils to better understand the human stories experienced during World War II - our pupils are exposed to a rich mixture of texts. In Key Stage 1 and 2 we also plan and teach specific reading lessons to hone in on the fundamental skills needed to succeed.
At Stepney Greencoat, our aim, in line with the national curriculum, is to ensure that our 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, 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 - 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
Across the curriculum, whenever possible, teachers plan opportunities for pupils to spend time rehearsing texts orally, through drama and other activities, to support language learning, help develop ideas and build confidence before writing.
Our teachers support pupils in the writing phase using a variety of methods including shared collaborative writing and integrated grammar tasks relating to the text they are planning to write.
Spelling is taught weekly using a whole school overview – the focus words and strategies are fed into lessons to ensure pupils can rehearse and consolidate.
English – "Learning Together for Life"
Learning: “One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world.” - Malala Yousafzai
Together: “Reading is an exercise in empathy; an exercise in walking in someone else’s shoes for a while.” - Malorie Blackman
Life: “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” - Dr. Seuss
