At Lowerhouse Junior School, we use “Talk for Writing” Units to develop writing skills. We intend to develop a love of writing. We give the children the opportunity to explore their thoughts and feelings through writing by unlocking their imagination and enhancing their problem-solving and critical thinking skills. We aim to provide pupils with an education in English and expose them to a range of writing techniques and writing genres for specific audiences. We teach pupils to speak, read and write fluently, so that, they can communicate their ideas and emotions to others effectively and develop their confidence and stamina for writing. We recognise the importance of developing a culture where children take pride in their writing across the curriculum. We continue to promote a strong emphasis on presentation and handwriting in school work.

We believe the best writers are always readers. Indeed, it would be impossible to write a text type without being familiar with the language rhythms and patterns. So reading influences writing – indeed, the richness, depth and breadth of reading shapes and determines the writer that we become. If a child’s reading is meagre then their writing will inevitably be thin. Children who write proficiently are always readers. It is impossible to write a text type without being familiar with the language patterns. Indeed, it is impossible to write a sentence pattern without being able to say it – and you cannot say it, without hearing it. Language is primarily learned through interactive ‘hearing’ and ‘saying’. Talk can then be enhanced by constant reading and may, ultimately, be shaped by writing. (Primary Writing Project, 2021)

The aims of our Writing curriculum is to deliver a curriculum that is accessible to all pupils, so they know more, remember more and understand more. Our Writing curriculum aims to:

• Foster a sense of writing for pleasure in all pupils.
• Develop writing stamina across the wider curriculum.
• Enable our children to use writing as a way of expressing themselves.
• Do everything we can to ensure our pupils leave primary school with basic writing skills to enable them to be successful in the next phase of their school journey and beyond.

For writing, we have implemented a whole school, cumulative and systematic process for teaching writing and other literacy skills. The aim is to help children make progress and gain confidence and pleasure as a writer.

In Key Stage 2, the movement from imitation to innovation to independent application is adapted to suit the needs of pupils at every stage. This approach enables children to write independently for a variety of purposes, form and audiences for English and the different curriculum subjects. A key feature is that children internalise the language structures needed to write through ‘talking the text’, use actions to support the language, as well as, reading model texts. This approach moves from dependence towards independence, with teachers using shared and guided teaching, to develop the ability in children to write creatively and powerfully.

In addition to this, Lowerhouse Junior School has established core texts of fiction, poetry and non-fiction that all children can experience and draw upon. Units of work have been developed to create a whole-school plan that is well documented; enabling teachers to focus on adapting their teaching for children’s learning.

Writing Scheme

Pupils work through the different stages of their unit to develop their writing skills:

1) Baseline Assessment and Planning - Cold Task

2) The Imitation Phase

3) The Innovation Phase

4) Independent Application and Invention

Each unit consists of:

• Clear sequential Episodes of Learning
• Model Texts linked to writing outcomes within the unit
• Vocabulary learning and contextualised spelling, grammar and punctuation
• Wider reading for the wider curriculum
• Curriculum Enrichments
• Explicit links to the national curriculum

Units of Work

Units of work are made up of ‘episodes of learning’. These are not prescriptive individual lessons, instead they are suggested activities to be chosen and followed as needed during the unit of work. Teachers have the freedom to tweak and add activities based on teacher assessment to ensure the best outcomes for their class.

Writing is part of the English National Curriculum. The National Curriculum for English aims to ensure that all pupils in KS2:

• 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.

We promote writing for pleasure, linking to the current world and being able to access the world via different forms of modern media. Our Writing Curriculum enables pupils to:

• Become competent writers by the time they leave Lowerhouse Junior School.
• Be able to express what they have learnt across the curriculum and understand different writing genres and writing for a range of audiences.
• Use their Writing knowledge and skills in all curriculum areas, to enable them to know more, remember more and understand more.
• Make at least good progress in Writing from their last point of statutory assessment and from their starting point in Year 3.
• Access the next phase of their Writing education and beyond.

Give pupils a voice to share their ideas with the world; to express, explore and communicate emotions and the skills to write inside and outside school – anywhere and at any time.

At Lowerhouse Junior School, we believe that the teaching of reading is integral to a child’s understanding and appreciation of the world around them; a platform that allows our pupils to see beyond what they know, share in cultural experiences and develop the vocabulary they need to express themselves. We believe that all pupils should have the opportunity to be fluent, confident readers who are able to successfully enjoy, comprehend and understand a wide range of texts and vocabulary. We want pupils to develop a love of reading and a good knowledge of a range of authors.

Guided group reading is taught throughout the school. There are 5 reading lessons per week, each lasting for 30 minutes. For one session each week, children read their own books for pleasure. During these sessions, children may read to an adult, change their books and develop their own preferences re: book choice. Each class book corner is stocked with texts to engage the children. The other 4 lessons a week are taught using a text which is carefully chosen to be pitched at the level of the children in the group. Teachers plan and assess guided reading sessions using the Learning and Progression Steps (LAPS) Group Reading Grids. Planned across two-three sessions per week (depending on the age of the children), guided reading provides the opportunity for teachers to assess:

i) word reading as the child reads the text aloud, and

ii) comprehension as the teacher leads quality discussion centred around the focus skill(s) identified (see Learning and Progression Steps (LAPS) Group Reading Grids. The Lancashire Reading Domain Prompts are also used to support this assessment.

It is worth noting that guided reading provides one of the few opportunities to regularly hear a child read a text aloud that is appropriately pitched at their level. In doing so, it allows the teacher to formatively assess the child’s reading accuracy (reading words correctly), automaticity (reading without undue hesitation or the need to ‘sound out’ every word) and prosody (reading with appropriate stress, pauses and intonation). Combined, accuracy, automaticity and prosody, make up reading fluency – being able to read with, and for meaning.

Achievement will be measured through learning walks, pupil voice interviews and the outcomes of reading assessments. 

-We prioritise the assessment of reading. Pupils' home reading is monitored each half-term to assess their reading level, ensuring that pupils are reading the most appropriate books.  Pupils identified as needing additional support with their reading will be listened to regularly throughout the week. This is to support them in meeting the expected standard in reading.

-We know that reading for pleasure is beneficial not only for reading outcomes, but for wider learning enjoyment and mental wellbeing. Therefore, we work hard to foster a love of independent reading. To support this, our library is regularly updated with books, and time slots are timetabled, as well as our “Library Club” which is run by our Librarian during lunchtimes. 

-We understand the significance of parents and carers in supporting their pupils to develop both word reading and comprehension skills, so we endeavour to build a home-school partnership which enables parents and carers to have the confidence to support their pupils with reading at home.

By the time pupils leave Lowerhouse Junior School, we aspire that all pupils are fluent, confident and enthusiastic readers, who can recommend books to their peers, access a range of texts for pleasure and enjoyments, as well as use their reading skills to unlock learning in all areas of the curriculum. They have a thirst for knowledge, can read a wide range of genres and confidently participate in discussions about what they have read. They can also read books to enhance their knowledge and understanding of all subjects on the curriculum, and communicate their research to a wider audience.

At Lowerhouse Junior School, we value reading and writing as a life skill, and are dedicated to enabling our pupils to become lifelong readers. Through a structured and consistent approach to the teaching of phonics using the Red Rose Letters and Sounds programme, pupils acquire phonic knowledge and build on previous learning. They are then able to apply this knowledge when reading carefully matched texts. We ensure pupils develop the phonetic skills and knowledge required to become a confident and fluent reader.

Our phonics provision aims to impact children in the following ways:

• Children will become fluent readers building on skills learnt in Key Stage One.
• Once children have become fluent readers, we focus on the main reading domains that are applicable for Key Stage 2 and developing reading resilience and comprehension.
• Children will have the opportunity to enter the world that books provide them, promoting 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.

As a school, we monitor the impact of our phonic provision through lesson observations, pupil voice and monitoring of reading. This may be include reading records and reading response books and may vary according to the age and needs of the child.