Compton C.E. Primary School

Intent

At Compton C of E Primary, we aim for our children to be life-long independent motivated writers who are able to write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences.

• We also intend to create writers who can re-read, edit and improve their own writing, and enable pupils to be able to confidently use the essential skills of grammar, punctuation and spelling. We set high expectations for all our children to take pride in their work and have a fluent, cursive handwriting.
• Our aim is for our children to ‘write as a reader’ drawing on the rich vocabulary they have been exposed to throughout their school and draw on the texts they have read to feed into their linguistic repertoire.

• In EYFS the RWI programme is used as the English lesson which fits the national curriculum criteria.
• Each writing activity builds on the one before and enables children to write confidently. 
• The programme enables children to spell quickly and easily by segmenting sounds in words embedding the alphabetic code early on means that pupils quickly learn to write simple words and sentences.
• We encourage them to compose each sentence aloud until they are confident to write independently. We make sure they write every day. 
•  Pupils write at the level of their spelling knowledge.
• The quality of the vocabulary they use in their writing reflects the language they have heard in the books the teacher has read to them; they have also discussed what the words mean. Children learn to print by using the RWI letter rhymes to support them do this accurately.
• From yr1 upwards our writing curriculum is based on a Talk for Writing approach.  We know Talk is a fundamental tool for learning and literacy, improving reading and writing outcomes.  Oracy skills underpin our curriculum.

• Our English units are based on a high quality text spine which offers a range of new and classic texts and build cultural capital and breadth of authors.

•  and allows children to explore writing across different genres for a range of purposes.
• We have a long term writing overview which maps out the key writing purposes for each year group, to fit in with demands of the national curriculum. Our units are structured into half termly units of fiction and non-fiction and termly unit of poetry in every year group.
• We   have a set of medium term plans for each year group which meet the expectations of the national curriculum, they set out for each year group; Key terminology for pupils, writing composition grammar, handwriting and spelling, speaking and listening and reading to aid writing. Handwriting from yr2 is taught using the cursive script.
• Modelling is at the heart of our writing curriculum, through use of the quality text used but also the emphasis placed on teachers modelling, scaffolding and narrating the writing process.
• Grammar is taught in the context of the genre so that children know and understand the effect and purpose it serves and can use it effectively and meaningfully.

• By the end of YR6 children are able to write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences.
• Formative assessment is at the heart of every lesson to help teachers with their planning, lesson activities, targeted pupil support and enable appropriate challenge to all children
• Marking takes place in the mini-writes between cold and hot task in order to support children to move from dependence to independence in their writing.
• A tracker based on National Curriculum objectives is used to inform teachers and leaders of the skills and knowledge the pupils have achieved or need to improve further.
• We moderate regularly across the primaries in our federation and also termly with a cluster group of school in our area.