Aims
Our objective within our English teaching is to develop children’s abilities in Reading, Writing and Speaking and Listening. We aim to stimulate and encourage our children’s learning through creative and engaging lessons. Pupils also have the opportunity to employ their English skills across our curriculum, consequently reinforcing the English objectives taken from the New National Curriculum (2014). At St James’, we strive for our children to be a ‘Primary Literate Pupil.’
We aim for a child to be able to:
- speak fluently and listen with attention and understanding;
- read and write confidently, with fluency and understanding;
- use a full range of reading cues (phonic, graphic, and syntactic) to monitor their reading and correct their own errors;
- understand the phonics and spelling system and use this to read and spell accurately;
- have fluent and legible handwriting;
- have a keen interest in words and their meanings and a growing vocabulary;
- know, understand and be able to write in a range of genres in fiction and poetry, and understand and be familiar with some of the ways in which narratives are structured through basic literary ideas of setting, character and plot;
- understand, use and be able to write a variety of non-fiction texts;
- plan, draft, revise and edit their own writing;
- have a suitable technical vocabulary for literacy through which to understand and discuss their reading and writing;
- develop a love of books, read with enjoyment and evaluate and justify their preferences;
- through reading and writing, develop their powers of imagination, inventiveness and critical awareness;
- present finished pieces of work in various ways, including through the use of ICT.
Statutory Requirements
Statutory requirements for the teaching and learning of English are laid out in the National Curriculum English Document (2014) and in the Communication and Language, and Literacy sections of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (2014) In the National Curriculum for 5 – 11 year olds, English is developed through four key areas:
- Spoken Language
- Reading – Word Reading & Comprehension
- Writing – Transcription & Composition
- Spelling, Vocabulary, Grammar & Punctuation
In the Foundation Stage (Nursery and Reception) children should be given opportunities to:
- speak and listen and represent ideas in their activities;
- use communication, language and literacy in every part of the curriculum;
- Become immersed in an environment rich in print and possibilities for communication.
- Undertake a daily phonics lesson.
At Key Stage One (Years 1 and 2), children should learn to:
- Speak confidently and listen to what others have to say.
- They should begin to read and write independently and with enthusiasm.
- They should use language to explore their own experiences and imaginary worlds.
At Key Stage Two (Years 3-6), children should learn to:
- Change the way they speak and write to suit different situations, purposes and audiences.
- They should read a range of texts and respond to different layers of meaning in them.
- They should explore the use of language in literary and non-literary texts and learn how the structure of language works.
In Reception and Year 1 we use Read Write Inc (RWI) for Phonics.
In Year 2 we use Letters and Sounds, Fast Track Phonics and No-Nonsense Spelling for Phonics.
Throughout school we use Oxford Reading Tree as a support tool for reading.
Key Dates:
28.01.19 – 01.02.19 – National Story Telling Week. In school this week The Book People will have excellent new books for sale after school each day, so come along and have a look what treats are on offer. Click here for more information.
14.02.19 – International Book Giving Day. Click here for more information.
26.02.19 – National Tell A Fairy Tale Day
05.03.19 – Paul Jenkins will be visiting the school, delivering poetry workshops to each class. After school Paul will also be selling books which you can get signed by the author himself. Exciting News! Paul’s latest book will only have been released the day before so you will get an exclusive look and opportunity to buy his book.
07.03.19 – World Book Day. Click here for more information.
Non-Fiction November 2018
What is National Non-Fiction November?
National Non-Fiction November is an annual celebration of all things factual, created by the Federation of Children’s Book Groups.
Non-fiction can be a great way to boost your child’s love of books, even if they are a reluctant reader. For some young children, reading about the real world is far more appealing than made-up stories. As a genre it covers an enormous range of topics – anything and everything factual. A non-fiction book could be about chemistry, Ancient Egypt, skateboarding, LEGO and everything in-between!
This year, the theme for National Non-Fiction November is ‘create your own non-fiction book’. We’ve created a guide to help your child make their own non-fiction book, but there are lots more ways to encourage your child’s interest in non-fiction.
Check out this list of some of our favourite non-fiction titles and read our tips for making the most of non-fiction with your child.
At St James’ we have committed to Lancashire’s year of reading in 2018
and made the following pledge:
During the year of reading, we are committed to:
o Becoming a reading school.
o Seeking out every opportunity to improve standards
in reading within our school.
o Encouraging reading for pleasure.
o Enabling children to read in depth in a wide range of
subjects, deepening their knowledge and
understanding across the curriculum.
o Working with other schools, our local library and
other partners to promote reading as a life-long skill.
