Writing

Mickleton Primary School 

Curriculum Statement of implementation for Writing

To deliver an innovative, inclusive and challenging English curriculum, whilst exploring a range of skills themes and genres. The children will be taught the competence they need for oracy, reading and writing to access the wider curriculum now, whilst also giving firm foundations for their future needs.

Writing is taught daily at Mickleton Primary School.

The ability to read and write in sentences which have correct grammar, punctuation and spelling underpins teaching in every subject of the curriculum. It is critical that children master these skills, to allow access to the curriculum.

Differentiation will focus on the assessment descriptors for each year group, alongside the needs of each child. In this way, children will be given an appropriate level of challenge. This can be achieved by: modifying resources to match a child’s needs; altering the task so that it matches where a child is in their learning; giving additional resources, clues or adult support to access and promote positive outcomes. Sometimes, it will be appropriate for differentiation to be by outcome.

Phonics and handwriting match the requirements of the curriculum. Teachers will judge the pace and focus of these schemes and match them to their class.

Observations, marking of outcomes in lessons and formal assessment will inform staff of the progress. Most children will be assessed against their year group’s descriptors, unless they are working significantly above or below the expected standards.

Writing 

Good teaching of phonics, reading and handwriting go ‘hand in hand’ with lessons on writing to produce confident writers. The schools use the ‘Clever Writers’ checklist as a basis for teaching writing skills throughout the week. On Friday, the children take part in an extended writing activity on a text type. The aspects of spelling, grammar, punctuation and vocabulary taught during the week should be evident in the children’s extended writing. These strands are taught to match the curriculum for each year group, becoming increasingly complex as the children become more highly skilled. The Big Writing descriptors have been reviewed so that they match the requirements for each year group. New ambitious vocabulary is taught each week as the ‘Word of the Week’. Poetry is taught in weeks that have been ‘set aside’ from Big Writing.

Handwriting

Reception ‘Marvin Monkey’ is to work on fine motor skills enabling them to perfect letter shape and formation. From year two, cursive handwriting is taught so that neat, joined handwriting is perfected by the end of year six.