English

Vision statement and intent 

In order to establish and strong and successful reading provision at Skelmanthorpe Academy, the intent is clear, progressive and purposeful. Skelmanthorpe Academy intent focuses on fostering a love for reading, developing fluency and comprehension skills, and promote a culture of reading for pleasure. The intent is reflected in the Schools English Policy, demonstrating a whole school commitments to prioritise reading as a core aspect of the curriculum. 

The aim for writing at Skelmanthorpe is to foster a love of writing, linked with a passion for reading. Pupils develop essential writing skills and become confident and proficient writers. It is our intent to provide a rich and varied curriculum that inspires creativity, promotes critical thinking and enables pupils to express themselves orally and through the written word. We strive to nurture a writing culture that celebrates diversity, encourages originality and empowers pupils to communicate with clarity and purpose

SEND in the English curriculum

The delivery of the English curriculum is as relevant for pupils with SEND as all other pupils. The core approach for pupils with SEND is the use of targeted repetitive teaching, rather than differentiation in the classroom. Research show that pupils with SEND likely to need much more frequent and targeted intervention and repetition of learning. This is built into the school day, through interventions, same day feedback marking and chunking of content when writing.

The curriculum at Skelmanthorpe Academy is designed to be ambitious for all pupils and high expectations are set for all subjects.

The sequential delivery of units and information, means that the children experience learning in chunks which do not overload the working memory, allowing pupils to build on and secure past knowledge.

Pedagogy of learning is key and individual knowledge of the SEND learners plays a part in how the curriculum can be adapted so that pupils with SEND are not disadvantaged.

This information is based on research reports carried out by OFSTED and how schools can best support pupils with SEND in accessing the curriculum.

Phonics at Skelmanthorpe Academy

At Skelmanthorpe Academy, we use the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds systematic synthetic phonics programme (SSP).

This is a fully comprehensive programme where children start learning single letter sounds in the autumn term of their Reception year and it builds in progression throughout EYFS and Year One, preparing children for the statutory phonics screening that takes place at the end of year 1.

Phonics is taught every day and children learn to apply their phonics skills in reading practise sessions developing their fluency and comprehension skills along the way. 

Here is the link to the 'For Parents' section of the Little Wandle website. https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/

Writing at Skelmanthorpe Academy

To enable our children to write effectively and coherently, we teach Writing using 'The Write Stuff' approach by Jane Considine. This approach is used from Reception to Year 5 and allows children to apply basic skills, vocabulary and grammar knowledge to write effective sentences, which are full of impact and keep the reader interested. 'The Write Stuff' brings clarity to the mechanics of teaching writing. It is introduced though the 'Writing Rainbow', using the three zones of writing:

English Long Term Plan

Handwriting is taught explicitly at Skelmanthorpe Academy, with a focus on introduction, practice and embedding of letter formation through Reception and Key Stage One. Focus and time is dedicated to establishing from a young age correct pencil grip and seating position. Pupils in Key Stage Two, continue to embed these skills, through repetitive practice and application.

Cross-curricular writing is actively encouraged in school to embed skills and knowledge taught in English lessons to link to our whole school development plan.

Reading at Skelmanthorpe Academy

At Skelmanthorpe Academy, we foster a love of reading through school using texts that are vibrant, interesting and take into account the children interests.

We use Totally Pawsome Resources that exemplify the  recommended approach by facilitating the application of a range of comprehension skills simultaneously. By engaging students with the lovable dog.

These resources make learning enjoyable and effective, fostering a love for reading and comprehension. This is complemented by extra interventions to ensure all children make good or better progress.

Additonally, each week, parents and volunteers listen to children read in school and we ensure reading books are carefully matched to ability.