English

At Teesville Academy, we believe every child should be inspired to succeed. In order to fulfil this ‘mission’, we strive to build foundations to enable every child to become literate, preparing them with the skills for further education and adult life. The English teaching we provide should allow all children to fulfil their potential and provide them with the skills to understand and use language in all its aspects. We aim to engage all children in high quality learning experiences in order to foster passions for life long reading; while providing the confidence to communicate effectively in both speech and writing. Believing literacy has the power to enrich lives, we will plan to ensure every child develops the confidence and competence to embrace literature in its many forms

Approaches to Writing

 We aim to develop the children’s ability to produce well structured, detailed writing in which the meaning is made clear and which engages the interest of the reader. A wide range of quality texts are used across school, alongside wider curriculum themes, as a basis for long-term planning. Attention is also paid to the formal structures of English, grammatical detail, punctuation and spelling. To support our teaching of writing we use our school assessment criterion which is based on the age related expectations set out in the New Curriculum document. Teachers model writing strategies and the use of phonics and spelling strategies in shared writing sessions.

The children are given frequent opportunities in school to write in different contexts using high quality texts as a model and for a variety of purposes and audiences. There are further opportunities for children to further enhance their writing inspired by drama, role play, hot seating and film clips. They may be asked to produce their writing on their own, in pairs or as part of a small group. Children will also be given the opportunity to use ICT for their writing where appropriate.

Pupils have access to a wide range of writing opportunities including Guided Writing sessions which are used to target specific needs of both groups and individuals, shared writing, writing different text types and narrative styles, planning, drafting and editing/improving and writing from a variety of stimuli. Children have opportunities to write at length in extended independent writing sessions both during and at the end of each unit.

Teachers promote writing and look for ways to inspire and motivate pupils so that they truly see themselves as ‘writers’. Teachers establish the purpose and audience for writing and make teaching objectives explicit to pupils so they know expected outcomes.

Approaches to Reading

Teachers promote and value reading as an enjoyable activity and a life skill. Teachers plan for a range of comprehension strategies that allow pupils to engage with text in a variety of ways to suit different learning styles. All teachers are responsible for providing a stimulating reading environment, promoting book ownership and recommending books to pupils.

In planned reading sessions, teachers model reading strategies as an expert reader providing a high level of support, whilst children have the opportunity to develop reading strategies and to discuss texts in detail during guided reading sessions. Teachers follow the five-part structure when planning guided reading sessions. Independent reading provides time for both assessment and 1-1 teaching. Daily discreet phonics lessons in EYFS and KS1 enable children to decode efficiently. This is continued into KS2 where necessary in bespoke interventions and guided reading activities.

Bug Club reading scheme is used to support early readers. Guided Reading books are selected to provide appropriate challenge and to be instructional, and will generally be a higher book band than those books that pupils share at home. Teaching assistants may support reading activities to ensure that children have more frequent opportunities to read with adults.

Children in Foundation Stage and Key Stage One take home a levelled book twice weekly according to their ability. These books develop fluency and enjoyment of a variety of texts (e.g. stories, poetry, information). Furthermore, children have the opportunity to choose a book from the school library. Each child has a home-school reading record that teachers and parents can use to share information about a child’s reading. Parents are encouraged to read with their child daily.

In Key Stage Two, children choose library books to take home and read. They are encouraged to record their own thoughts and opinions about the books in their Reading Record. Throughout the Key Stage children become more independent in recording what they have read in their reading journals. Staff also recommend a selection of books, often related to the wider curriculum, in each Class Reading Corner to support appropriate text choices.

Reading at Home                                             

Enjoying a book with your child is a fantastic way to share adventures and experiences together, and it’s the best way to get them reading for life. Here are some tips for raising a reader;

1. Make books part of your family life – Always have books around so that you and your children are ready to read whenever there’s a chance.
2. Join your local library – Get your child a library card, you'll find tons and tons of fantastic books. Allow them to pick their own books, encouraging their own interests.
3. Match their interests – Help them find the right book - it doesn’t matter if it’s fiction, poetry, comic books or non-fiction.
4. All reading is good – Don’t discount non-fiction, comics, graphic novels, magazines and leaflets. Reading is reading and it is all good.
5. Get comfortable! – Snuggle up somewhere warm and cosy with your child, either in bed, on a beanbag or on the sofa, or make sure they have somewhere comfy when reading alone.
6. Ask questions – To keep them interested in the story, ask your child questions as you read such as, ‘What do you think will happen next?’ or ‘Where did we get to last night? Can you remember what had happened already?’
7. Read whenever you get the chance – Bring along a book or magazine for any time your child has to wait, such as at a doctor’s surgery.
8. Read again and again – Encourage your child to re-read favourite books and poems. Re-reading helps to build up fluency and confidence.
9. Bedtime stories – Regularly read with your child or children at bedtime. It’s a great way to end the day and to spend valuable time with your child. This special time doesn't have to stop once your child can read independently! 
10. Rhyme and repetition – Books and poems which include rhyme and repetition are great for encouraging your child or children to join in and remember the words. Enjoying a poem is a brilliant way to foster a love of language and there are lots of hilarious and imaginative books of poetry for children.