Queen's Park CE/URC English
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“Together, we believe, achieve and enjoy” Through our vision, we serve our community by providing an inclusive, happy, secure and caring Christian environment where all are valued and respected. We believe that God loves all his children unconditionally and values the uniqueness of the individual and recognise the diversity and range of contributions that each child can make. Our English curriculum is built on ensuring our children have an excellent moral compass. All texts are chosen carefully to ensure we raise the profile of diversity and inclusivity. Following the Church of England's Vision for Education 'Life in all its fullness' John 10:10, we provide a high-quality education within a creative, stimulating, encouraging and mutually supportive environment where children are enabled to develop the skills they require to become successful in English. We know that reading and literacy opens doors and children must have a range of English skills in order to ‘live life in all its fullness’ |
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Our 5 Crown Principles drive our English Curriculum
Challenge Through the ‘challenge’ curriculum driver we want our children relish challenges that English can bring such as writing a range of genres, considering audience and purpose. Despite the challenges of barriers or background, we ensure that every child at Queen’s Park is a reader. Resilience Through the ‘resilience’ curriculum driver, we promote optimism and determination in English. We have the highest of expectations in all areas of English: reading, writing, spelling, handwriting, speaking and listening. Our high expectations and aspirational English curriculum encourage children to be resilient learners. Through next step marking and purposeful feedback in English, children have opportunities each day to edit and improve their work thus promoting resilience. Opportunities Through ‘opportunities’, we raise aspirations to broaden our children’s horizons – opening their eyes to the myriad careers they might pursue. Through careful curriculum planning ensure we have a range of enhancements throughout the year such as: author, poet and illustrator visits, themed days and trips. We provide ample opportunities within the curriculum for children to become articulate speakers, readers and writers. We believe that ‘reading opens doors’ – our English book spine offers a range of opportunities through the power of reading. Wellbeing At Queen’s Park, we understand that happiness is linked to personal growth, health and development. We ensure our children are happy, healthy individuals. Our English curriculum content encompasses quality texts pertaining wellbeing. We work hard to build a great parent partnership, encouraging 1:1 reading at home through training videos. We create a love of reading including daily story time from EYFS – Y6. SMSC, British and Christian Values woven throughout each quality text. With ‘wellbeing’ as a curriculum driver, we give children the confidence to thrive in a diverse, global society and be respectful citizens with British and Christian Values at the core. kNowledge Through the ‘kNowledge’ curriculum driver, we encourage our children to be resourceful learners. It is uniquely challenging and coherent to our children. The knowledge imparted in English is crafted by our English lead to ensure that all pupils achieve secure substantive and disciplinary knowledge in all areas of English. All our teachers teach with the aim to ensure pupils have sufficient knowledge to progress through primary school and beyond.
Being a great reader, writer, speaker and listener means that disciplinary and substantive knowledge complement each other harmoniously. All areas of English are high profile within our curriculum. We ensure there are always opportunities to enhance English in all areas of the curriculum. Texts studied in English are mostly linked to other areas of the curriculum. Each text has been chosen for a reason and serves a purpose. Children have reading, writing, spelling/phonics lessons daily. |
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English Medium-Term Plans |
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Sample: English medium-term plans show the reading and writing journey the children will take throughout each unit of work. |
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Sample: Spelling long term plans are followed by children who are off the RWI phonics program.
Progression documents Our progression documents have been created by the English lead to ensure clear progress in all areas of English. |
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Sample: Progression in reading skills.
Vocabulary is V.I.T.A.L in English Valued We value vocabulary in English and in everything we do. Identified Vocabulary is identified by an adult in reading sessions and are explicitly planned for. Taught Vocabulary is explicitly taught in every lesson or reading session. The texts are chosen using Alex Quigley’s ‘arduous eight’ to ensure texts are appropriate in challenge – including vocabulary. Tier 2 and 3 vocabulary is explicitly taught so the word is ‘mastered’. Applied Once vocabulary is taught, it is applied. Children apply their vocabulary in their speaking and listening, writing and assessment outcomes in English. Learned Vocabulary is revisited and relearned. Vocabulary sticks in the children’s long-term memory.
Through an ‘explosion of experiences’, our youngest readers, writers, speakers and listeners are exposed to the foundations of their English learning. Using Talk for Writing, our children become great storytellers and early writers. Carefully planned opportunities and experiences are provided for our children to enhance their English learning. Early reading is the highest priority in EYFS and their phonics learning commences on entry. High quality books (including non-fiction), stories and rhymes are the beating heart of our curriculum in EYFS and are the bedrock of all learning across the curriculum. Vocabulary is planned for and is explicitly planned through Talk Through Stories. Staff are role models in demonstrating vocabulary in the lesson inputs and this is further enhanced in our excellent provision. The foundations of reading, writing speaking and listening in EYFS is linked to Year 1 and beyond. Year 1 to Year 6 Year on year, children will build upon their English learning. The English lead has created a meaningful, sequential learning journey through all areas of English. Careful curriculum thinking and planning ensures that our children have the subject knowledge and components embedded in their long-term memories.
Pedagogy
Both our staff and children are enthusiastic about English. Through ongoing CPD, we strive to ensure our teachers have expert knowledge of the English they teach. Our pedagogy is firmly based upon our curriculum intent of embedding concepts into long-term memory so that they are able to be recalled, to ensure substantive and disciplinary knowledge and skills can be applied fluently. Our ‘Queen’s Park Quality First Teaching’ model ensures that lessons are effectively sequenced so that new knowledge and skills build on what has been taught before and towards defined end points. Every area of English has a Queen’s Park structure to ensure there is consistency across school. All pedagogical structures are based on research and what our children need. Phonics and Early Reading = Read Write Inc Phonics Spelling = Read Write Inc Spelling Writing = Explore, Practise, Compose Handwriting = Letter Join / expectations for lead in lines Guided Reading = Queen’s Park structure EYFS = Talk For Writing and Talk Through Stories English lessons are carefully linked with other curriculum subjects to enhance learning in all subjects and to avoid cognitive overload. Our lessons are scaffolded to ensure all learners have access a full English curriculum. If appropriate, these lessons are modified to meet the needs of the individual.
Guided Reading Lesson Structure:
Writing lesson structure
We understand that we may not see the true impact of our English curriculum on our children as our English curriculum is just the beginning of a lifetime of learning. Our well-constructed and well-taught English curriculum leads to great outcomes. Our results are a reflection of what our children have learnt. At Queen’s Park, our philosophy is that broad and balanced leads to great outcomes and meeting end points at the end of each key stage. National assessments are useful indicators of the outcomes our children achieve. We ensure all groups of children are given the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. We strive to ensure that our children are equipped with the skills (through a growth mindset approach) to fluently be able to retrieve key facts from their semantic memory. The quality of our children’s work, at every stage, is of a high standard. All learning is built towards an end point and at each stage of their education, we prepare our children for the next stage. We ensure all our children read to a stage appropriate level and fluency. Reading is the beating heart of our English curriculum. The impact of Queen’s Park English curriculum is measured through the following:
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