English

At Yealand CE Primary School, we believe that a quality English curriculum should develop children’s love of reading, writing and discussion. One of our priorities is helping children read with pleasure and fluency as well as developing the all- important comprehension skills. We recognise the importance of nurturing a culture where children take pride in their writing, can write clearly and accurately and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts. We want to inspire children to be confident in the art of speaking and listening and who can use discussion to communicate and further their learning. We believe that children need to develop a secure knowledge-base in English, which follows a clear pathway of progression as they advance through the primary curriculum. We believe that a secure basis in literacy skills is crucial to a high-quality education and will give our children the tools they need to participate fully as a member of society.

Using the programmes of study from the National Curriculum it is our aim to develop:

• A rigorous and well-organised English curriculum and framework that provides purposeful opportunities for reading, writing and discussion.
• Using a variety of quality texts and resources to motivate and inspire our children.
• The habit of reading easily, fluently and with good understanding.
• The habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information.
• Acquiring a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing andspoken language.
• Write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes andaudience using discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding andideas.
• Competency in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate.
• Cross-curricular links which are woven into our topic work.