English
English at Anderton develops the oracy, reading and writing of our children; these three skills are interdependent and mastering them is the key to effective communication. Through rich and diverse experiences for a wide range of purposes and audiences, the children develop a strong command of the English language. As this is fundamental to accessing all learning, these skills are woven into the fabric of our whole curriculum.
Our children’s oracy is developed by encouraging them to share thoughts and emotions with clarity and definition, refining their listening and speaking to become thoughtful exchanges, and providing meaningful opportunities to develop their confidence and aptitude for performance and delivery in a range of situations.
Our children’s reading is developed by building on a foundation of phonics and nurtured to comprehend a spectrum of language, nourishing their imagination and inquisitive minds with a wealth of literature that entertains and informs, and exploring and celebrating the rich legacy of the written word.
Our children’s writing is developed by sourcing inspiration and the tools required from high-quality texts, fusing the elements of composition and transcription to articulate entertainment or information for the reader, and crafting the piece of work as it’s taken from conception to publication.
Anderton’s English curriculum is designed to meet the needs of all our children and is delivered with great passion. We are persistent in our intent to ensure that all our children are developed into effective communicators, learners and lovers of listening, speaking, reading and writing. As our children pass through our school, they will explore, create and innovate the English language to develop holistically and prepare them for future prosperity.
“I enjoy reading because it can take you anywhere; you can be sitting on your couch in real life, but be at Hogwarts fighting Voldemort in your Harry Potter book.”
Our Library
Our inspirational woodland library, which was part-funded by our PTFA, is now open!
You can find more details about our English curriculum on the year group pages!
Our Phonics Scheme
Phonics scheme: Red Rose Letters and Sounds.
For more information and useful resources, look at our Phonics Materials below.
Supporting Reading at Home
Children will only read books that are entirely decodable, this means that they should be able to read these books as they already know the code contained within the book. We only use pure sounds when decoding words (no ‘uh’ after the sound). We want children to practise reading their book 4 times across the week working on these skills:
- Decode – sounding out and blending to read the word.
- Fluency – reading words with less obvious decoding.
- Expression – using intonation and expression to bring the text to life.
We must use pure sounds when we are pronouncing the sounds and supporting children in reading words. If we mispronounce these sounds, we will make reading harder for our children. Please watch this video for how to accurately pronounce these sounds:
At the beginning of each academic year, we will hold an information session for parents and carers to find out more about what we do for Phonics, Reading and English at our schools. Please do join us.
If you would like more information about English at Anderton, please contact Mr Fitztilley, who is the English Lead at our school.