English
Just because Literacy is one of the most vital skills we need for our lives doesn’t mean to say that it can’t be fun. As soon as you enter our buildings you will be amazed at the quality of writing you will see around our walls and at the variety of books that are available for our enjoyment at school.
Our children begin the process of learning to love stories, to find out information from books and to write freely and confidently for themselves right from the beginning of our Foundation Stage. Communication, Language and Literacy is one of the six areas of learning of the Foundation Stage Curriculum, which we follow. In Twigs, Nursery and Reception there is a great emphasis on Speaking and Listening along with an introduction to the letter sounds of Jolly Phonics. Our children learn to look and listen and to practise these skills in the Role play areas both indoors and out; maybe as a shopkeeper, a pirate or a doctor. In Reception the children build upon the foundations of Nursery, learning to read initially using a synthetic phonics approach and then developing other key reading skills. We teach joined writing from the start and the children gradually begin to write for themselves and can often be found beavering away on the Writing Table. You may think they are fishing in the water tray and playing games on the picnic bench, but they are actually practising their phonic and spelling skills.
In Years 1 and 2 these skills are further developed and their stories become longer and increasingly fluent, handwriting becomes more consistent and the children can tackle more complex spelling patterns. They may be writing a story about an imaginary ride in a hot air balloon or a factual piece about the seaside, but often these are linked to the topic work which is going on in the classroom. Our children become fluent readers with a love of books and there are programmes of extra help for those who make slower progress. Our excellent library is a great resource and just the place to get buried in a book. Children are encouraged to borrow books on a weekly basis. Play reading is a favourite occupation for groups of children and they enjoy a wide range of challenging and exciting fiction, including some texts from our interactive whiteboards. Speaking and Listening continues to be vital and during a visit you might be presented with a Cabinet member delivering an Election manifesto, a class engaged in a drama lesson or a role play scenario in another class.
Book Week is a highlight for everyone, usually with a visiting author and a ‘Character Day’ when you might bump into Red Riding Hood, Harry Potter or the Very Hungry Caterpillar if you were to call in on us!
English in the Pre-Prep is taught in a vibrant, stimulating way in order to foster the lifelong love of learning that will be vital to future success.