English

At Langdale CE Primary School, English is at the heart of our curriculum and is interwoven across every aspect of school life, not simply during English sessions. We believe that the ability to communicate effectively through speaking, listening, reading and writing opens doors for children to understand themselves, connect with others, and make sense of the world around them. Through a language-rich environment and a focus on purposeful learning experiences, our English curriculum nurtures confident, imaginative and reflective learners who can express themselves with clarity and creativity.

English is implemented across the curriculum through high-quality texts that inspire discussion, deepen knowledge and link meaningfully to wider topic learning. Each class studies a carefully chosen core novel each half term, which becomes the foundation for writing, reading and cross-curricular learning. These texts are selected for their richness in language, themes, and relevance to the wider curriculum, allowing children to immerse themselves in meaningful content while developing core literacy skills.

Writing is taught through a cyclical, skills-based approach, where children revisit and build upon their prior knowledge. Each writing unit is carefully mapped using the Chris Quigley Essentials Milestones to ensure progressive development in spelling, punctuation, grammar, vocabulary and composition. Children are taught to edit, reflect and refine their writing, supported by timely and personalised feedback. Writing opportunities are purposeful and varied, enabling children to write for real audiences and in authentic contexts.

Reading permeates throughout the school life, hosted by a vocabulary-rich environment and supported by enthusiastic adults, modelling strong use of language and reading skills throughout the curriculum and daily life of the school. Reading is brought to life through regular reading sessions, whole-class novel time, and targeted comprehension work. Children are explicitly taught the skills of predicting, clarifying, summarising and questioning, and are encouraged to discuss and reflect on texts both collaboratively and independently. Teachers read aloud daily to model fluency, rhythm, and expression, and to instil a lifelong love of reading. Reading is carefully sequenced using the Chris Quigley Essentials Milestones to ensure progressive development.

Our exceptional Learning Beyond the Classroom approach enriches English learning further. From storytelling workshops and author visits to outdoor writing experiences and cross-curricular drama, children are provided with opportunities to bring language to life in meaningful, memorable ways. For example, children might explore persuasive writing by designing eco-campaigns for our local area, or use descriptive language while writing nature poetry inspired by outdoor sessions in our surrounding areas of natural beauty.

The impact of our English curriculum is seen in articulate, thoughtful and enthusiastic learners who enjoy reading and writing for a range of purposes, reflecting and 'up-level' their own work. They leave Langdale equipped with the tools to communicate effectively, think critically, and participate fully in the world around them.

Phonics/ Early Reading

EYFS and KS1 children are taught phonics using the systematic, synthetic phonics programme 'Read Write Inc.' The 'Read Write Inc.' programme meets the higher expectations of the National Curriculum and uses effective assessment to accelerate every child's progress and ensure every child learns to read to the best of their ability. Children begin daily phonics lessons from Autumn 1 in Reception after developing their phonemic awareness in our Nursery. Alongside this programme, children's phonic understanding is prioritised across our learning environments and experiences in the EYFS and KS1. See further links below for more information regarding the 'Read Write Inc.' phonics scheme including a progression summary outlining the reading book and sound knowledge expectations as children progress from EYFS-Year 2.

Early Literacy at Langdale revolves around a rich and broad early writing and reading curriculum, ensuring every Langdale Learner develops a love of literacy from an early age. Children are exposed to rich, ambitious and diverse texts, which helps to frame learning across the curriculum. Teachers and support staff also listen to children read regularly and are able to offer 1:1 support to our youngest readers. Careful phonics and reading interventions are in place for children requiring extra support. Children are also read to in small groups daily as part of the Read Write Inc scheme and are also encouraged to ask and answer questions about the text to develop their comprehension skills. EYFS and KS1 children also partake in regular trips to Ambleside Library to encourage children to develop a love for reading in the real world. A day in our EYFS/KS1 classroom is not complete without a story. Children find relevant, high quality texts surrounding their classroom and enjoy being read to, with and listened to by all staff members.

Read Write Inc- Progression Summary

Read Write Inc- Progression Summary.docx

Spelling

At Langdale, both KS1 and KS2 are taught the spelling rules for each year group as stated in the National Curriculum. We use the 'Spelling Shed' resources to help teach children common spelling patterns and word structures to embed learning. For further information about how your child will be taught spelling, please see year group spelling rule expectations from the National Curriculum linked below.

Accelerated Reader

We are delighted to have introduced the 'Accelerated Reader' programme for our KS2 children at the beginning of 2022. This programme puts students in the driver’s seat with their home reading choices. Children move onto this programme following the RWI phonics storybooks. Staff guide students, while engaging quizzes and activities help hone students’ reading skills with authentic practice—encouraging growth. Teachers can then use the data provided by these regular quizzing opportunities to provide tailored next steps during reading lessons.

This programme is now well established within school and we have seen the wonderful impact of putting children in charge of their own home reading journeys. As well as significant attainment progress, we have seen children's love for reading grow and the school library has never been so well used and loved! We look forward to continuing to stock the library with fantastic books for children at all levels of the AR programme.