English
‘Let Your Light Shine’
Matthew 5:16
Welcome to English at St Peter's C.E. Primary School
At St Peter’s we seek to realise the potential of each individual in a supportive and caring environment. We aim to provide a broad and balanced curriculum, Christian commitment and sensitivity, and in partnership with the family and community, encourage all positive aspects of education and social development. Together we strive for high academic standards and to provide a wide variety of experiences to promote interests, life skills, confidence, and responsibility now and for later years.
The overarching aim for English in the national curriculum is to promote high standards of language and literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the spoken and written word, and to develop their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment.
At St Peter's we embed the aims and strive for each child to be able to:
- Read and write with confidence, fluency and understanding.
- Have a positive reading and writing culture throughout school.
- Engage children through wider opportunities.
- Developing a love of reading and writing across the curriculum.
- Have an interest in texts of all types and to read for enjoyment – to foster a love of reading in many children.
- Have an interest in words and their meanings; developing a growing vocabulary in spoken and written forms.
- Understand a range of text types and genres, being able to write in a variety of styles and forms appropriate to the situation.
Reading in EYFS and KS1
Children are grouped for Guided Reading sessions at least twice per week. Home reading books are changed daily using a Reading Log Book which also supports a dialogue with parents. Parents are encouraged to hear their child read daily and make comments in Reading Logs.
All reading books both for Guided Reading sessions and Home Reading follow the coloured band system which helps children progress through their reading skills. In KS1 we have a mix of reading books for fiction and non-fiction from a range of publishers; Oxford Reading Tree, Songbirds, Pearson's Phonic Bug, Collins and Rigby Rising Stars.
Reading and Phonics Overview – Book Bands
|
Phonics Phase
|
Book Band |
|
|
Phase 1
|
Lilac |
EYFS – Emerging |
|
Phase 2
|
Pink |
EYFS – Emerging |
|
Phase 3
|
Red |
EYFS – Expected |
|
Phase 3
|
Yellow |
EYFS – Expected – AF1/2 |
|
Phase 3/4
|
Blue |
EYFS – Exceeding AF1/2 |
|
Phase 4
|
Green |
Year 1 |
|
Phase 4/5
|
Orange |
Year 1 |
|
Phase 5
|
Turquoise |
Year 1 |
|
Phase 5
|
Purple |
Year 1 |
|
Phase 5/6
|
Gold |
Year 2 |
|
Phase 6
|
White |
Year 2 |
|
Phase 6
|
Lime |
Year 2 |
|
|
Brown |
Year 3 |
|
|
Grey |
Year 4 |
|
|
Ocean Blue |
Year 5 |
|
|
Cherry Red |
Year 6 |
'The Promise' by Nicola Davies
Our work so impressed the author, she is visiting our school next week. Have a read and be impressed as well. Here are a few examples of Junior writing.
Wow! Nicola Davies visited Classes 7 to 10. She was amazed by our imovie trailers for 'The Promise' and even shed a tear - she was so impressed! She photographed our writing and artwork. Hopefully she will visit again when KS1 study her as an author. Her message was this, "Writing is hard - all writers find it difficult. You have to be like a terrier dog! Keep at it and don't give up. Your words give everyone the insight to you; who you are and what is important to you."
She read us 'The Promise' and we discussed all that it meant and its amazing message.
