English

English at Pendle

Subject Leader: Kate Markham

At Pendle Primary School we strive for children to be a ‘Primary Literate Pupil’ and be ready for the next stage of their education and beyond.

We aim for children to :

• speak, read and write with confidence, fluency and understanding, orchestrating a range of independent strategies to self-monitor and correct.

• have an interest in books and read for enjoyment.

• have an interest in words, their meanings; developing a growing vocabulary in spoken and written forms.

• understand a range of text types and genres – be able to write in a variety of styles and forms appropriate to the situation.

• develop their powers of imagination, inventiveness and critical awareness. 

• have a suitable technical vocabulary to articulate their responses.

In Reception and KS1 we follow the phases in 'Letters and Sounds' to teach phonics. We use the mnemonics from Read, Write Inc. to help children remember the graphemes. Cursive handwriting is introduced from Year 1.  Children are very proud to progress from pencil to pen once they have a fluent joined handwriting in key stage one and two.

We use a variety of reading schemes to teach reading.   Reading books are colour coded into bands to ensure that there is an the appropriate level of progression and challenge within the text. Throughout reception and key stage 1 reading books have a phonics focus to decoding that are matched to the children's phonic knowledge. We revisit and revise prior knowledge of grammar through a range of fun, engaging, quick fire games, which includes opportunities to use outdoor learning to engage and embed knowledge and understanding.

We enhance English at Pendle by providing exciting opportunities to embed English throughout the curriculum, ensuring that children have the opportunity to use reading and writing skills appropriate to their year group expectations. Each year we welcome a touring theatre group to perform for all children in school.

We are a reading school, we actively celebrate a love of books, we encourage children to discuss and share what they have been reading, this is enhanced by all adults in school sharing and promoting their love of reading. We celebrate World Book day, which is always a highlight in the school year, children talk enthusiastically about coming to school dressed as their favourite character and coming to school in their pyjamas for our bedtime stories theme to World Book Day. 

We are currently developing our school library to provide opportunities for children to widen their reading horizons and intend for the library to become a reading hub for our school.