Writing
Subject Statement of Intent for Writing
At Holy Rosary, we believe that a quality English curriculum should develop children’s love of reading, writing, performing and discussion. We understand that children join our school with varying starting points and as a result we provide opportunities for children to enhance their language and vocabulary through a variety of learning.
We recognise the importance of nurturing a culture where children take pride in their work through published pieces of writing; that they can write clearly and accurately and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts.
Children learn to handwrite using the Nelson Handwriting scheme, and are taught correct letter formation from Early Years and Key Stage 1, moving on to joining letters in Key Stage 2.
We develop writing skills so that children have the stamina and ability to write at the age related standard. We provide the children with a wide range of high-quality text and develop writing skills through the use of modelled, shared and guided writing, self and peer assessment and discussion. All children are given the opportunities to plan, draft, edit and then re-draft their work. We expect the children to demonstrate these skills in all forms of writing across many subjects including, RE, Science, History and Geography. Children are given opportunities to communicate with their peers and adults through discussions to develop their learning and to build confidence. We teach our pupils to speak clearly; to convey their ideas fluently and confidently and to ask a variety of questions. Children are encouraged to share and express their ideas in order to develop a more sophisticated vocabulary independently.
We aim to ensure all of our children develop a genuine love of language and the written word, through a text-based approach; this links closely to the way we teach reading. We use high quality texts, which have been carefully planned throughout the year, to make links to other subjects within the curriculum and give children the opportunity to immerse themselves in many different genres. In turn, this enables teachers to guide children through a journey of discovery about the key features of a piece of writing, and chance to explore and practice these in their own writing. Creativity is at the heart of our writing curriculum, and we spend lots of time discussing and developing ideas throughout the writing process.
Early Years
In Nursery and Reception, children will still have the opportunity to be immersed in high quality texts. However, these are planned with the interests of the children at heart, ensuring they are engaged in the learning of language to develop their vocabulary. Some examples of texts used in our Early Years: The Very Hungry Caterpillar, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt, The Gingerbread Man.
Long Term Overview
Click the buttons below to view the yearly overview of model texts and types of writing which are covered in each year group.
YEAR 1
YEAR 2
YEAR 3
YEAR 4
YEAR 5
YEAR 6
Progression Maps
Below are the progression maps for writing across the school. They map the journey of the children’s learning from Foundation Stage through to Year 6 under the different elements of writing.
Assessment
Assessment of Writing is completed by class teachers at the end of each half term during assessment week.
In Early Years Foundation Stage, writing is assessed using the Early Learning Goals and Development Matters for Writing. This is recorded using the Tapestry Online Learning Journal and Insight Tracker.
In KS1 and KS2, writing is assessed against key knowledge descriptors for each area of the National Curriculum. This is also recorded using Insight Tracker.
Teachers at Holy Rosary work together, along with others in the borough to moderate work, ensuring teacher judgements are fair and accurate.