In order to achieve our whole school intent, we have identified 3 Golden Threads that weave through our curriculum and underpin everything we do. This means that in delivering our curriculum we are embedding our school's Christian Values, developing knowledge and skills progressively over time with an ambitious and aspiring curriculum whilst immersing our children in language-rich teaching.
At Forest & Sandridge C.E. Primary School, we strive to help our children develop into articulate and imaginative communicators, who are well-equipped with the basic skills they need to become lifelong learners; English learning is key to this. 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 as the key text that we use in writing lessons is the same text as the one that we use in guided reading lessons. Careful links are made across the curriculum to ensure that children's English learning is relevant and meaningful: where possible linking our reading, and writing to the topic that we are covering in History and Geography. We ensure that children develop an understanding of how widely writing is used in everyday life and, therefore, how important and useful the skills are that they are learning.
Our intentions are for children to:
· Write for a purpose
· See themselves as real writers
· Take ownership of their writing
· See writing as an interesting and enjoyable process
· Acquire the ability to organise and plan their written work
Throughout Early Years, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, we enable children of all ages to develop their reading skills while promoting a love of reading through exposure to a range of inspiring and diverse texts rich in language. The teaching of reading and writing are closely linked. The core text selected for each English unit is taught alongside a range of supplementary texts selected to broaden the children's experience of genres. We use a three-phase approach to plan our whole class guided reading sessions. The first phase gives children experiences, knowledge and context to support them in accessing a new text, the second gives them the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the story to support their writing and the third develops their comprehension skills. We intend that this balance gives children of all ages to progress and be challenged in Reading while giving them opportunities to enjoy a variety of books and stories, including those of their choosing. Our aim is for all children to leave Forest and Sandridge as fluent readers with an understanding of how they as individuals can find pleasure in reading.