Writing

It is our aim to provide every child the opportunity to become confident and independent writers.  They will develop a broad range of skills that will enable them to express their thoughts and ideas and apply them to writing for a wide range of purposes.  This will prepare the children for the next stage of their education and enable them to play a full part in society.

 

To develop our children as writers we:

• treat children as writers, from the earliest stage, who have ideas that they will want to communicate, building on writing skills they have acquired and their knowledge of print from their environment.
• Use Talk for Writing, which supports children by learning texts and studying them closely, so children can imitate and innovate from experienced writers and eventually move onto become independent writers.
• provide experiences where the children can acquire confidence and a positive attitude to writing.
• develop and sustain writing skills by providing opportunities for children to write for a range of purposes and audiences.
• model writing within the English lesson; the teacher models the writing process to the whole class as an expert writer, articulating the process.  During these sessions, the teacher also teaches how to plan, draft, edit and assess the writing.
• carry out shared writing within the English lesson; the teacher supports the writing process of the whole class and welcomes their suggestions for ideas and modelling the planning and editing process.  Pupils are also taught how to assess each other’s writing, giving valuable feedback.
• teach children to become critical readers of their own writing by using self-evaluation and checking their work independently for sense, accuracy and meaning.
• teach grammar and punctuation in the context of children’s own writing, as well as through starter activities and discrete lessons.
• teach children to develop their ability to organise and present imaginative and/or factual writing and poetry in different ways.
• teach strategies for spelling to enable children to become confident and competent spellers.
• display and celebrate writing all over the school.
• provide stimulating first hand experiences, e.g. trips, storytellers and drama.