We are Writers

Children at Churchwood Primary School are creative and imaginative writers.  They will have many opportunities throughout the week to write, edit and improve. We follow CUSP reading, writing and spelling programmes. https://www.unity-curriculum.co.uk/more-information/primary/#reading&writing
 

CUSP curriculum

We follow the CUSP Curriculum for Writing. 

Sequence and progression 

CUSP Writing is built on a Reduce and Revisit model. This means that we have reduced the number of text types that pupils study, in favour of revisiting a small number that we want them to truly master. These text types have been carefully selected to ensure balance and progression across the whole of the primary journey.

The CUSP curriculum is underpinned by a clear programme of study that sets out what pupils should know and be able to do in each domain of writing. This is fully aligned to the National Curriculum. These concepts are mapped into each block of writing planning, with plenty of opportunities to revisit previous knowledge.

Teaching and learning:

Each unit has an Ingredients for Success checklist. Teachers and pupils use this to support their assessment of the extended outcome. Teachers use these to support their marking and feedback of the extended outcome, identifying concepts which are secure and can be built on and those that require additional instruction.

We use the Key Indicators as a summative tool that can be used to answer the question ‘Have pupils learned what is intended in the curriculum?’. If, across the portfolio of Block B units, pupils can show security against all elements of the Key Indicators, pupils have learned what is intended. If there are gaps for individuals, this information can be used to reshape practice and support teachers in addressing areas of weakness for individual pupils or cohorts.

Writing in EYFS

In Reception, we believe that to be a successful writer the children need to have both the desire to have something to write about, and the physical capability to master a writing tool. To inspire the children to write we carefully plan play opportunities throughout our learning environment so that children see writing as part of play, and a vital means to communicate. As adults, we model this by immersing ourselves in their play so we can model purposeful writing and encourage the children to follow our lead.

Cross-Curricular Literacy Opportunities

We teach the full National Curriculum for English. The skills that children are taught in Literacy underpin all other subjects.  They enable pupils to communicate and express themselves in all areas of their work.  Teachers will always make cross-curricular links wherever appropriate and will plan for pupils to apply the skills, knowledge and understanding that they have acquired during Literacy to other areas of the curriculum.
 

We are Readers

At Churchwood Primary School we believe that reading is central to a child’s understanding of the school curriculum and is of vital importance in life. We will develop a love and appreciation of reading which will stay with children for life. We will use good reading materials and resources to provide a breadth and range of reading material in school.

Foundation and Key Stage 1 classes enjoy and participate in story time sessions regularly.  Teachers in Key Stage 2 regularly share a range of narrative and non-narrative texts with the whole class.

Each class has a book corner.   As part of home reading, children should be selecting and reading a book appropriate to their level.  We encourage parents/carers to hear their child read unless they are at a level where the pupils can assess their own reading.  Feedback on home reading is made by parents/carers or pupils within the Home Reading Records.

Whole Class CUSP reading sessions take place for 30 minutes each day.  Children who require additional support with reading normally receive more regular opportunities with another adult. 
 

We are Decoders

At Churchwood Primary School we understand the relationship between the sounds of spoken language, and the letters and graphemes of written language. We use phonics as the first strategy to help children learn to read. We learn that phonemes are ‘a sound’ and that graphemes are ‘a sound written down’. We follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds programme to learn to blend sounds together to say, read and write new and unfamiliar words with confidence. Please click here to access the parents page of the website: https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents
 

Phonics

Research shows that teaching Phonics in a structured and systematic way is the most effective way of teaching young children to read.  Almost all children who receive good teaching of phonics will learn the skills they need to decipher new and unfamiliar words. At Churchwood phonics in the Early Years is taught on a daily basis and follows the DFE accredited Little Wandle Letters and Sounds programme. Children are taught the skills for segmenting and blending words and are introduced to new phonemes as part of a systematic synthetic approach. The teaching of Phonics continues in Years 1 and 2 as children are introduced to alternative graphemes, lesser known sounds and begin to learn some of the more complicated spelling rules.

At the end of Year 1 children are required to sit the Phonics Screening Check to assess their ability to segment and blend words. Children are presented with 40 words – a mixture of real and pseudo words and they are expected to apply their Phonics knowledge to read the words. If children are unsuccessful in Year 1 they have the opportunity to retake the test in Year 2. Intervention groups are set up for those children struggling with their Phonics learning and this additional support will continue in Key Stage 2 if necessary.
 

Vocabularly/SPAG

A good spelling programme gradually builds pupils’ spelling vocabulary therefore, when children enter Key Stage 2 they will have daily CUSP spelling lessons.

In Year 6 children are required to take a ‘Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar’ test. We endeavour to prepare children for this test as early as possible and therefore make spelling and grammar a key priority in all curriculum areas.
 

Drama and role play

At Churchwood Primary School we strongly believe that the more experiences children have the better writers they become. We therefore place a strong emphasis on bringing drama and role play into our literacy lessons, allowing the children to recreate those fantasy worlds that they so often read about.  Hotseating, teacher in role and freeze frames are just some examples of the types of activities your children will experience through our diverse literacy curriculum.