Moore Primary School

Reading and Phonics

From reception to Year 6 all children are encouraged to read for pleasure; they are all given appropriate individual reading books to match their reading ability and we ask that they read at least three times a week, but we encourage that they read every night. All children have a reading diary to record their reading at home and at school. If a child has read three times during the week the teacher awards a raffle ticket to the child. Each half term we draw out a winner from the raffle box and the child receives a prize. All children take home approximately 2/3 books each week to read either with an adult or independently. We have a wide range of books to not only interest the children, but to ensure they access a variety too; from picture books, fiction, non-fiction, classics and modern day classics too. All the books up to Band 14 Ruby have been book banded using the recognised reading book bands as a guide.

 We aim for every child by the end of KS1 to be fluent, confident readers. In Reception and Year 1 there is a focus to hear children read regularly and ensure they are making progress and reading fluently. If they are not further support is implemented. As children become more fluent then we increase the focus on comprehension skills and understanding the text. The children are listened to read in class once a week and are assessed each term using either PIRA or NFER reading tests. In KS1 and Lower KS2, Guided reading skills are taught daily through small group sessions, using a variety of reading resources and reading Vipers(Vocabulary, Infer, Predict, Explain, Retrieve and Summarise) from the Literacy Shed. Small guided reading groups are carried out daily; teachers will then record the session in the children’s reading diaries to inform parents. In Upper KS2 guided reading skills are taught through a combination of whole class reading sessions and small group sessions. All classrooms have class reading areas with a wide choice of reading for pleasure age appropriate books and also subject specific books relating to the current topic. Additionally all classes have a class novel or shorter story, depending on age, which is read to them throughout the week by their class teacher.

In Reception, children receive daily phonics lessons taught through the RWInc phonics programme. The children are given key rings with each sound added as they are learnt in class; they also take home word wallets containing red and green words to practise with an adult at home. Phonics teaching continues in Year 1 and 2 and will be continued with specific children in Year 3 if required.

Writing

At Moore we follow a mastery approach to writing through the programme ‘Pathways to Write’. Following an initial ‘hook’ to engage the children, units of work are delivered using a range of high quality texts and children in all year groups are given varied opportunities for writing. Skills are built up through modelling, repetition and progression within the units and children apply these skills in the writing activities provided. These skills can also be applied when writing in all other curriculum subjects. Many opportunities for broadening children’s vocabulary are given through the Pathways to Write approach and this builds on the extensive work we do in school to provide our children with a rich and varied vocabulary.

Handwriting

At Moore we have recently introduced ‘Letter Join’ in to our teaching of hand writing across Key Stages 1 and 2. Letter-join is a whole school handwriting scheme offering a combination of traditional and digital resources. These include classroom presentations, handwriting activities, online games and worksheets using either a printed font, or a cursive font. Children will be allocated a log-in so they can access the resources at home and practise letter formation in order to develop a consistent correctly formed handwriting style. A weekly hand writing lesson takes place in each class.

Spelling

The new National Curriculum very clearly outlines the continuity and progression of spelling for Key Stages 1 and 2.  The children in all classes are given weekly spelling lists to learn linked to year group expectations from the National Curriculum. In EYFS, Key Stage 1 and 2 spelling is also taught through RWInc and Pathways to Write. In all classes children have a weekly spelling lesson where words are investigated and spelling patterns are explored. The children are also tested on the spellings learnt that week.

You will find the end of year expectations for writing, reading and spoken language for each of our year groups in the attached documents. For further detail on the skills that your children are learning on a termly basis, please contact your class teacher.