English at Hollydale

English is at the heart of our curriculum at Hollydale. Through the teaching of high-quality texts, our children learn to both express themselves and better understand the world around them.

Writing
We read high-quality texts to inspire and engage children in the writing process. These texts are from a variety of different genres and are diverse in their viewpoints and authorship, providing a model for our children to aspire to.

Children at Hollydale learn how to become confident and articulate writers across a range of text types through a carefully-sequenced learning journey where they are given numerous opportunities to:

  • see and hear the writing process modelled by their teacher (“shared writing”)
  • gather and learn new vocabulary
  • practise and build up a bank of literary phrases for effect
  • discuss their ideas before starting to write
  • edit their own work both independently and in response to teacher feedback

Key to our children’s enthusiasm for writing is that teachers always make writing opportunities purposefulwith real audiences and reasons why the children need to express themselves.

Grammar and Punctuation
Wherever possible, grammar and punctuation is explored and taught within a real context: this may be done through a quality text that the children are reading, or it could be in the shared writing which all adults model as part of the teaching process.

Spelling
In the EYFS and Year 1, children receive a daily session in phonics. This teaches children to hear, say, read and write the full range of sounds needed to read and write independently. From Year 2 onwards, children are taught the age-appropriate spelling patterns as outlined in the spelling appendix of the national curriculum. All children are given a set of words to practise spelling, and from Year 1 onwards, these are tested once a week.

Writing Displays

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Poetry at Hollydale

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