Intent statement for English

We can be readers and writers.

English at St. Matthew's is taught to develop the child’s love of reading, writing and discussion. Through our English curriculum, we strive to teach the children how important these skills will be in the real world. It is our intention to immerse pupils in the wonders of quality texts to instil a love for reading, a passion for discovery and a confidence to explore their imagination through our book-led curriculum.

English lessons will give children:

• the vocabulary to express their thoughts and opinions;
• the knowledge of how grammar shapes our language;
• the skills to write clearly, accurately and coherently;
• an understanding of the importance of literature;
• an awareness of how they can shape the world through their writing

English at St. Matthew's

Our aim at St. Matthew’s, is for all our children to become confident and capable readers and writers. In doing so, children will find a world of possibilities opened up to them, from being able to escape into a book and enjoy fantastical worlds, to being able to solve problems and develop life skills.

In KS1, children have daily phonics sessions, a daily English lesson and at least once per week will read with their teacher. In phonics we follow the 'Letters and Sounds' progressions of skills which is further supported by the use of 'Phonics Bug' when reading.  In writing we use the 'Talk for Writing' approach to stimulate and ignite the children's imagination in English. This focuses on children learning the language structures of key text types through rehearsing example texts verbally, whilst also using actions and games, until the text becomes internalised.

In KS2, children have a daily English lesson and will read with their teacher weekly during guided reading sessions. The teachers use the St. Matthew's sentence type posters (inspired by the work of Alan Peat), to encourage children to write more creatively and produce more varied writing.

Children from Year 1 to Year 6 will have a weekly spelling session, where the words for the week are introduced, then a weekly spelling test. The lists for these can be found on the class pages.

At St. Matthew’s, children learn cursive handwriting. This begins in Reception, where children are introduced to the pre-cursive letters, and by Year 2 are taught to join them together. Across school, all classes have discreet handwriting lessons up to Year 4.

How to help at home

Below are some links, which you may find useful for helping your child develop fluency in reading and writing.