English at Chilton
Reading
We value reading as a key life skill and ensure reading is a fundamental part of what we do. We are dedicated to enabling our pupils to become lifelong readers by having a holistic approach from when the children start with us in Reception. All children at Chilton Primary School are exposed to high quality texts across the curriculum and reading skills are taught explicitly in all year groups. As a school, reading has a very high profile. Reading for pleasure happens regularly at Chilton and children experience a wide range of reading activities to engage and inspire them.
Through the teaching of systematic phonics, our aim is for children to become fluent readers by the end of Key Stage One. This way, children can focus on developing their fluency and comprehension as they move through the school. When children start at Chilton, they are taught how to segment and blend words moving on to ‘time for talk’ in reception where children explore a text and prepares them for reading for pleasure sessions in other years. When children have developed they fluency, children move on to Accelerated Reader to support their comprehension and understanding a text. Click here to find our more about Accelerated Reader. https://www.chiltonprimary.co.uk/accelerated-reader
Reading for pleasure sessions happen regularly in every class. During these sessions, adults create an environment for the children to explore a wide range of reading activities that allow the children to enjoy their reading. The children enjoy reading for pleasure activities such as: exploring song lyrics, travel guides, following how to guides, musical reading games, reading subtitles, discovering and sharing menus, exploring children’s newspapers and magazines, reading books to each other, exploring poems and limericks, cosy story time, telling stories to each other, exploring cookery books and science magazines. Children are encouraged to share their likes and dislikes with their peers and adults.
High quality texts are available throughout the school. Chilton offers well stocked and organised book corners and book areas throughout the school where children can independently choose a text to enjoy. The high profile of reading in school is further enhanced by our Year 5 and 6 Reading Buddies who support our younger children to read every day. Additional reading challenges are provided to promote a variety of reading. Reading is celebrated weekly and termly at Chilton.
Phonics and Spelling
To ensure the delivery of high quality, systematic phonic work for all children, we use the Read Write Inc. programme developed by Ruth Miskin (see bottom of page for more information). In Reception and Year 1, this facilitates a robust and rigorous approach to learning phonics and development as early readers, spellers and writers. This strategy delivers consistent practice, progression and continuity in the teaching and learning of phonics and spelling right up to year 6. Our drive is to impart strategies that teach our children to spell, read and write confidently.
Our spelling curriculum begins in year 2, where children build on their prior phonic knowledge from year 1. Our tailored spelling program is taught for 30 minutes, three times a week and has been designed to meet the needs of our children and the National Curriculum. Our spelling curriculum enables children to experience spelling in a fun and creative way. PaG (punctuation and grammar) is taught for 30 mins twice a week and supports our writing lessons at Chilton. Students can transfer their SPaG knowledge directly into their writing. We are confident that the vast majority of our children finish their studies with us as confident spellers, readers and writers.
We conduct an exciting Countdown Assembly Competition three times per year where children can demonstrate their spelling and maths skills.
Writing
Literacy is the fundamental skill that enriches our daily lives in a wide variety of ways. At Chilton, we intend to provide opportunities to engage with high quality, age appropriate, texts to discover language as part of either whole class teaching or independent reading. We have a passion for language and through challenge, choice and creativity, we aspire to transfer this to our children.
Writing opportunities are carefully planned around class novels where both non-fiction and fiction is balanced across the academic year. Children’s literacy skills and speaking and listening opportunities are strengthened with planned cross-curricular links.
Children participate in discussions, presentations, performances, role play, improvisations and debates. These areas of learning develop our children into confident speakers and listeners as well as confident writers. Early writers will call on their own experiences and, as children progress through the school, they develop further by exploring a range of text types. These include extended stories, poetry, diary entries, reports, discussion and many more. As part of the writing process, children are taught to reflect on, edit and improve their writing and its presentation.
Children progress through Chilton becoming increasingly proficient at using a range of literary techniques, which they can apply skilfully. Children understand and apply their knowledge of a range of text types, which engage and inform the reader. Our authors can independently reflect on theirs, and others’, writing, and suggest improvements.
