Ashwicken C of E Primary School

English

Reading

Intent

English is at the heart of all children’s’ learning. It enables children both to communicate with others effectively for a variety of purposes and to examine their own and others’ experiences, feelings and ideas, giving these order and meaning. Reading is a life skill that every child should be entitled to have. Without the ability to read and decode text, so much is closed off to a child and later as an adult. We want not only to inspire children through books but also to promote a love of reading to empower our children to become lifelong readers.

Implementation

At Ashwicken School we have created a reading and poetry spine which is a list of texts, authors and poets that we value at our school and feel children need to experience for many reasons. These texts can be read as a whole, used in chunks to stimulate and model writing or small extracts for discussion and analysis. We feel exposure to these high quality texts is critical to our children’s success as readers and as individuals in society. These texts and selection of books by key authors will be available for reading silently, reading aloud and being read to. We believe accessibility to quality books is an opportunity for all children regardless of their previous experiences and reading ability. All children can have a shared point from which common reading experiences and learning can be linked and built upon. Books are referenced from our school reading spine which include recommendations from: Doug Lemov's Book Reading Reconsidered, Pie Corbett’s Reading Spine, Books for Topics, Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Book Awards and English Training newly recommended books.

In Ashwicken School children have a range of daily reading experiences through guided reading in the morning, high quality texts used as a models in English lessons, individual reading after lunch and quality texts read to the children at the end of the day. This allows the children to encounter more demanding texts in a safe environment where teachers aim to be reading role models in the way that they discuss and promote books as well as modelling reading for pleasure. The children have access to a range of different reading books used from our reading scheme, class reading area and through access to the school library.

We follow the Little Wandle Phonics scheme, which teaches the children the 44 different sounds in the English language and 175+ different ways of writing those sounds (graphemes). The correct enunciation of phonemes and modelling of blending by all adults is of paramount importance in the accurate and effective teaching of phonics.

The children have access to a range of different reading books. Each child in Reception and Year 1 will have access to a fully phonetically decodable book matched to their stage of phonics and a non-decodable (reading for pleasure) book within their book band. Children all also have access to online reading books through the programme ‘Big Cat’. Big Cat books are finely matched to the Phases in our phonics sequence and support the progression of all reading skills through regular comprehension questions and assessments.

The teaching of reading comprehension has a consistent approach across the school using the reading viper terminology- VIPERS (vocabulary, infer, predict, explain, retrieve, sequence or summarise). Alongside this, pupils are explicitly taught strategies to understand and gather information from a text using PIXL resources and teachers own careful selections both in the texts and reading comprehensions.

In the Foundation Curriculum, a focus is also placed upon vocabulary and knowledge. All children receive daily explicit instruction of challenging and new vocabulary which is revisited and recorded on the working walls in the classroom. Pupils are encouraged to recognise the meaning of new words they encounter such as through considering context cues and exploring the morphology of words which allows for direct links to be made with spelling and grammar. Children also learn about the etymology of words and their relationships with other languages: this helps to promote curious learners, a respect for other cultures and consolidates long term learning.

We have a reading specialist who supports the lowest 20% of readers as identified through a combination of York assessments and PIXL data. This ensures that each child is adequately supported with improving reading speed, accuracy or comprehension according to their individual needs. This intervention can take the form of tailored phonics programme, precision teaching of key words, the use of PIXL therapies and being heard read. This progress is then monitored and tracked through regular assessments, York and PIXL tests.

Impact

By the time children leave, they are competent readers who can recommend books to their peers, have a thirst for reading, including poetry, and participate in discussions about books, including evaluating an author’s use of language and the impact this can have on the reader. They can also read books to enhance their knowledge and understanding of all subjects on the curriculum, and communicate their research to a wider audience.

Writing

Intent

Writing is a crucial part of our curriculum, and our intention is that by the end of Year Six all children have developed a genuine love of writing and the confidence to express their thoughts and ideas clearly, creatively and with increasing sophistication. We want pupils to use adventurous and precise vocabulary, to take pride in their presentation, and to understand how to edit and improve their work. Alongside this, we aim for children to develop a secure command of grammar, punctuation and spelling, and to write with a fluent, cursive handwriting style that supports clarity and flow.

In EYFS and Year 1, our intent is rooted in giving children a joyful, meaningful and developmentally appropriate introduction to writing. We want them to see themselves as authors, creators and storytellers whose ideas matter. In Reception, Drawing Club immerses children in story, imagination and language through the Golden Blend of picture books, tales and animations. Writing begins through play, creativity and rich vocabulary, allowing children to build confidence in mark‑making, drawing and early composition. In Year 1, this intent continues through The Curious Quests, which builds directly on the foundations of Drawing Club and preserves children’s sense of wonder, agency and imagination while deepening their confidence as writers. This approach ensures continuity of pedagogy and ethos, and avoids pushing children prematurely into formal text types that are not required in the Year 1 National Curriculum and risk detaching them from the joy of writing.

Across the school, our overarching intent is that children experience writing as purposeful, imaginative and empowering, and that they leave Ashwicken with the skills, confidence and enthusiasm needed for the next stage of their education.

Implementation

In Reception, Drawing Club provides a rich and playful introduction to writing. Children begin with a short whole‑class Time Together session before moving into open‑ended exploration, drawing, storytelling and imaginative play. This approach immerses them in story, introduces a wide vocabulary, nurtures creativity and gives them highly engaging, age‑appropriate opportunities to practise early writing. It establishes the Four Mini Moments that underpin later writing development and helps children understand that writing is a joyful act of expression.

In Year 1, The Curious Quests extends the principles of Drawing Club and offers an immersive landscape for story‑dreaming, invention and early composition. Beginning in Autumn 2, it blends short carpet sessions, small‑group work and continuous provision such as junk modelling, construction, playdough, role play and outdoor learning. The Curious Quests:

provides joyful opportunities to apply phonics and SPaG
does not prescribe what to teach or when, allowing teachers to use professional judgement
maintains children’s intrinsic motivation to write
ensures writing remains rooted in imagination rather than adult‑driven tasks

To implement The Curious Quests effectively, staff must have a secure understanding of Drawing Club and its Four Mini Moments, as the pedagogy assumes this foundation. Schools without continuous provision cannot implement the approach, as children need space and materials to invent, imagine and explore.

From Year 2 to Year 6, writing is taught through the Talk for Writing approach, ensuring a consistent and systematic progression across the school. This approach breaks the writing process into three clear phases:

Imitation – internalising language structures through “talking the text” and close reading
Innovation – adapting model texts with increasing independence
Invention – applying skills to create original writing

Teachers use shared and guided writing to model composition, structure and language choices, drawing on a core reading spine of high‑quality fiction, poetry and non‑fiction. Each unit begins with a cold task to assess what children can already do independently, enabling teachers to tailor teaching to the needs of the class. The unit ends with a hot task, allowing children to demonstrate progress and independence. Short‑burst writing, guided sessions and explicit teaching of grammar, punctuation and spelling all contribute to building confident, capable writers who can apply their skills across the curriculum, including within The Core Knowledge Curriculum.

Impact

By the end of Reception and Year 1, children see themselves as writers with something worth saying. They write with confidence, imagination and ownership, use vocabulary with increasing precision, and apply phonics and early SPaG knowledge in meaningful contexts. They demonstrate strong narrative understanding, generate original ideas and show sustained engagement in writing activities. They move into Year 2 with a secure sense of writing as a tool for expression, creativity and communication, ready for the more formal expectations that follow without losing their joy or agency.

By the end of Year Six, pupils make good progress from their individual starting points and are able to write clearly, accurately and effectively for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences. They can adapt language and style with confidence, draw on a wide vocabulary and demonstrate a strong command of the written word. They take pride in their presentation and are well equipped for the next stage of their education. Most importantly, they leave Ashwicken with a love of writing and the belief that their voice matters.