Page 46 - Prep School Parent Handbook 2018-2019

A C A D E M I C
I N F O R M A T I O N
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Curriculum overview – English
ffffEnglish is at the heart of learning and language skills are key in building a child’s confidence. Learning English lends itself to stimulating and interactive activities.
By the end of Key Stage 1, most pupils will be reading and writing independently. With the exception of EAL learners and those with specific learning difficulties, most children will be off the Read Write Inc phonics scheme and will have progressed through the two spelling workbooks, moving towards personalised spellings which they will use in their own writing. Most children will feel confident speaking in front of small groups and will be able to speak and write at length, telling stories from memory or from their imagination and giving their opinions. Some children will progress more quickly and may be able to write imaginatively and clearly, using paragraphs, a good range of vocabulary and appropriate punctuation, including possessive apostrophes.
By the end of Key Stage 2, we expect pupils to be able to read fluently and to write extensively about their reading. Pupils will be able to comment on authors’
use of language, author intent and tone of voice. All pupils should feel confident to speak about their choice of reading material, comparing what they read with films and plays which they have seen. Our expectation is that all pupils will feel confident enough to try writing at length, with most pupils adjusting tone and vocabulary according to the audience. We encourage our pupils to take a risk, to experiment with ambitious vocabulary and to edit as they write. Most will leave Key Stage 2 able to use colons, dashes and brackets and paragraphing with links between ideas. Some pupils will move beyond these expectations, trialling story ideas like flashbacks and experimenting with different sentence and paragraph lengths to control the reader experience.
Learning
Pupils will:
• build confidence and their personal voices.
• learn to express what they are feeling and thinking.
• develop a brave and positive attitude.
• discover language through a love of stories.
• gain satisfaction from accuracy in written English.
Teaching
Our goals are to:
• lay down strong foundations in technical aspects of English.
• focus at an early stage on handwriting, spelling and reading.
• develop girls’ sense of structure and flow later on.
• further their speaking skills through books, drama, debating and presenting.
• encourage experimentation and risk taking.