English

Purpose of Study:

English has a pre-eminent place in education and in society. A high-quality education in English will teach pupils to speak and write fluently so that they can communicate their ideas and emotions to others and through their reading and listening, others can communicate with them. Through reading in particular, pupils have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. Literature, especially, plays a key role in such development. Reading also enables pupils both to acquire knowledge and to build on what they already know. All the skills of language are essential to participating fully as a member of society; pupils, therefore, who do not learn to speak, read and write fluently and confidently are effectively disenfranchised.

At Hurst Green Primary School we promote the value of English across the full curriculum to inspire children to develop a life-long appreciation of the subject.

Aims:

English teaching in Hurst Green Primary School aims to help pupils to:

• Develop a high standard of spoken and written language.
• Read fluently and with good understanding for both pleasure and in order to find out necessary information.
• Write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences.
• Become competent in speaking and listening so that they can use discussion in order to learn, make presentations and participate in debates.
• Acquire a wide range of vocabulary and develop a secure understanding of English grammar.
• Appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage.

Supporting Resources:

At Hurst Green Primary School, we believe in supporting our provision with commercially produced high quality resources and schemes of work where it is appropriate. In English, we use the following resources and schemes to support our ongoing Phonics and Reading provision:

• Letters and Sounds
• Phonics Bug
• Phonics Play
• Oxford Reading Tree Reading Scheme
• TES Phonics/Grammar
• Rapid Reading Intervention Programme

Links to some of these resources can be found in the useful links/documents section below.