English Curriculum Statements

Reading

Intent:

At Leigh Academy Cherry Orchard (LACO), we prioritise Early Literacy, recognising it as essential for accessing the whole curriculum. As noted in our recent Ofsted report, "leaders know that every child must be taught to read well first," reflecting our "boundless ambition" for every child, starting in Nursery. We believe reading is crucial for future learning and aim to instill a love of reading.

Literacy—encompassing reading, writing, vocabulary, oracy, and cultural capital— can be a major barrier, especially for disadvantaged students. All of our pupils will leave with strong decoding, comprehension and reading fluency skills, unlocking the whole curriculum. High literacy confidence prepares students for lifelong learning, and we have a professional duty to ensure this support. High expectations for reading are embedded across the entire curriculum.

While this focuses on reading, all these literacy skills are interconnected. Rigorous assessment and review ensure targeted support, guaranteeing all children succeed in literacy, which we view as crucial for a high-quality education and full participation in society.

Children will be taught to;

• read easily, fluently and with good understanding 

• develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and gathering information

• acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar, and a knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language

• appreciate the rich and varied literary heritage of our school community 

Implementation:

Our pupils follow a highly effective and systematic phonics programme, Read Write Inc (RWI). Nursery children develop phonological awareness before starting RWI later in the year. For all Reception children, the programme begins immediately in September. We provide necessary resources, including matched decodable books, and staff are highly trained and passionate about maximizing children's reading potential.

RWI is a validated synthetic systematic phonics (SSP) scheme that quickly establishes foundational reading skills. It has been well established since the Academy opened in 2017.

Upon completing RWI (usually Year 2, Term 1), children transition to 'off the programme' reading lessons, developing literacy skills through ‘Reading Dogs’ or ‘VIPERS’, and using Accelerated Reader (AR) to manage and monitor independent reading practice, including quizzes and instant feedback.

Disciplinary literacy is key to accessing the wider curriculum. Evidence from The Sutton Trust (Quigley, Didau, and Lemov) highlights four effective approaches: explicit teaching of disciplinary vocabulary, teaching subject-specific reading and writing skills, focusing on reading fluency, decoding, and comprehension, and building cultural capital.

Through continuous professional development, with reference to the reading framework, research provided by the EEF and other resources, our teachers are knowledgeable in ensuring our reading curriculum is offering the best opportunities for all children. All teachers ensure wide vocabulary exposure across all subjects, aiming for all children to be fully literate in reading, writing, and speaking and listening by the time they leave Cherry Orchard. 

Impact:

We measure and assess the impact of our literacy strategy and the progress our children make in a variety of ways.  Some of which includes national testing such as the Phonics Screening Check, regular phonics, fluency and reading comprehension assessments,  as well as the end of Key Stage 2 SATs. 

The rigorous implementation of our reading curriculum, built on a highly effective and systematic phonics programme (Read Write Inc) and sustained by comprehensive KS2 strategies (VIPERS/Accelerated Reader), ensures exceptional outcomes for our pupils.

Our children consistently exceed national expectations, leaving the academy as fluent, confident, and able readers who possess a genuine love for reading. Through regular discussions and pupil voice, our children provide us with feedback and can enthusiastically speak about learning to read and reading for pleasure.  Those who find reading more challenging are able to discuss the support they need and receive. 

Key Stage 2 (KS2) Reading outcomes are a testament to this success. We have been significantly above National Average scores since our first Year 6 cohort completed SATs assessments and are improving year on year. 

In 2025, Expected Standard or Above: 88% of pupils achieved the expected standard or above, significantly exceeding the national average of 75%. Higher Standard: 61% of pupils attained the higher standard (working at greater depth), which is nearly double the national average of 33%.

This sustained, strong achievement is reinforced by pupils who enthusiastically speak about learning to read and reading for pleasure, creating a community of confident writers and readers who are prepared to access the full secondary curriculum.

“Teach a child to read and keep that child reading and we will change everything. And I mean everything.”

Jeanette Winterson

Writing

Intent 

At Leigh Academy Cherry Orchard (LACO), we value the importance of Early Literacy skills. as these are essential in enabling children to access the rest of the curriculum and make them truly proficient writers.  As noted in our most recent Ofsted Report, we have a “boundless ambition at Cherry Orchard and staff are united in striving for the best education for every child.  This begins right from day one in the Nursery. 

We believe that reading opens the door to further learning opportunities, and developing a love of reading underpins all of this.  Strong and passionate readers tend to have a better understanding of what is needed to be an engaging and effective writer. 

At LACO, children will be taught to;

• form letters accurately and practice handwriting

• develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and gathering information

• acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar, and a knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language

• appreciate the rich and varied literary heritage of our school community 

• write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences

• use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas

• are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate

Although some of the above points are related to reading and this document primarily focuses on writing, it is important to note that literacy skills encompass all of the above and reading and writing are directly linked. 

Evidence shows that one of the biggest barriers facing students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, is literacy; their reading, writing, vocabulary acquisition, oracy, and their cultural capital.  The end points for our pupils rely on them having strong decoding, comprehension, reading fluency, and writing skills as well as resilience. This is the case in across all curriculum areas through our transdisciplinary approach.  Students who leave our academy with these skills and high confidence levels in literacy, will be better prepared for life long learning. It is our moral and professional duty to ensure we support them in their journey.  There are high expectations of English skills being present within all subjects;  this is embedded within our Academy’s curriculum. 

Implementation

All children are to be provided with opportunities to develop and apply their written, visual and oral language skills across our curriculum which encompasses a broad and balanced range of national curriculum subjects taught under the IB Transdisciplinary Themes.  To enable this, teachers provide quality first teaching supported by a sound subject knowledge, knowledge and understanding of the National Curriculum expectations as well as links to the wider national curriculum.   Staff will be aware of and familiar with current practice and Government guidelines within the teaching of English.  Writing is also a key focus in the wider curriculum, especially in inquiry lessons where children are given the opportunity to transfer and build upon their knowledge of a genre studied during English lessons and apply this learning to the Transdicplinay Theme, Central Idea and Lines of Enquiry for the unit being taught.

To support children in moving towards independence in their written language skills, staff will provide a wide range of activities with links to the wider curriculum, as well as the use of Dictogloss, modelled, shared and guided writing, peer assessment and conferencing with their peers and adults in the classroom setting.  Children will be encouraged to view themselves as communicators of both written and oral language.  In addition to quality first teaching, we will promote a love of reading that extends beyond the classroom.  Staff will use literature as a context to explore other cultures and utilise links to our local community wherever possible. 

Through the our writing process, children will acquire and learn the skills to plan, draft and refine their written work over time and are encouraged to develop independence in being able to identify their own areas for improvement in all pieces of writing.  Within each unit of work, sequenced lessons ensure that prior learning is checked and built upon and that National Curriculum objectives are taught through a combination of approaches/opportunities e.g.

• Opportunities to participate in drama & spoken language activities

• Exploring the features of different text types and modelled examples (E.g. Spotting features in a WAGOLL – What a good one looks like)

• Handwriting practise

• Vocabulary practise

• Shared writing (modelled expectations)

• Discrete Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar lessons

• Independent writing

• Planning, drafting, editing, up-levelling and presenting

• Performing

Resources are used in each class, to scaffold and challenge, will enable to the children to make progress and may vary for different children based on their individual needs.  Student agency and support within each class will allow the children to develop a sense of independence in their work.

Handwriting

It is paramount that children are rigorously taught correct letter formation from the very beginning of their time in school.  During the foundation stage at LACO, the children are taught to sit properly in order to have the correct posture for writing, hold a pencil in the correct position and develop a legible handwriting style.  We follow the Read, Write Inc. synthetic phonics programme from EYFS to support with this until pupils reach the end of the programme. We then move pupils onto Letter Join to learn and develop fully cursive handwriting for continued handwriting practice as they move through Key Stage 2, implementing interventions where necessary to provide further support to pupils. 

Teachers are expected to role model the school’s handwriting style when marking children’s work, writing on the board and on displays around the school.

Spelling

From EYFS to the around the end of Year 1, children follow the Read, Write Inc. synthetic phonics programme. From Year 2, classes follow Spelling Shed's progressive spelling scheme. Through exploring spelling patterns and rules, we aim to create confident and proficient spellers using a discrete teaching approach underpinned by phonics.

Children are also taught to:

•  Spell accurately and identify reasons for mis-spellings.

•  Proof-read their spellings

• Recognise and use word origins, families and roots to build their skills

• Use dictionaries and thesauruses. 

Impact

Evidence of achievement will be reflected in results from national tests and examinations that meet government expectations along with school data obtained through assessment drops which occur three times a year.  Whilst academic achievement will be measured through end of year or key stage data, the children will also leave LACO with a range of transferable skills which will allow them to be lifelong learners within a global community. We use both summative and quantitative data in our assessment of the pupils which is ongoing throughout each year and each child learning journey. 

As the children develop and progress from EYFS to six, evidence of progress will be seen through their confidence and approach to learning, as well as in their books and through their outcomes regardless of their ability.  Sequential learning, as outlined in our progression documents, will establish progress for all children.

EYFS

By the end of EYFS, children will use their phonic knowledge to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds. They also write some irregular common words. They write simple sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible. They will have had the opportunity to develop their fine motor skills, forming most letters accurate and consistently.  

Key Stage 1

By the end of KS1, children are formally tested, following the removal of KS1 SATs, with KS1 LAT Common Assessment and for writing this includes teacher assessment. We follow DfE guidance in assessing writing across the school, with a school based approach to writing assessments. Teachers track pupils' progress throughout the year and address misconceptions whenever necessary.

Lower Key Stage 2

By the end of Year 4, children will have had the opportunity to listen to and discuss a wide range of fiction, poetry, plays and non-fiction books.  In terms of reading comprehension, children will be independent in checking their understanding of what they have read, confident in making predictions, summarising their reading and be able to draw inferences from a wide range of texts; pupils will use their love of reading and understanding of texts to support them with the writing process.  They will be able to plan, draft, organise and evaluate their writing whilst using Standard English, and a range of grammar techniques as stated in the National Curriculum.

Upper Key Stage 2

By the end of Year 6, children will be able to demonstrate positive attitudes to their reading by increasing their familiarity with a wide range of literature.  In terms of reading comprehension, children will be able to explain how language, structure and presentation contribute to meaning and evaluate the impact that language has on the reader. In their written work, they will be able to write fluently, legibly, draft, organise and evaluate their work, considering their audience and making appropriate grammar and vocabulary choices.  When writing, they will show an awareness of the difference between formal and informal language and understand how sentence structure can be varied using the passive voice.  Children will be able to confidently use more advanced punctuation and other key grammar features as stated in the National Curriculum.

We have high expectations of all children at Leigh Academy Cherry Orchard and expect them to leave at the end of KS2 with detailed knowledge and skills across the curriculum and, as a result, achieve well.   These will be skills that are transferable across all subjects and will establish the children as lifelong learners within a global community.