English

"Stories make you think and dream, books make you want to ask questions"

Micheal Morpurgo

English has a prominent place in education and in society. The overarching aim for English in the national curriculum is to promote high standards of language and literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the spoken and written word, and to develop their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment. 

At West End, we aim to develop the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing to enable our children to organise and express their own thoughts, access the knowledge and ideas of others and create a life-long love of language and communication. These skills are increasingly necessary in today’s modern world and will prepare our children for success in their future careers. 

It is our intention to immerse and engage pupils in the wonders of quality texts to instil a love for reading, a passion for discovery and a confidence to explore their imagination. Reading is the key that unlocks the whole curriculum so the ability to effectively decode is essential. At West End, we use Little Wandle phonics programme to teach our children the core skills of segmenting and blending to establish an early independence with reading. Our children then develop their fluency and comprehension as they move through the school.  Please see this sub page for more information our our approach to the teaching of phonics. 

The acquisition of ambitious vocabulary is interwoven through all curriculum areas, particularly the study of English. Our children encounter such vocabulary through high-quality texts and precision teaching and are encouraged to use newly encountered language to express themselves both orally and in the written form. Purposeful opportunities for writing are created and pupils are supported to write legibly and with grammatical accuracy for a range of contexts and audiences. 

We strive to support our children’s development into articulate and imaginative communicators by providing regular opportunities for speaking and listening through presentations and debates. These skills will give our children the tools to succeed in the future.

Our English scheme is from The Literacy Tree. This is a published scheme of work where the learning and content is carefully sequenced to ensure that the children make progress through the English National Curriculum.  

A key feature of the Literacy Tree scheme of work is that each unit is built around a high-quality text.  Below we have listed the texts used in each term and the intended outcomes.