Writing

At Exeter Road, we use the I am a Clever Writer approach. This means we pick the most appropriate genre to facilitate the teaching of the new skills in writing. E.g. if children need to consolidate speech, we wouldn't move on to teach non-chronological reports.  Next we think about what additional stimulus or text will best inspire the genre and where possible we use curriculum links to do this.  Most sequences of learning will usually take no longer than a week (or two in upper KS2). 

Teachers write a WAGOLL (What A Good One Looks Like) – a piece of writing that gives the children a clear picture of what we expect them to achieve by the end of the week. The WAGOLL will precisely show what they are aiming for. Having a clear shared outcome makes it is easier to break down the steps and ensures the children get there. We then share the WAGOLL with the class every day. This is a key opportunity to pre-teach new vocabulary that we include in the WAGOLL and most importantly, use the WAGOLL to illustrate how the new skill being taught has been incorporated.

Working Walls are an imperative part of the learning journey and are built up during the week displaying high level vocabulary, a range of openers and the skill we are working on. 

New skills will be shared on the Clever Writer Checklist and this will be displayed in the classroom. New skills will be added throughout the year, allowing children to always embed previously taught skills alongside new skills.

Children need to write frequently, practising newly taught skills and embedding previously taught skills in a context relevant to the genre and stimulus. Just like in maths, if you don’t use it, you lose it. If children don’t write frequently, they don’t have the opportunity to use and further embed their skills. Opportunities for independent writing take place at least 4 times a week.

Assessment

Live marking is essential and will immediately identify errors and address misconceptions. Live marking allows teachers to identify good practice, celebrate this and display examples on the Working Wall for other children to magpie. Live marking also ensure mistakes / misconceptions are addressed immediately and the learning is moved on.

At the end of the week / sequence of learning an independent, extended piece of writing will bring skills and improvements together. This will provide children with time to really show off what they have learned. It’s also fantastic evidence of progress when compared with how they started the unit and demonstrate what they’re capable of.  These pieces of writing will be assessed against age related evidence gathering grids to make a judgement about where a child is working.

Spelling

Children in years 3,4,5 and 6 follow the Spelling Shed programme. Spelling Shed's approach to spelling involves the relationship between sounds and written symbols as well as using morphology to help spell through meaning. The carefully selected word lists and engaging activities provide opportunities to incorporate phonics and meaning to strengthen spelling skills and build vocabulary acquisition.

Handwriting

Time must be given to practise and perfect handwriting to ensure children go beyond accuracy to fluency in letter formation.  As stated in the English Review (May, 2022) it is imperative that children correctly learn unjoined handwriting before using some of the diagonal and horizontal strokes that are needed to join letters. Teachers will identify misconceptions and address these.