Writing at St Benedict's

Our writing curriculum is designed to provide a broad and balanced education that meets the needs of all children. We follow the award-winning Ready Steady Write from Literacy Counts in Years 1 to 6 to develop confident, independent and successful writers with high aspirations. Our writing curriculum is research-informed and impact-proven, carefully designed to support all children to master the foundational skills and write for a clear audience and purpose. Through the use of high-quality, vocabulary-rich texts, we provide exciting and meaningful reasons to write. Children are immersed in literature and taught to craft their writing with precision, using a range of pedagogical approaches, including sentence accuracy, modelled writing and shared writing, as well as regular opportunities for editing. We value spoken language as a foundation for writing. Through structured talk, drama and vocabulary exploration, children learn how to organise and express their ideas clearly before writing them down. Our aim is for every child – regardless of need – to write fluently and take pride in their work. We want our pupils to leave primary school as enthusiastic writers, ready for the next stage of their education. Please click here for further information to find out about the intent, implementation and impact.

 

Handwriting and Grammar

Handwriting is taught through the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised (Reception) and Penpals Handwriting scheme to provide the children with frequent, discrete and direct teaching of handwriting, as required by the National Curriculum 2014. It offers clear progression from EYFS to Year 6 by teaching handwriting through five developmental stages: preparation for handwriting; securing correct letter formation; beginning to join along; securing the joins and practicing speed and fluency and developing a personal style. The children are also given daily opportunities to develop their handwriting through teaching and feedback across the curriculum.