English

For details about how we teach English at Portreath, please click on the link below for our English policy and our Reading and Writing Journey documents.

We have created our own reading spine. These are the books that are used to teach reading to the class. Please see below:

Class Readers Cycle A

Class Readers Cycle B

We have created ‘Portreath School Progression in Writing’ document for Year 1 to 6. This sets out which genre is taught in which year group and how each genre is taught to ensure progression. As a school we feel it is important for the children to be exposed to a range of genres during their time at school. The document breaks each genre down into ‘composition and effect’, ‘text structure and organisation’ and the related punctuation and grammar for each relevant year group. It also gives information about the genre for example the purpose, outcomes, generic features, language features and top tips for the writers. Please find a copy below:

Portreath School Progression in Writing

In Key Stage One and Key Stage Two each class has a class fictional text/novel each half term and a class non-fiction book that are key texts. These are used to support the teaching of reading and often written work is also linked to these. Please find below our class novel overviews.

Objectives

Pupils at Portreath Primary School will leave Year 6:

Being able to spell, punctuate, edit to a suitable standard
Being able to compose pieces of text for a variety purposes and audiences
Reading and writing with confidence, fluency and understanding, using a range of independent strategies to take responsibility for their own learning including self-monitoring and correcting their own errors
With a love of reading and a desire to read for enjoyment
With an interest in words and their meanings; developing a growing vocabulary in relation to grammatical terminology
Understanding a range of text types, media types and genres
Able to write in a variety of styles and forms appropriate to the situation
Using their developing creativity, imagination, inventiveness and critical awareness
Having a suitable technical vocabulary to respectfully articulate their responses in a discussion

Further Information about Reading

Portreath School places great emphasis on ‘every child a reader’. We understand that educational success is more easily achieved by those children who read readily and fluently. We are determined to teach every one of our children to read and the emphasis in our KS1 classes is on providing our children with rich opportunities to talk, listen and build as wide a vocabulary as possible to form a solid foundation for reading, writing and spelling.

Our Reception and Year 1 children are taught Phonics systematically and rigorously using the ‘Read Write Inc’ scheme. The ‘Read Write Inc Spelling Programme’ is then used in Year 2-6.

When using RWI to read the children will:

learn that sounds are represented by written letters
learn 44 sounds and the corresponding letter/letter groups using simple picture prompts
learn how to blend sounds
learn to read words using Fred Talk
read lively stories featuring words they have learned to sound out
show that they comprehend the stories by answering questions.

When using RWI to write the children will:

learn to write the letters/letter groups which represent 44 sounds.
learn to write words by saying the sounds in Fred Talk
write simple sentences

For more information, please click on the following guide for parents:

Read Write Inc. – A guide for parents

Oxford Owl for Home

If difficulties or barriers to progress are identified additional resources are put in e.g additional adult help, targeted group or 1: 1 work and close monitoring of the effectiveness of this additional support takes place.

Reading for pleasure is emphasised across the academic year and across the school. Book Week, ‘Snuggledown’ (an evening on which children return to school to listen to stories at bedtime read by staff and governors), the school Library and a mobile book shelf utilised at lunchtimes, book corners and displays all contribute to a whole school emphasis on the importance of reading. Each class has a ’20 reads’ which are books that every child in the class is encouraged to borrow and read during the year.

Children select Home- School reading books from coloured banded boxes, linked to RWI. Once children are fluently reading and completed the RWI programme, they are directed to select appropriate paperbacks using the Accelerated Reader levelling system from the library or class book shelf.

Children are encouraged to read at least four times per week, as part of their homework, and there are various reward systems in place to encourage children to read regularly.

Recommended reads link for each year group

Reception: www.booksfortopics.com/reception

Year 1: www.booksfortopics.com/year-1

Year 2: www.booksfortopics.com/year-2

Year 3: www.booksfortopics.com/year-3

Year 4: www.booksfortopics.com/year-4

Year 5: www.booksfortopics.com/year-5

Year 6: www.booksfortopics.com/year-6

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