The English Curriculum at Thingwall Primary School

At Thingwall Primary School, we believe literacy and communication are essential life skills. Our English curriculum develops children’s ability to communicate effectively through spoken and written language, fostering creativity, confidence, and a lifelong love of learning. We want pupils to enjoy and value literature in its many forms.

Literacy underpins all learning, enabling children to express ideas, explore experiences, and connect with others. As it supports intellectual, emotional, and social development, it plays a vital role across the curriculum, helping pupils’ progress to be coherent and meaningful.

Aims

By the time children leave Thingwall, they will:

• Communicate confidently in speaking, listening, reading, and writing across contexts.

• Take pleasure in reading and writing across genres and purposes.

• Work at or above national age-related expectations.

Reading

Reading is central to learning, and our curriculum is built around high-quality literature. Pupils are taught to:

• Develop positive attitudes towards reading.

• Read fluently, accurately, and with understanding.

• Apply a range of independent reading strategies.

• Respond thoughtfully to diverse texts.

Reading is promoted at school and home through reading records, parent support, and a wide range of materials. Children are heard reading regularly, with extra support for those who need it. Every class has a dedicated reading corner, and daily whole-class reading is timetabled.

Phonics is taught using Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised in Reception and KS1, followed by Bug Club and Pathways to Read in Years 2–6. These programmes provide structured progression, shared and group reading sessions, and targeted interventions where needed.

Through Pathways to Read, pupils develop skills such as clarifying vocabulary, retrieving information, sequencing, making inferences and predictions, analysing structure, evaluating language, and making comparisons. Teachers use regular assessment to adapt teaching and support SEND learners.

Writing

Our writing curriculum enables pupils to:

• Write for varied purposes and audiences.

• Use grammar, punctuation, and spelling accurately.

• Plan, draft, edit, and present effectively, including through digital media.

• Develop fluent, legible handwriting.

The teaching of early writing in Reception and Year 1 focuses on securing sequential foundational skills first including developing oral composition skills, handwriting and letter formation. Tasks are planned to match children's current skills and focus on practice, fluency and reinforcement using regular assessment to identify gaps and adapt teaching to individual's needs.

From Year 2 to Year 6, we follow Pathways to Write, which uses high-quality texts to build mastery skills progressively. Units follow three phases:

1. Gateway – hook and assessment.

2. Pathway – skill development through varied tasks.

3. Writeaway – extended writing, editing, and publishing.

Poetry is taught termly through Pathways to Poetry. Writing is assessed after each unit and moderated within school and across the Oak Trees MAT.

Handwriting

Handwriting is taught throughout the school using Letter Join, focusing on clarity, fluency and comfort. Children develop their own clear style by the end of KS2, with additional support provided where needed.

Spoken Language

Oracy is embedded across the curriculum to help pupils:

• Speak with confidence and clarity.

• Listen actively and respond appropriately.

• Debate and discuss in varied contexts.

• Perform stories and poems.

Opportunities include drama, peer discussions, assemblies, and daily exposure to high-quality texts. Oracy skills are taught across the school using Voice 21 methodology and resources. 

Grammar and Punctuation

Grammar and punctuation are taught through Pathways to Write, revisited regularly using a variety of resouces( including Grammarsaurus and Rollama) and practised in extended writing. KS2 pupils also use Learning by Questions to consolidate skills.

Spelling

Spelling is taught through Little Wandle in KS1 and Spelling Shed in Years 2–6. The scheme focuses on orthography (patterns of letters), morphology (word structure and meaning), and etymology (word origins). Weekly spelling lists and tests support practice and retrieval.

Teaching and Learning

English is taught daily for 60 minutes in KS1 and KS2, with additional time for phonics, extended writing, and extra reading where appropriate. Skills are applied across the curriculum, linking English with other subjects.

Provision for SEND and EAL pupils includes adapted planning, additional support, and appropriate resources to ensure equal access to learning.