Our English curriculum aims to develop children’s skills in reading, writing, speaking and listening in a robust and responsive way. It also aims to develop a love of reading, writing and language which will last our children a lifetime and enable them to fulfil their potential once they leave us.

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 language and to develop their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment. The national curriculum for English aims to ensure that all pupils

• read easily, fluently and with good understanding
• develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
• acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language
• appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage
• write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences
• use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas, and
• are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate

Here at Moresby Primary School, pupils are taught to use a range of key strategies to help them decode unfamiliar words as they begin their reading journey. Decoding is the process of working out how to read words and understand their meaning — it is often described as “unlocking the code” of reading.

Phonics

Phonics and the recognition of common exception (sight) words are essential tools that support children in becoming confident decoders.

We are a well-established and successful Read Write Inc. (RWI) school. This structured phonics programme forms the foundation of our early reading approach. Through a systematic synthetic phonics framework, combined with clear and explicit teaching, we ensure that pupils develop the essential knowledge and skills needed for reading, spelling and writing.

Our aim is for every child to begin their reading journey with confidence and enthusiasm, and to develop a lifelong love of reading.

RWI is a systematic synthetic phonics programme designed to support all children in learning to read fluently and with increasing speed and accuracy. This fluency allows pupils to focus more on developing their comprehension, vocabulary and spelling skills.

Within RWI phonics, the individual sounds are known as “speed sounds.” These are taught in carefully structured stages. Set 1 sounds are the initial single-letter sounds such as m, a, s, d, t. Set 2 and Set 3 sounds introduce digraphs and trigraphs, where two or three letters represent one sound, for example ee as in seen and igh as in light.

Children are also taught that the same sound can be represented in different ways, for example ay as in day and a-e as in make.

Speed sounds are taught in a planned sequence and are supported by rhymes that help children to form letters correctly and recall sounds instantly. This prepares them for effective blending and segmenting.

Each speed sound is linked to a set of green words, which allow children to practise applying their new knowledge immediately. For example, children can sound out and blend words such as s-p-r-ay to read spray, strengthening both decoding and fluency.

Phonics learning begins in our Nursery classes in a playful and engaging way. Children are introduced to early phonics through a range of games, songs and rhymes that develop their listening skills and attention to sounds. As their confidence grows, they are encouraged to notice print in their environment and begin talking about letters and sounds they recognise, such as those in their own name.

When children are developmentally ready, we introduce Set 1 sounds to ensure they are well-prepared for the structured phonics teaching they will experience in Reception.

Phonics is taught systematically to all children in Reception and Year 1, as well as to any pupils in Year 2 who have not yet met the expected standard in the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check. Daily phonics sessions take place for approximately 40 minutes, with children taught in small, ability-based groups to ensure teaching is closely matched to their needs.

Writing

We aim to develop confident, creative and accurate writers who can express their ideas clearly for a range of purposes and audiences. Our writing curriculum is designed to build strong foundations from the earliest stages, developing both transcriptional skills and compositional fluency as children progress through the school.

In the Early Years Foundation Stage, writing begins with the development of fine and gross motor skills, forming the essential physical foundations for writing. Children engage in purposeful, play-based activities that strengthen hand–eye coordination and control, alongside early mark-making experiences that help them understand that marks carry meaning.

In Reception and Key Stage 1, we use Mighty Writer as a key tool to support early sentence construction and composition. This hands-on approach helps children to orally rehearse, build and structure sentences, supporting them to develop confidence in forming ideas before writing them independently. It provides a clear bridge between spoken language and written text, strengthening understanding of sentence structure, grammar and punctuation in a practical and engaging way.

Alongside this, we follow the principles of Talk for Writing, ensuring that high-quality spoken language underpins all writing. Children learn to internalise language patterns through imitation, innovation and independent application, enabling them to develop a growing repertoire of vocabulary, sentence structures and narrative styles.

Spelling is taught systematically using Emile Spelling, which supports children in developing secure orthographic knowledge and applying spelling patterns with increasing accuracy. Vocabulary development is enhanced through Vocabulary Ninja, which exposes pupils to rich, ambitious language and encourages them to experiment with word choice in their own writing.

Across all year groups, children are supported to plan, write, edit and improve their work, developing an understanding that writing is a process rather than a single outcome. Teachers model high-quality writing, explicitly teach grammatical structures, and provide regular opportunities for shared and independent writing.

By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils are developing into increasingly fluent and purposeful writers who can communicate their ideas effectively, drawing on a growing bank of vocabulary, sentence structures and writing strategies. Most importantly, they develop a sense of pride in their writing and the confidence to express themselves creatively and accurately.