English

Context & Rationale

Our English curriculum is bespoke and text‑led, designed with an English consultant to ensure high‑quality text selection, deliberate sequencing and strong connections between reading, writing and spoken language. It responds to:

• DfE Reading Framework (EYFS–Y9): fidelity to systematic synthetic phonics (SSP), explicit fluency teaching, rich whole‑text reading, and leadership routines for reading.
• DfE Writing Framework (2025): explicit sentence instruction; balanced development of transcription (handwriting and spelling) and composition; oral rehearsal; purposeful writing for audience and purpose.
• Ofsted English Subject Report (2024): the need for deliberate sequencing of literature by complexity and quality, and for strengthening spoken language as a driver of reading and writing.
• EEF literacy guidance (KS1 & KS2): build pupils’ language capabilities (oracy and vocabulary), teach fluency and comprehension strategies, develop sentence construction and transcription through practice, and use assessment to target support/interventions.
• Oracy Commission We Need to Talk (2024): normalising learning to talk, learning through talk and learning about talk so every child benefits from a high‑quality oracy education.

As a Catholic school, we seek excellence in language and literature so pupils can express truth, show kindness, and speak with courage and wisdom—living out our Gospel values in the way they read the world, listen to others, and shape it through words.

2. Intent

We intend that all pupils:

1. Become fluent, motivated readers who can access the full curriculum and read for pleasure (daily reading, teacher read‑aloud, and library culture). This reflects the Reading Framework’s emphasis on fluency and reading cultures.
2. Write with accuracy, clarity and purpose: secure transcription (handwriting, spelling) and sentence control underpin confident composition for real audiences, as set out in the DfE Writing Framework.
3. Develop strong oracy: speak, listen and debate respectfully; use talk to think and learn; and understand how talk varies by audience and purpose (Oracy Commission; Ofsted).
4. Grow vocabulary and background knowledge through high‑quality whole texts and explicit instruction (EEF).
5. Experience equity: keep‑up support and structured interventions ensure disadvantaged and vulnerable pupils make strong progress (EEF).

Curriculum design principles

• Text‑led & sequenced: a curated book spine from EYFS–Y6 is mapped for complexity, themes and knowledge progression (Ofsted).
• Integrated modalities: reading ↔ talk ↔ writing are planned as one learning journey to reduce cognitive load and maximise transfer (EEF; DfE Writing Framework).
• Inclusion: adaptations maintain ambition, with targeted keep‑up for decoding, fluency, language and motor needs (Reading Framework; EEF).

Why these core programmes?
We use Rocket Phonics (DfE‑validated SSP), Rising Stars Spelling and Letter‑Join because together they implement national guidance with classroom consistency: validated SSP with fully‑matched decodables; systematic spelling that teaches patterns, morphology and etymology; and handwriting practice that builds automaticity—freeing working memory for high‑quality composition.

3. Implementation

3.1 Core components

A. High‑quality text spine (EYFS–Y6)

• Whole texts (fiction, poetry, non‑fiction) are selected for literary merit, cultural breadth and cumulative challenge; sequencing builds themes, genres, conventions and background knowledge (Ofsted).
• Each unit includes: knowledge goals, vocabulary set, talk structures, sentence foci, and purposeful writing outcomes (DfE Writing Framework; EEF).

B. Early reading & phonics (SSP: Reading Planet Rocket Phonics)

• Early reading is taught through Reading Planet Rocket Phonics, a DfE‑validated SSP programme taught with fidelity and supported by matched decodable books.
• The programme provides a clear GPC progression, structured weekly teaching and assessment (including PSC practice), and materials for whole‑class teaching with keep‑up support so pupils keep up rather than catch up.
• Decodable texts are used to practise the taught code and reduce guessing strategies—supporting secure word reading and fluency.
• Independent evaluators (NTU & University of Birmingham) reported rapid gains in phonics knowledge and positive teacher attitudes in Rocket Phonics schools.

C. Reading fluency & comprehension

• Weekly fluency routines (model–echo–choral, phrase‑cued, re‑reading for prosody) and performance reading (Reading Framework).
• Explicit teaching and gradual release of comprehension strategies (predict, question, clarify, summarise) with close reading and retrieval–inference–evaluation tasks (EEF KS1/KS2).

D. Oracy embedded in every unit

• Structured talk (e.g., think‑pair‑share, accountable discussion, dialogic circles, debate, presentations).
• Pupils learn to talk (skills of voice, language, listening), through talk (reasoning and problem‑solving) and about talk (metacognitive reflection), as recommended by the Oracy Commission and reflected in Ofsted’s emphasis on spoken language.

E. Writing: transcription, sentences & composition

• Spelling (KS1–KS2: Rising Stars Spelling)
  • We use Rising Stars Spelling (with Boost digital components) to deliver a systematic, NC‑aligned spelling curriculum Y1–Y6. Units teach spelling patterns, morphology and etymology in context, alongside statutory lists and rules.
  • This approach reflects best practice and research indicating that morphology supports spelling, decoding and vocabulary—especially in KS2—while the DfE Writing Framework positions transcription automaticity as foundational for composition.
• Handwriting (EYFS–KS2: Letter‑Join)
  • We teach handwriting through Letter‑Join, providing explicit, cumulative instruction, short daily/weekly practice, and progression from formation to fluent joining.
  • This aligns with the DfE Writing Framework and NC expectations that handwriting requires frequent, discrete teaching to develop automaticity; improved orthographic‑motor fluency is linked to better composition.
• Sentence instruction & composition
  • Explicit sentence work (combining/manipulating clauses and cohesion devices), modelled/shared writing, and purposeful outcomes—fully consistent with the DfE Writing Framework and EEF.

F. Vocabulary & language development

• Tier 2/3 word teaching embedded in every lesson; morphology (prefixes/suffixes/roots); repeated encounters in listening, speaking, reading and writing (EEF).

G. Reading for Pleasure (RfP)

• Daily teacher read‑aloud; class libraries; pupil‑led recommendations; events and author studies (Reading Framework).

H. Assessment, feedback & intervention

• On‑the‑day checks and immediate reteaching when ~20%+ show misunderstanding (EEF responsive teaching).
• Fluency: regular WCPM/prosody sampling on seen/unseen texts to track growth (Reading Framework; EEF fluency tools).
• Writing: use of TAF descriptors to inform summative judgements (end‑points) and moderation (STA).
• Oracy: observation rubrics aligned to recognised benchmarks (e.g., Voice 21 and The Oracy Framework) to capture progress in physical, linguistic, cognitive, social‑emotional strands.
• Interventions: time‑bound, evidence‑based small‑group/1:1 programmes for decoding, fluency, vocabulary/language and transcription, monitored for impact (EEF).

3.2 Sequencing & progression

• EYFS–KS1: secure oral language, Rocket Phonics fidelity, handwriting formation, and spelling foundations; short writing with strong sentence focus (Reading & Writing Frameworks; EEF KS1).
• Lower KS2: fluency consolidation; explicit comprehension strategies; sentence variety and paragraphing; purposeful short/long outcomes (EEF KS2).
• Upper KS2: complex whole texts (themes, intertextual links); authorial effect; rhetorical and cohesion devices; audience‑focused redrafting (Ofsted; DfE Writing).

3.3 Inclusion, SEND & vulnerable pupils

• Precise diagnostics (phonics, fluency, language sampling, spelling inventories) inform personalised keep‑up; scaffolds without capping ambition (Reading Framework; EEF).

3.4 Professional development & subject leadership

• Annual CPD cycle on: teaching fluency; dialogic teaching/oracy routines; explicit sentence instruction; vocabulary & morphology; assessment & moderation (EEF Implementation; Ofsted emphasis on subject expertise).
• Coaching, peer review and termly standardisation using TAF exemplification (STA).

4. Implementation Detail (at‑a‑glance)

Lesson architecture (most units)

1. Read‑aloud & book talk → 2) Vocabulary spotlight → 3) Fluency routine → 4) Comprehension → 5) Structured talk task → 6) Sentence instruction → 7) Modelled/shared writing → 8) Independent writing → 9) Feedback/quick fix → 10) Re‑read/re‑draft for audience.
   (Aligned with Reading/Writing Frameworks; EEF KS1/KS2 guidance on fluency, comprehension, sentence construction and composition.)

Assessment & moderation calendar

• Half‑termly: reading fluency sample; comprehension checkpoint; comparative judgement or short‑write probe; oracy observation.
• Termly: writing moderation against TAF trajectory; intervention review; pupil progress meetings.
• Annually: PSC (Y1), statutory tests (KS2), summative writing judgements (TAF).

Reading for Pleasure & cultural capital

• Weekly library time; author studies; poetry by heart; parent workshops on reading aloud (Reading Framework).

Roles & responsibilities

• English Lead: curriculum map, CPD, monitoring, text spine QA, moderation.
• Class teachers: fidelity to sequences (Rocket Phonics / Rising Stars / Letter‑Join), responsive teaching, timely keep‑up.
• SLT: termly review of progress indicators; resource & CPD oversight.

5. Impact & Monitoring (summary)

We will evidence impact through:

• Reading:
  • Fluency: growth in WCPM and prosody ratings; increased reading stamina (Reading Framework; EEF).
  • Comprehension: rising proportions meeting/exceeding age‑related; internal standardised measure trends.
  • Engagement: RfP participation, borrowing data, pupil voice (Reading Framework).
• Writing:
  • Transcription: spelling/handwriting automaticity (Rising Stars Spelling & Letter‑Join routines) and sentence probe accuracy (DfE Writing; EEF).
  • Composition: moderated TAF judgements and quality indicators across genres (STA).
• Oracy:
  • Progress on oracy rubrics (physical/linguistic/cognitive/social‑emotional), greater participation and improved quality of academic talk (Oracy Commission; Voice 21 Benchmarks).
• Equity:
  • Intervention entry/exit gains; disadvantaged pupils’ gaps narrow where language/fluency teaching is explicit (EEF).

SLT triangulate lesson visits, book/talk scrutiny, data reviews and pupil conferencing each term; findings inform CPD and next‑step curriculum tuning (EEF Implementation).

 

6. Alignment Map (evidence cross‑reference)

Our design feature	Evidence alignment
Text‑led, deliberately sequenced literature	Ofsted English 2024—quality & sequencing of whole texts. Telling the story: the English education subject report - GOV.UK
SSP fidelity, matched decodables (Rocket Phonics)	DfE validated list; Reading Framework guidance. The reading framework
Fluency routines and re‑reading	Reading Framework Section 4; EEF fluency tools. The reading framework; Fluency | EEF
Explicit comprehension strategy instruction	EEF KS1/KS2 guidance. Guidance reports | EEF
Oracy (learn to/through/about talk)	We Need to Talk (2024); Ofsted emphasis on spoken language. We need to talk, 2024 – Oracy Commission
Spelling (Rising Stars Spelling) & morphology/etymology	NC Appendix 1; DfE Writing Framework transcription focus; morphology evidence The writing framework
Handwriting (Letter‑Join) & automaticity	DfE Writing Framework; NC; handwriting–composition research. The writing framework
Responsive assessment; targeted interventions	EEF KS1/KS2 recommendations 6–7. Guidance reports | EEF
Summative writing judgements	STA Teacher Assessment Frameworks (KS2). Key stage 2 teacher assessment guidance 2026 - GOV.UK