Abbey Hey Primary Academy
LITERACY POLICY 2015
INTRODUCTION
At Abbey Hey Primary Academy we believe that Literacy is a fundamental life skill. Literacy
develops children’s abilities to listen, speak, read and write for a wide range of purposes. Children are
enabled to express themselves creatively and imaginatively as they become enthusiastic and critical
readers of stories, poetry and drama, as well as non-fiction and media texts. Children gain an
understanding of how language works by looking at its patterns, structures and origins. Children use
their knowledge, skills and understanding in speaking and writing across a range of different
situations.
1. AIMS
We aim to develop pupils’ abilities within an integrated programme of Speaking & Listening,
Reading & Writing. Pupils will be given opportunities to develop their use, knowledge and
understanding of spoken and written English within a broad and balanced curriculum, with
opportunities to consolidate and reinforce taught literacy skills.
Pupils at Abbey Hey Primary Academy will leave Year 6:
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reading and writing with confidence, fluency and understanding, using a range of independent
strategies to self-monitor and correct;
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 spoken and
written forms;
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 imagination, inventiveness and critical awareness;
having a suitable technical vocabulary to articulate their responses.
2. OBJECTIVES
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To enable children to speak clearly and audibly and to take account of their listeners.
To encourage children to listen with concentration, in order to identify the main points of
what they have heard.
To show children how to adapt their speech to a wide range of circumstances and demands.
To teach children effective communication, both verbal and non-verbal through a variety of
drama activities, including the communication of their ideas, views and feelings.
To help them become more confident, independent readers, through an appropriate focus on
word, sentence and text-level knowledge.
To develop enthusiastic and reflective readers, through contact with challenging and
substantial texts.
To foster the enjoyment of writing and a recognition of its value.
To encourage accurate and meaningful writing, be it narrative or non-fiction.
To improve the planning, drafting and editing of their written work.
3. STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS
Statutory requirements for the teaching and learning of English are laid out in the National
Curriculum English Document (2000) and in the Communication and Language and Literacy sections
of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (2012).
In the Foundation Stage (Reception) children are given opportunities to:
 speak and listen and represent ideas in their activities;
 use communication, language and literacy in every part of the curriculum;
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become immersed in an environment rich in print and opportunities to communicate.
At Key Stage One (Years 1 and 2) children learn to speak confidently and listen to what others have
to say. They learn to read and write independently and with enthusiasm. They learn to use language to
explore their own experiences and imaginary worlds.
At Key Stage Two (Years 3-6) children learn to change the way they speak and write to suit different
situations, purposes and audiences. They read a range of texts and respond to different layers of
meaning in them. They explore the use of language in literary and non-literary texts and learn how the
structure of language works.
4. TEACHING AND LEARNING
At Abbey Hey Primary Academy we use a variety of teaching and learning styles in our Literacy
lessons in order to meet the needs of all our pupils. Our principal aim is to develop the children’s
knowledge, skills and understanding. In Key stages 1 and 2 we do this through a daily lesson. In all
classes, children have a wide range of abilities and we seek to provide suitable learning opportunities
for all children by matching the challenge of the task to the ability of the child. Staff have high
expectations that all their children can achieve their full potential.
Speaking and listening activities are embedded throughout the curriculum. Children have the
opportunity to experience a wide range of texts and to support their work they are provided with a
variety of resources such as dictionaries, thesauri and some ICT programmes. Staff provide balanced
and varied learning opportunities within the classroom. Wherever possible we encourage children to
use and apply their learning in other areas of the curriculum.
In the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1, language and literacy development are incorporated in all
areas of learning. Opportunities are provided for children to communicate thoughts, ideas and
feelings. Purposeful role-play is used to develop language and imagination. Children are given
opportunities to share and enjoy a wide range of rhymes, songs, poetry and books. An environment is
provided which reflects the importance of language though signs, notices and books. Children are
provided with opportunities to see adults writing and they can experiment writing themselves.
Children receive daily phonic sessions from the Letters and Sounds programme supported by Phonics
Play.
5. CURRICULUM PLANNING
Literacy is a core subject in the national curriculum. At Abbey Hey Primary Academy, we use the
following documents for planning and assessment:
Writing:
 National Curriculum for English 2014
 Ros Wilson Criterion Scale
 Source Documents (which are accessed by staff on the shared server)
Reading:
 National Curriculum for English 2014
 Abbey Hey Reading grids. (adapted from Ros Wilson’s Big Read)
 Accelerated Reader
Our main teaching objectives are taken from the National Curriculum 2014. These define what we
teach and ensure an appropriate balance and distribution of work covering a range of genres.
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Our short term plans include the objectives and differentiated activities, including support, where appropriate. This is followed through with teacher assessment against the learning outcomes. Additional
English planning is in place for phonics.
6. APPROACHES TO READING
READING
Guided reading occurs daily outside the English session and is based on a rotation during the week
within the class. In Guided reading, children have the opportunity to develop reading strategies and to
discuss texts in detail. Children are grouped according to ability and when not reading with an adult,
they are given purposeful activities to do independently, such as: a follow up activity; independent
reading or taking a quiz on their individual book for Accelerated Reader (see below for further
information regarding this.). Teachers use Abbey Hey Writing grids (adapted from Ros Wilson’s Big
Read) to plan, teach and assess learning.
A range of reading schemes (Collins Big Cat and Rigby Navigator) are used to support early readers
as well as book banded books used for guided reading. Teaching assistants support reading activities
and quizzes to ensure that children have more frequent opportunities to read with adults and are
accessing Accelerated Reader daily.
Although all the children take part in guided reading sessions, in Foundation stage and Key Stage 1
we still place importance on hearing individual readers. Children take reading books and reading
record books home to share with parents. Parents are encouraged to read with their child daily.
Throughout the school, we encourage all readers to share a book at home with a grown-up. We
believe that this not only helps to develop inferential skills, but also supports a lifelong love of
reading.
Accelerated Reading
From years 2-6, children participate in the Accelerated Reader programme. Children are base line
assessed through a STAR Reading test which gives a reading age and ZPD (Zone of Proximal
Development) which is then used to give children an appropriate book for their reading level. Upon
completion of the book, children take a quiz at school to assess their understanding of the book they
have read. There are weekly and half termly expectations of staff to carry out an analysis of
progress/gaps using the Accelerated Reading assessment and use these to plan learning to be taught
during Guided Reading sessions.
We recognise the value of adults (both in school and at home) reading aloud to children, in order to
improve their grasp of story language, enthuse them with a love of books and inspire them as writers.
7. WRITING
The children’s knowledge of writing as they enter school is the basis for all written work and the
children must be encouraged to use and develop this knowledge. Early attempts at writing are not
necessarily recognisable as such to adults, but should be valued and regarded as a meaningful piece of
work. Emergent writing is promoted at Abbey Hey, giving children the means to write about any
subject.
At Abbey Hey we aim to develop the children’s ability to produce well structured, detailed writing in
which the meaning is made clear and which engages the interest of the reader.
Children engage in a process whereby they deconstruct a specific text related to the genre they are
studying, identifying features, vocabulary and technical language that applies to the text type.
Teachers model writing strategies through shared writing. Attention is paid throughout the school to
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the formal structures of English, grammatical detail, punctuation and spelling and children have
opportunities to write at length linked to the Cornerstone topic and books that complement and engage
the children with these topics. Through the Cornerstones topics, children have the opportunity to
apply their Literacy skills across the curriculum in other subjects. Time (Find and Fix with purple
polishing pens) is built into writing sessions for children to evaluate and edit their own and others
work which is an integral part of the writing process.
Big Writing takes place throughout the school fortnightly. Children are given a ‘talk homework’ prior
to their Big Writing session to discuss with adults at home. Teachers are able to monitor progress and
assess children’s learning through using the Big Writing Criterion Scale. This ensures that future
writing sessions target specific needs of both groups and individuals through looking at gap analysis.
Punctuation and Grammar
Children undertake daily 15-minute Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar sessions to further develop
their understanding of these areas enabling all children to apply and practice these skills into their
daily writing.
8. HANDWRITING
Cursive letter formation starts in the early years and joined cursive writing begins to be taught in Year
2 (when children can form letters securely with correct orientation) and is then promoted throughout
Key Stage 2. Throughout years 1-6, children undertake a daily handwriting session. Attention is paid
to posture, grip, letter formation/joining and the positioning of the writing paper. We aim for children
to develop an individual personal style based on the good principles taught. By year 4 it is expected
that children are able to adapt their style of handwriting appropriate to the task and that they have an
increased speed and fluency. We use the Nelson Handwriting Scheme in school to help children
develop fluent, clear and legible joined up writing. Children work hard to achieve a pen licence from
Year 3. This encourages them to take care in their presentation and pride in their work.
9. PHONICS AND SPELLINGS
A daily phonics session (Letters and Sounds) begins in the Nursery and continues through Key Stage
1 and is incorporated into Key Stage 2 where necessary. Pupils will be given a list of spellings that
they need to practice on a Friday; there will be a short spelling test the following Friday that children
will take which will provide the child with an opportunity to practice the words they have learnt in the
context of a meaningful paragraph. Spellings will be taken from the National Curriculum and will be
appropriate to the level the child is currently working at. Teachers have high expectations and monitor
how spellings are transferred into writing.
10. THE FOUNDATION STAGE
We teach Literacy in the Foundation Stage as an integral part of the school’s work. We relate the
Literacy aspects of the children’s work to the objectives set out in the Early Learning Goals and
Foundation Stage Curriculum Guidance, which underpin the curriculum for children aged three to
five. We give all the opportunity:
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To talk and communicate in a widening range of situations
To respond to adults and to each other
To listen carefully
To practise and extend their vocabulary and communication skills
To explore words and texts
11. CROSS-CURRICULAR LITERACY OPPORTUNITIES
Abbey Hey uses Cornerstones to support and enhance the curriculum, engaging and exciting pupils
using a cross-curricular approach. Teachers will plan for pupils to practise and apply their Literacy
skills to other areas of the curriculum.
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12. INCLUSION
At Abbey Hey we aim to provide a broad and balanced education to all children. In Literacy, we
provide learning opportunities that are matched to the needs of children with learning difficulties and
those learning English as an additional language, as well as providing appropriate, challenging,
planned work for those who are Gifted and Talented. Work in Literacy takes into account the targets
set for the children in their books.
NB: Additional information and further detail can be found in the Literacy Non Negotiables document.
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