CHAPEL FIELDS JUNIOR SCHOOL
SOLIHULL
Curriculum Sound Bites
English
Dear Parents,
Welcome to ‘Sound Bites’ our new curriculum information sheets for parents. Our
first one relates to how we teach/deliver English in school. I am the English Leader
in school which means that I have overall responsibility for the successful delivery of
the subject across our school. I report frequently to Mrs Rogers and Mrs Gray, and
we meet regularly to discuss ways in which we can improve and develop our
provision.
As part of my role I observe lessons, scrutinise books, speak to children and look at
the progress in all of these areas. I monitor planning, resources and data as well as
interventions and the overall provision for all academic abilities across the school. I
offer advice and deliver training to our staff as well as attend external training
myself.
The new curriculum teaching of English encompasses many strands which we are
legally required to deliver including the fundamentals: reading, writing and GAPS
(grammar, punctuation and spelling). Much of the publicity about the changes to the
curriculum has focussed on ‘higher expectations’ in various subjects and it is
certainly the case that in some areas the content of the new primary curriculum is
significantly more demanding than in the past. For example there will now be more
attention paid to the study of grammar and spelling; an area which was far less
notable in previous curricula.
Writing
Across the school we are following the ‘Teaching Toolkit’ scheme which has been
adopted by many schools across Solihull. Within this scheme the children will be
developing their understanding of a range of skills and will apply them in a range of
contexts. In lower key stage 2, the children will build on their work from Key Stage 1
to become more independent in their writing and will begin to meet a wider range of
writing contexts, including fiction, non-fiction and a range of poetry. In upper key
stage 2, the children will increasingly meet a wider range of texts and types of
writing, and will be encouraged to use their skills in a broader range of contexts.
Across the school, children will be developing their understanding of the writing
process. They will begin by studying a topic/book and focusing on language and
literacy devices used. They will then build up their writing to produce a first draft.
During English lessons they will learn how to edit their writing, improving focused
skills, which they will then be able to apply when writing their final piece.
Reading
We have a new guided reading scheme in school. Guided reading sessions will take
place for approximately 20 minutes each day. During these sessions five activities
will run in a carousel to enable each and every child to take part in all activities
during the course of the week. The activities are as follows:
 Pleasure reading of their own books – children will have the opportunity to
read their own books, take quizzes and complete short tasks linked to their
reading books
 Pleasure reading of topic books – children will have the opportunity to read a
selection of topic books (history, geography, science or RE) and will complete
short tasks linked to them.
 The literacy box – children will select a comprehension tasks that is suited to
their ability. This will consist of a text (non-fiction, fiction or poetry), which
has comprehension, language and grammar questions associated with it for
them to answer.
 Pre-reading – children will be given a comprehension task to complete which
will then be looked at in detail during the teacher led session
 Teacher led – Teacher will be teaching specific reading strategies and will be
focusing on the comprehension task which the children completed during the
pre-reading session.
This scheme will enable every child to have tailored learning to meet their needs and
will provide many opportunities for the children to become more independent
learners.
GAPS
There has been a much more notable emphasis on grammar, punctuation and
spelling in the new curriculum compared to previously. During English lessons,
children will be taught a range of age appropriate grammar terms and punctuation
which they will then be encouraged to apply to their own writing.
Across the school we have adopted a new spelling initiative, and the children will be
learning weekly spellings. Each year group will be learning age appropriate spellings
which have been selected from the new National Curriculum requirements. During
English lessons the children will be taught numerous spelling strategies to help them
learn their spellings which they will then be able to use at home.
Grammar Help
For many parents, the grammatical terminology used in schools may not be familiar.
Here are some useful reminders of some of the terms used:

Present perfect tense: a tense formed using the verb ‘have’ and a
participle, to indicate that an action has been completed at an unspecified
time, e.g. The girl has eaten her ice-cream

Fronted adverbial: a word or phrase which describes the time, place or
manner of an action, which is placed at the start of the sentence, e.g. “Before
breakfast,...” or “Carrying a heavy bag,...”
Direct speech: words quoted directly using inverted commas, as opposed to
being reported in a sentence


Noun phrase: a group of words which takes the place of a single noun.
Example: The big brown dog with the fluffy ears.

Modal verb: a verb that indicates possibility. These are often used alongside
other verbs. Example: will, may, should, can.

Relative clause: a clause which adds extra information or detail. Example:
The boy who was holding the golden ticket won the prize.

Passive verb: a form of verb that implies an action being done to, rather
than by, the subject. Example: The boy was bitten by the dog.

Perfect form: a form of verb that implies that an action is completed.
Example: The boy has walked home.
Stay tuned for our next curriculum sound bite!
Yours sincerely
Miss Jordan
English Leader/Year 6 Teacher