Writing
Writing at Hartwell:
Success in any curriculum area depends upon good basic writing skills. It provides pupils with an important form of self-expression and creativity as well as making available to them the power of the written word.
Structure of lessons:
The programmes of study for writing at key stages 1 and 2 consist of two dimensions:
- transcription (spelling and handwriting)
- composition (articulating ideas and structuring them in speech and writing)
Effective composition involves forming, articulating and communicating ideas, and then organising them coherently for a reader. This requires clarity, awareness of the audience, purpose and context, and an increasingly wide knowledge of vocabulary and grammar.
From Year 1 upwards the children have daily literacy lessons. Grammar and punctuation are an embedded part of every lesson.
Lessons are set within a creative and context which is relevant to children. Typically, this will involve using high quality age appropriate texts to provide models of genre construct and appropriate vocabulary. An audience is identified so there is always a purpose for writing. Within literacy lessons, children are given the opportunity to engage in activities such as:
- Text analysis- used to gather powerful language and analyse the key features of a genre and its effect on the reader
- Reading and research
- Spoken language
- Drama and oracy techniques
- From Year 3 onwards, children use their own personal language books to house powerful language that they have gathered both in and out of literacy sessions.
Handwriting is taught as an embedded skill as well as separately to the writing lesson.
- *Add in the handwriting ;policy*
The teaching of SPAG (Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar) is taught both in stand-alone sessions but it is also woven throughout our day-to-day teaching so that children are able to build up their knowledge of their appropriate uses in their day-to-day writing.
- Add in the SPAG policy*