At Brundall Primary School we are a reading school and this is at the centre of everything we do. At the heart of our English curriculum is our passion to inspire a love of the English language and to equip them with the skills they need to read, write and talk about a wide variety of subjects. Mrs York-Smith is our Reading Lead, Miss Codling our Writing and Mrs Wicks our Phonic Lead.
Reading
In EYFS and Key Stage 1, our children progress through the Little Wandle scheme which systematically teaches them how to decode texts. Alongside this, classes explore a wide range of high-quality books which help them to develop their comprehension skills.
In Key Stage 2, we encourage children to read widely and to find books they love. Through our daily reading lessons children develop and enhance their reading skills. In our daily Read Aloud sessions children are read to by an adult. These sessions enhance vocabulary acquisition and allow children to listen to a story above their own reading ability. Independent reading is a focus in our drive to develop confident, fluent and ambitious readers. We are determined to develop and extend our readers and work in partnership with children to ensure their choice of books is at the right level of challenge yet interests them. Each class visits the library of well-stocked books once a week.
Each week the class with the highest percentage of children reading at least 5 times a week chooses a new book for the library and has our reading dinosaur visit their class for the week. We see our reading records as a celebration and to map a child’s reading journey. A book shared with an adult, a comic or non-fiction should all be part of this journey. We love reading and want our children to develop a life-long love of reading.
Writing
Throughout their time in Brundall, children learn to express their ideas through a broad array of genres, both fiction and non-fiction. Pupils are guided through all of the structural, grammatical and vocabulary-based skills they need to help them articulate their thoughts with specific attention to the purpose of the writing and its audience. Children are given the opportunity to practice and showcase their writing skills across the curriculum.
