The Teaching Of English At Ainsdale St John's.

Phonics and Reading

• Learning to read is one of the most important things your child will learn at our school. Everything else depends on it, so we put as much energy as we possibly can into making sure that every child learns to read as quickly as possible. We want your child to love reading – and to select books for the pleasure of it. This is why all effort is made to ensure they develop a love of books as well as simply learning to read.
• In September 2019 we invested in the Read Write Inc programme to support the teaching of reading and writing. All staff were trained in the programme and this is being delivered on a daily basis. 
• We supplement the programme with story books and drama and role play. As children learn the code for reading they make a journey through the Collins Big Cat scheme - a great selection of fiction and non-fiction. The series benefits from different book sizes, wonderful illustrations, a variety of characters and lots of genres. Big Cat match the different tastes of all children and engage all readers. The school library offers a range of books by Pearson and Collins to support phonics at every phase.

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As children develop reading skills, it is vital that they read regularly at home. Your support is invaluable for developing their fluency, confidence and understanding. Even if your child is an independent reader, it is still important for you to read with them, listen to them and discuss the books they are reading. We recommend this happen at home for 15 minutes or more each day. If your child is a competent reader do not let that stop you reading to them. Help them to choose a book that is stimulating and will develop their evolving vocabulary bank.

Spellings

The children follow a spelling programme for Years 2 to 6, specially created to meet the higher demands of The National Curriculum. Spelling rules are introduced, tested and revisited. This prepares children for the end of key stage National Curriculum tests. ​ Please support your child with their spelling journey at home too – English is a very complicated language!

Topics

In Years 2-6, our English lessons are taught through a novel, which changes termly. The novel is carefully chosen to suit the topic that is being taught within that term and to provide exciting and diverse writing opportunities.