English Intent Statement

We believe that English is the foundation for success across the curriculum and in life beyond the classroom. Our English curriculum is carefully designed to develop fluent readers, expressive writers, and confident speakers and listeners.

Our approach is underpinned by the DfE’s writing framework (2025), ensuring a strong focus on both the transcriptional and compositional aspects of writing. We aim to ensure all children write with accuracy, creativity, and purpose, while building the stamina and independence needed to produce high-quality, sustained writing across a range of genres.

We teach writing as a process, enabling children to understand that great writing takes time and thought. Pupils are explicitly taught how to:

• Plan their ideas, using discussion, reading, and model texts to inform their thinking;
• Draft their writing, applying taught skills and making purposeful vocabulary and structural choices;
• Revise their work, improving content, organisation, and clarity based on peer and teacher feedback;
• Edit for accuracy, focusing on spelling, punctuation, and grammar;
• Publish their final pieces, celebrating and sharing their achievements with a real sense of pride and audience.

This process is central to developing metacognitive awareness and encouraging children to take ownership of their writing journey.

Reading is at the heart of our curriculum, exposing pupils to a broad and inclusive range of texts that inform, inspire and serve as models for writing. Through high-quality literature, children encounter diverse voices, ideas and perspectives, enriching their vocabulary and deepening comprehension.

Oracy is an integral part of our English curriculum and wider school life. We recognise that speaking and listening are essential tools for learning, and that purposeful talk enhances thinking and understanding. Through drama, discussion, debate and oral rehearsal, children develop the ability to express themselves clearly, listen actively, and collaborate effectively. Oracy also plays a key role in the writing process, allowing pupils to explore and articulate ideas before committing them to paper.

By the time they leave Ryhope Junior School, we aim for all pupils to be articulate communicators, thoughtful readers, and skilled writers who take pride in their work and can adapt their language for a range of purposes and audiences.

English Implementation Statement

Our English curriculum is implemented through high-quality, carefully sequenced teaching that reflects our intent and meets the needs of all learners. English is taught daily and integrated across the curriculum, with a strong focus on developing pupils’ reading, writing and oracy skills in a cohesive and meaningful way.

Writing

Our approach to writing follows the structure and expectations set out in the DfE’s Writing Framework (2025), with a clear emphasis on both transcriptional accuracy (spelling, handwriting and punctuation) and compositional fluency (idea development, structure and style). We teach writing explicitly and systematically, with each unit underpinned by high-quality model texts that demonstrate the language, features, and structure of effective writing.

Central to our approach is the explicit teaching of the writing process. Children are guided through the following stages in every unit:

• Planning – using talk, reading, drama, and graphic organisers to generate, organise and deepen ideas.
• Drafting – writing initial versions with a clear focus on purpose, audience and voice.
• Revising – improving clarity, cohesion and effectiveness, often through peer and teacher feedback.
• Editing – focusing on technical accuracy: punctuation, grammar and spelling.
• Publishing – producing and presenting final pieces, often for real audiences to promote pride and purpose.

This process-based approach encourages all children to see themselves as authors and to understand that good writing is crafted and improved over time.

Spelling, punctuation and grammar are taught both discretely and embedded within the wider English curriculum, in line with the expectations of the DfE’s Writing Framework. This ensures that pupils not only learn the technical knowledge required for accurate transcription but also understand how to apply these skills purposefully in context.  We teach the rules and conventions of grammar and punctuation explicitly, building on prior knowledge and enabling pupils to make increasingly sophisticated choices in their writing.  Spelling is taught through a bespoke spelling program developed using the National Curriculum, that integrates the school’s specific needs, teaching styles and student data to create a distinct educational approach. Weekly spelling lessons include strategies for encoding unfamiliar words, using morphology, etymology, and phonics knowledge.

Spelling, punctuation and grammar objectives are:

• Delivered in dedicated lessons to ensure direct instruction and focused practice;
• Reinforced and applied in English lessons through shared writing, modelled writing and guided editing;
• Embedded across the curriculum, encouraging pupils to transfer and apply their grammatical knowledge in subjects such as history, science and geography.

We provide regular opportunities for children to revisit and consolidate spelling, grammar and punctuation knowledge through low-stakes quizzes, editing tasks, and by revising work as part of the full writing process (plan, draft, revise, edit, publish). Teachers use modelling and shared writing to demonstrate how grammar and punctuation can shape meaning, and encourage children to reflect critically on their own language choices.

Through this approach, pupils build the accuracy, fluency and control required to meet age-related expectations and to write with increasing sophistication and independence.

Reading to Support Writing

High-quality texts are at the heart of our English curriculum. These are carefully selected to expose pupils to rich vocabulary, varied sentence structures, and diverse perspectives. Reading and writing are closely interlinked: texts are used not only to build comprehension and enjoyment, but also to model language, structure and voice for pupils’ own writing. Pupils read as writers and write as readers, using literature as inspiration to develop their own authentic voice and style.

Oracy

We embed oracy throughout our English curriculum using the Oracy 21 Framework, which supports the systematic development of pupils’ speaking and listening skills. We explicitly teach oracy through:

• Oral rehearsal before writing
• Structured talk tasks (e.g. debates, discussions, presentations)
• Drama, role-play and storytelling
• Talk guidelines to promote respectful, collaborative dialogue
• Regular opportunities to perform and speak for different audiences

These approaches ensure that all children develop the ability to articulate ideas clearly and confidently, supporting both their written outcomes and their ability to engage in meaningful learning dialogue.

Inclusive Practice and Assessment

All English lessons are designed to be inclusive and accessible. Teachers use high-quality scaffolding, adapted resources, and targeted support to ensure that all children – including those with SEND and EAL – can access and succeed in English.

Ongoing formative assessment is embedded within the teaching sequence to inform next steps. We use the expectations of the Writing Framework to assess pupils’ writing holistically and ensure progression across year groups.

English Impact Statement

The impact of our English curriculum is seen in confident, articulate, and independent learners who are well-prepared for the next stage of their education. Through consistent, high-quality implementation, pupils make strong progress in reading, writing and oracy, achieving both academically and personally.

Reading Impact

Our focus on reading high-quality, diverse texts enables children to develop a deep understanding of language, story structure, and the wider world. Pupils become fluent, expressive readers with strong comprehension skills, able to make links between texts and articulate personal responses. They read widely for pleasure and purpose, and this love of reading directly influences the richness of their writing.

Reading also enhances vocabulary, sentence construction and understanding of authorial choices, supporting pupils in becoming critical and reflective readers and writers.

Writing Impact

As a result of our structured, process-based approach to writing—underpinned by the DfE’s Writing Framework—pupils produce writing that is both accurate and creative. They understand the full writing process: how to plan, draft, revise, edit and publish their work with increasing independence and care.

Pupils are able to write effectively for a range of audiences and purposes, making informed decisions about language, grammar, and structure. The consistent and embedded teaching of spelling, punctuation and grammar ensures they have the technical accuracy to support clarity and meaning in their work. Progression in writing is clearly evident across year groups, and pupils leave Ryhope Junior with secure transcriptional skills and a strong, individual writer’s voice.

Oracy Impact

Our integration of the Oracy 21 framework ensures that pupils are articulate, active listeners and confident communicators. They can express ideas clearly, engage in structured discussion, and adapt their talk to suit different contexts. Oracy underpins their success in both reading and writing—supporting vocabulary development, reasoning, and idea generation.

Pupils leave our school equipped with the spoken language skills to thrive in a range of social, academic and real-world contexts.

Overall Impact

Through our cohesive English curriculum, children at Ryhope Junior School develop as well-rounded communicators, readers who are inspired, writers who are skilled, and speakers who are confident. This is reflected in positive outcomes, pupil voice, high-quality writing across the curriculum, and success in statutory assessments. More importantly, pupils carry with them a love of language and a belief in their ability to communicate effectively with the world around them.