What does English look like at Kingfisher?
We teach using a Teach through a Text approach, building their literary repertoire through high-quality text choices and a deliberate sequencing of literature across the school. High-quality, award-winning texts by new and significant authors are chosen for their literary merit. Texts are linked thematically to support children to make strong connections between texts studied. Themes have links across year groups to allow children to make connections with texts previously studied. Quality Book Talk takes place from Reception. Themes, conventions and connections are explored and background knowledge is carefully considered. Layered learning with practice and application of skills within a range of purposeful outcomes. Snowballing of learning with repeated practice of skills across individual sequences, terms and across the year across a range of contexts.
Previously taught skills from both current and previous year groups are regularly revisited with repeated opportunities to practise in purposeful contexts through shorter writing opportunities. Regular sentence construction rehearsal and manipulation of sentences with oral rehearsal and use of manipulatives like sentence strips to secure understanding of sentence sense and grammar.
Based on this approach, the key elements of an English lesson at Kingfisher are:
Recap Task- This includes a task from the previous unit or lesson to support recall and deepen understanding. It is also an opportunity to make connections and links.
Learning Intention – This is when the WALT (We Are Learning To) is displayed and explained so all pupils know what they will learn.
New Learning - the new learning is introduced. It may be book talk, grammar in context or the structure/content of text, images, ideas or opinions to promote discussion.
Construct new meaning – This involves the children applying their new knowledge, this might be identifying word classes, adding in punctuation, it might include modelled or shared writing.
Apply to demonstrate - This part of the lesson usually involves short writing opportunities to allow pupils to practice their new learning.
Review- This is a quick review of our learning in that lesson.
At the end of a unit a longer sustained piece of writing is written using all the skills from the unit and previous learning.
