Writing
Click here for our Writing Curriculum
Intent:
At Thorpe, we want all of our pupils to be writers. We want everyone to reach their potential and use their skills as writers to inform, persuade, entertain and discuss. We want our pupils to enjoy writing and showcase their skills in a range of ways.
We believe that our pupils perform best when they know what is expected of them, so we have a strong focus on writing expectations in each year group, which is used for feedback, marking, targets and assessment. We use unit-specific expectations to help guide our pupils’ writing, while still allowing them to use their own ideas and creativity. We teach a variety of grammar, punctuation and spelling lessons that build up knowledge and skills over time, and we expect these skills to be included where appropriate.
Implementation:
Having tried a variety of approaches to improving writing, we are now delivering our English writing curriculum through 'Talk 4 Writing'. At Thorpe Primary we want children to write independently and confidently for a variety of audiences and purposes within different subjects. We believe pupils should be given the opportunity to not only increase their attainment, but also enjoyment and engagement in writing. The school uses ‘Talk 4 Writing’ to explore imitation, innovation and independent application, and skills developed in writing lessons are also encouraged throughout all curriculum writing. The approach moves from dependence towards independence, with the teacher using shared and guided teaching to develop the ability in children to write creatively and powerfully.
The key phases of the Talk 4 Writing process enable children to imitate orally the language they need for a particular topic, before reading and analysing it, and then writing their own version. Each unit comprises of the same stages:
- Baseline assessment and planning – the ‘cold’ task
Teaching is focused by initial assessment. Teachers use what is known as a ‘cold’ task. An interesting and rich starting point provides the stimulus and content but there is no initial teaching. The aim of this is to see what the children can do independently at the start of a unit, drawing on their prior learning. Assessment of their writing helps the teacher work out what to teach the whole class, different groups and adapt the model text and plan. Targets can then be set for individuals.
- The imitation stage
The teaching begins with a creative ‘hook’ which engages the pupils, often with a sense of enjoyment. The model text is pitched well above the pupils’ level and has built into it the underlying, transferable structures and language patterns that students will need when they are writing. This is learned using a ‘text map’ and actions to strengthen memory and help students internalise the text. Once students can ‘talk like the text’, the model, and other examples, are then read for vocabulary and comprehension, before being analysed for the basic text (boxing up) and language patterns, as well as writing techniques or toolkits. Short-burst writing is used to practise key focuses such as description, persuasion or scientific explanation.
- The innovation stage
Once students are familiar with the model text, the teacher leads them into creating their own versions. A new subject is presented and the teacher leads students through planning. Shared and guided writing is then used to stage writing over a number of days so that students are writing texts bit by bit, concentrating on bringing all the elements together, writing effectively and accurately. Different elements of SPAG and punctuation are taught to the children who are then encouraged to try to include it in their own writing. Feedback is given during the lessons so that students can be taught how to improve their writing, make it more accurate, until they can increasingly edit in pairs or on their own.
- Independent application and invention – the ‘hot’ task
Eventually, students move on to the final phase, which is when they apply independently what has been taught and practised. Students are guided through planning, drafting and revising their work independently. It is essential to provide a rich starting point that taps into what students know and what matters so that their writing is purposeful.
The core teaching practices and principles that are transferable across subjects are:
- Read and explore models, attentively
- Teacher as model reader, writer, mathematician, etc
- Demonstrate how to do things – ‘I do, we do, you do’
- Teach language needed orally as well as through reading
- Think aloud to explain
Purposes for writing might include:
|
Letter writing |
Instructional writing – and following those instructions |
Writing reviews of visits, events or enrichment activities |
Narrative writing |
Persuasive writing |
|
Recounts of visits or special events |
Writing adverts |
Biographies |
Poetry to perform |
Balanced Arguments |
Impact: Our vision for success
- Pupils engage fully in the writing process and enjoy creating a range of texts.
- Staff enjoy planning and teaching lessons.
- Progress is evident within a few weeks; pupils and staff are proud of and motivated by it.
- Our pupils develop a flair for writing.
- Having a purpose for writing allows for increased engagement for all staff, pupils and parents.
- An increasing percentage of pupils achieve age-related expectations and more write at a ‘greater depth’ within the standard.
