Intent

At Trumps Green Infant School, we believe that writing is fundamental to children's success across the curriculum and beyond school. We aim for every child to become a confident, fluent and independent writer who can communicate their ideas clearly and effectively.

Our writing curriculum is designed to ensure that pupils develop the essential foundations of writing alongside the knowledge and skills needed to compose increasingly effective texts. Pupils learn to plan, orally rehearse, compose, revise and evaluate their writing, developing an understanding of how writers make choices according to audience, purpose and context.

We place a strong emphasis on the development of transcription and composition. Children develop secure handwriting and spelling alongside sentence construction, grammar, vocabulary and the ability to organise and communicate ideas. As transcription becomes increasingly automatic, pupils are supported to devote more of their attention to composition and the quality of their writing.

We recognise that spoken language is an important foundation for writing. Children are given frequent opportunities to rehearse words, sentences and ideas orally before recording them. Through high-quality texts, rich vocabulary and purposeful writing experiences, we aim to develop children's language, imagination and confidence as writers.

We intend for all pupils, including those who require additional support, to become successful writers. Barriers to writing are identified early and teaching is adapted so that pupils receive the appropriate modelling, scaffolding, rehearsal, practice and additional support they need while maintaining high expectations.

By the end of Year 2, pupils will have developed the foundations required to write with increasing fluency and independence. They will be able to use secure handwriting and spelling skills, construct sentences accurately, apply appropriate vocabulary and grammar, and compose writing for a range of purposes and audiences. They will increasingly be able to make simple revisions and improvements to their writing and talk about the choices they have made as writers.

Implementation

At Trumps Green, we use Talk for Writing as a vehicle for teaching writing. It provides a consistent and systematic approach while enabling children to develop their oral language, vocabulary, sentence construction and composition. The approach supports children to internalise language structures, rehearse ideas, learn from quality models and gradually move from supported to increasingly independent writing.

Developing the foundations of writing

Early writing is carefully planned to secure the foundations on which successful writing depends. Skills are broken down into small, manageable steps and are taught systematically from the earliest stages.

Children progress from mark making and handwriting patterns to letter formation, spelling and the writing of CVC words, labels, captions and sentences. Handwriting and spelling are taught alongside composition so that transcription skills become increasingly fluent and automatic.

Children are given regular opportunities to:

• practise letter formation and handwriting;
• apply their phonics knowledge to spelling;
• write words, phrases and sentences from dictation;
• orally compose and rehearse sentences before writing them;
• hold sentences in memory;
• build and manipulate sentences;
• write independently when they are ready;
• apply their writing skills in continuous provision and across the curriculum.

We recognise that pupils should develop secure foundations before being expected to write at length. Pupils are not expected to write sentences independently until they have developed the necessary foundations of transcription, oral language and sentence construction; this ensures that cognitive load is managed appropriately and that pupils can experience success as they gradually move from oral rehearsal to written composition.  We prioritise the quality and purpose of writing rather than the quantity produced.

Oral composition and sentence construction

Spoken language is an integral part of our writing curriculum. Children regularly rehearse vocabulary, phrases and complete sentences orally before recording them. Teachers model precise vocabulary and sentence structures and provide opportunities for children to articulate and refine their ideas.

Sentence construction is explicitly taught and practised. Grammar is taught both through high-quality model texts and through focused teaching. Children learn how grammatical choices affect meaning and are supported to apply this knowledge in their own writing rather than learning grammar solely as isolated terminology.

Teachers use a progression of grammar knowledge and skills to ensure that learning builds from previous year groups. Where gaps are identified through children's independent writing, teachers revisit prior learning and provide additional teaching, modelling and practice.

Vocabulary and high-quality texts

Vocabulary development is a priority across our writing curriculum. We recognise the importance of addressing differences in children's language experiences and deliberately expose pupils to rich and ambitious vocabulary.

Children regularly encounter high-quality texts from our carefully chosen texts. New vocabulary is introduced using dual-coding, discussed, rehearsed and revisited so that children can understand and increasingly use it in their spoken and written language.

Teachers model ambitious but appropriate language and provide opportunities for children to apply newly learnt vocabulary in meaningful contexts.

Modelling, rehearsal and composition

Children are shown what successful writing looks like through high-quality models. Teachers explicitly identify and model the vocabulary, sentence structures, organisational choices and other features that support the intended purpose and audience.

Through Talk for Writing, children move from imitation and oral rehearsal towards innovation and independent application. Scaffolds are used appropriately and are gradually reduced as pupils develop confidence and independence.

Writing is taught as a process. Children are supported to:

1. understand the purpose and audience for their writing;
2. generate and orally rehearse ideas;
3. plan and organise their ideas;
4. compose and record their writing;
5. reread and discuss what they have written;
6. make appropriate additions, corrections or improvements;
7. evaluate their writing against the intended purpose.

Writing across the curriculum

Writing is an important means through which children demonstrate and deepen their learning across the curriculum.

Teachers model high-quality examples and explicitly teach the vocabulary, sentence structures and organisational features appropriate to different purposes. Children then apply their developing writing knowledge to meaningful contexts across subjects.

We aim for pupils to understand that writing is not simply a task completed in English lessons: it is a means of communicating knowledge, ideas and experiences across the curriculum.

Inclusion and additional support

We identify pupils who experience difficulties with writing as early as possible. Assessment and observation are used to identify whether barriers relate to handwriting, spelling, phonics, sentence construction, vocabulary, oral language, composition or another aspect of writing.

Teachers adapt teaching to meet individual needs while maintaining high expectations. Support may include:

• additional modelling and guided practice;
• oral rehearsal;
• pre-teaching and revisiting vocabulary;
• additional handwriting and spelling practice;
• sentence scaffolds;
• targeted intervention;
• additional time and opportunities to practise;
• appropriate adaptations to resources and writing tools;
• carefully structured opportunities for independent application.

Pupils with SEND and pupils who face other barriers to learning are supported to access the same ambitious curriculum, with appropriate adaptations made to enable them to participate and make progress.

Assessment and responsive teaching

Assessment is integral to the teaching of writing. Teachers use children's independent writing, discussion, observation and ongoing classroom assessment to identify what pupils have learnt and where further teaching is required.

Assessment information is used responsively. Where pupils have not secured an aspect of writing, teachers revisit and reteach the relevant knowledge or skill rather than simply moving on. Teachers use previous year-group objectives where appropriate to address gaps in learning.

Moderation supports teachers to develop a shared understanding of expected standards and to ensure that judgements about children's writing are accurate and consistent.

Impact

The impact of our writing curriculum is reflected in what pupils know, understand and can independently apply as writers.

We expect pupils to demonstrate increasingly secure and fluent transcription, including handwriting and spelling, alongside growing control of sentence construction, vocabulary, grammar and composition.

By the end of Reception, pupils increasingly:

• form letters with increasing accuracy and fluency;
• apply taught phonics knowledge when spelling;
• write words and simple sentences;
• orally rehearse sentences before writing;
• use writing to communicate ideas and experiences;
• develop increasing confidence and independence as writers.

By the end of Year 1, pupils increasingly:

• write with greater handwriting and spelling fluency;
• construct simple and increasingly varied sentences;
• apply taught grammar and punctuation;
• use an expanding range of vocabulary;
• compose writing for different purposes;
• use oral rehearsal to develop and organise ideas;
• reread their writing and make simple improvements;
• apply their writing knowledge across the curriculum.

By the end of Year 2, pupils increasingly:

• write fluently and legibly with increasing independence;
• spell words using secure phonics and taught spelling knowledge;
• construct grammatically accurate sentences and use a growing range of sentence structures;
• select vocabulary appropriate to meaning, purpose and audience;
• organise ideas coherently;
• compose a range of purposeful texts;
• plan and orally rehearse before writing;
• reread, revise and improve their writing;
• apply writing skills independently across the curriculum;
• talk about their writing and explain some of the choices they have made.

 

The quality of pupils' writing is evaluated through ongoing assessment, learning walks, drop-ins, pupil discussions, work scrutiny and moderation. Internal moderation takes place at least three times each year, with additional moderation undertaken where appropriate. External moderation is undertaken through our learning partnership.

Evidence from these activities is used to identify strengths, gaps in learning and areas for development. Where pupils are not making expected progress, leaders and teachers use this information to adapt teaching, provide additional support and evaluate the effectiveness of the writing curriculum.

Ultimately, the impact of our writing curriculum is seen in pupils who can communicate their ideas confidently, accurately and independently, who increasingly understand how writers make choices for different purposes and audiences, and who have developed the foundational writing skills needed for success in the next stage of their education.