Writing
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. The academic years of 2020 and 2021 were difficult for our pupils, many of whom found writing more difficult on their return to school.
Having tried a variety of approaches to improving writing, we are now delivering our English writing curriculum through genre-teaching. We believe that our pupils write and achieve their best when they are immersed in a text type, can look at a variety of examples of it, and recall the necessary features. Our approach to writing is focused on unit progress and there is an expectation that pupils’ writing improves both within a unit and over time as a result of clear planning and teaching methods.
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 weekly grammar, punctuation and spelling lessons that build up knowledge and skills over time, and we expect these skills to be included in genre writing, where appropriate.
Implementation:
Our writing curriculum for the year 2022-2023 is based around genre-teaching. Each year group will have specific units of writing to complete each half term, the overview for which was created by the senior leadership team, alongside class teachers.
Stage 1: Pre-assessment and immersion in the text type
Every pupil will take part in a *cold write* in their English book, which will involve writing an example of the given text type. This will be marked by the teacher and will guide the planning for the unit of work.
From day 2, pupils will focus on looking at high-quality examples of the genre, identifying key features of the text type and developing knowledge of how the features are used effectively by other authors. Older pupils will evaluate examples of the text and begin to create their own expectations documents.
Stage 2: Introduction of a purpose for writing
In the second stage of a unit of writing, our pupils will be given a purpose for writing, with the aim of engagement and so there is an end result in mind. The week will involve working collaboratively to gather ideas, creating modelled worked examples, planning and revisiting the features of the genre. Reference to the genre and end-of-year expectations will continue. Key information will include the purpose, audience, features needed, as well as grammar, punctuation and vocabulary relevant to the text type, which may require direct instruction.
Stage 3: Production of an extended piece
In the third phase, pupils will draft their independent piece, supported by the knowledge they have gained from the previous stages of the unit. Classroom working walls will support the writing process and pupils will be aware of what they need to succeed. Peer- and self-assessment will feature highly in this stage, with pupils expected to edit and re-draft their work so it is ready for publication.
Stage 4: Publication and Evaluation
Pupils will share their completed piece with their staff team and their peers. They will evaluate their own work and make direct comparisons to the pre-unit assessment undertaken at the beginning of the unit. Pupils are expected to read their work aloud as part of this process.
Assessment will take place throughout the unit of writing, with extended pieces marked against the unit expectations and yearly writing targets. Ongoing feedback, support and intervention is expected from class-based staff throughout the unit. Pupils will also have ongoing writing targets to support personal areas for development. Strengths in writing will be celebrated and areas in need of development will be identified through verbal feedback, marking and ongoing assessment for learning.
Purposes for writing might include:
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Letter writing – real life recipients |
Instructional writing – and following those instructions |
Writing reviews of visits, events or enrichment activities |
Newspaper reports – for school newsletters/paper |
Books reviews for the school library or website |
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Recounts of visits or special events |
Writing stories for the school library |
Discussion or information texts based on world events |
Poetry to perform |
Play scripts leading to performance |
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.
