English
At Bracken Edge, we endeavour to promote enjoyment, enthusiasm and confidence in writing. We aim to have an equitable education for all; where disadvantage, additional needs or background doesn’t determine outcomes.
We centre our writing units around a text to provide a stimulating hook into writing. The work that has gone into the wider curriculum has brought life to the curriculum, creating exciting opportunities for writing outcomes for the children. Carefully chosen engaging texts provide the language and structure needed to aid skilled writing. Spelling and handwriting are explicitly taught across school.
In Reception, Drawing Club has been introduced. Drawing Club incorporates story sharing, speaking and listening, drawing, writing, vocabulary, imagination and collaboration. Each week Reception have a focus story or animation. The children learn new vocabulary linked to the story and are invited to Drawing Club, where they may draw a character, setting or event. They can innovate their drawings and add secret passwords, magic powers or spells, hidden symbols, letters or numerals. At the start of reception, the sessions may be purely drawings based but this will progress on throughout the year to labelling their drawings with initial sounds, CVC words and eventually writing sentences about their drawings.
Spelling
We help the children build robust and flexible spelling strategies with an approach called ‘No Nonsense Spelling’, from Year 2 to Year 6.
You can support your child at home with their spellings by providing a quiet space for them to complete their weekly homework and ensuring they have regular opportunities to practice.
No nonsense spelling pathway click here.
Topmarks has some spelling games that can be played at home: https://www.topmarks.co.uk/search.aspx?q=spelling
Handwriting
Teaching handwriting effectively impacts the wider curriculum and the development of the whole child offering, amongst others, the following benefits:
- -When children can write autonomously, they can concentrate on what to write rather than how to write so their ideas and writing content will improve
- -A significant impact on children's self-esteem, when they see beautiful writing which they have created with their own hand
- -The huge effect of good handwriting on children's motivation and enjoyment for writing
- -Develops a strong sense of pride which cannot be measured by attainment level or standardised testing
At Bracken Edge we use the Debbie Hepplewhite programme to teach handwriting.
We follow these expectations to support us with handwriting click here
Here is the link to the Debbie Hepplewhite handwriting programme to find out more: https://debbiehepplewhitehandwriting.com/