Writing

Intention

At Cogenhoe Primary School we intend for our pupils to be independent, resilient and confident writers who are ready to embark on the next stage in their education. We aspire to spark their imagination, ensuring that children are enthusiastic and motivated to write. We want every child to believe that they are a writer. The highest standards of spoken and written language are consistently modelled and used in our school. We believe that it is vital that children are able to communicate effectively through speaking, listening and writing. Being able to write well supports learning in the wider curriculum; we intend for our children to use their skills across the curriculum consistently.

Implementation

We use the Talk for Writing approach to teach literacy throughout the school. The teacher uses stimulating experiences (hooks) at the start of a unit to inspire the children, encouraging them to feel enthusiastic about their learning. A unit begins with teachers assessing what children can already do using ‘cold writes’. The children then orally rehearse and internalise model texts, so that they understand the patterns, structure and vocabulary required for the intended genre. Effective shared writing practice is a fundamental part of the writing process. Grammar and spellings are taught in context and discretely, where applicable. This develops into independent application of acquired skills through innovation. At Cogenhoe, we underpin our writing curriculum work with an established reading spine of quality fiction, poetry and non-fiction that all children experience and draw upon. The writing curriculum is coherently sequenced so that knowledge and skills are revisited and built upon. This is developed across four strands: the composition of writing through ambitious models, grammatical subject knowledge, vocabulary development and awareness of authorial intent.

Our whole school progressive writing overview ensures that there are ample opportunities for all children to apply their core writing skills across the wider curriculum.

Our ‘washing line’ displays demonstrate high-quality writing and support children’s independent application of skills taught. In every classroom the learning journey and compositional/grammatical focus is clearly visible.

At Cogenhoe, we promote a love of writing in many ways. The Wall of Wonder displays excellent pieces of work on a cyclical basis – each class takes it in turn to display pieces of wonderful writing. Each class also votes for a writer of the term and this is shared on the school website and in the termly newsletter. Letters of recognition are also sent home to celebrate this achievement. Pen licences are awarded when children have mastered the Cogenhoe Cursive Handwriting Policy and certificates are presented in the celebration assembly.

Impact

Cogenhoe children believe that they are writers. They are given many opportunities to showcase their writing skills in literacy and across the curriculum. Our children’s love of reading and writing go hand in hand.