English Curriculum
The 2014 National Curriculum states that:
'English has a pre-eminent place in education and in society. A high-quality education in English will teach pupils to speak and write fluently so that they can communicate their ideas and emotions to others and through their reading and listening, others can communicate with them. Through reading, in particular, pupils have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. Literature, especially, plays a key role in such development. Reading also enables pupils both to acquire knowledge and to build on what they already know.'
At St. Anselm's Primary School, we believe that it is essential that these aims are embedded across our English lessons and the wider curriculum in which skills and knowledge are taught discretely and applied across all subjects. Learning should provide many purposeful opportunities for reading, writing and discussion using a wide variety of texts and resources to motivate and inspire our children.
Our English curriculum is designed to promote the aims of the National Curriculum, and in particular, children's language and literacy skills. We want children to take pride in their reading and writing across the whole curriculum and therefore teach all children to read and write clearly and accurately. as children become more confident writers, we want them to learn to adapt their language and style for a range of contexts. Speaking and listening is recognised as an essential part of learning English and most importantly, in the development of thinking skills, self-confidence and communication. As a result, we believe in the development of oracy across the curriculum.
Our Aims
The overarching aim for English in the National Curriculum is to promote high standards of language and literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the spoken and written word, and to develop their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment.