English at Stanton Road: Creating Confident Communicators
At Stanton Road Primary School, English is at the very heart of everything we do. We truly believe that reading is the bedrock of learning, providing the essential foundation for your child to flourish across the whole curriculum—and in life!
We know that the best way to help our children succeed is by working in close partnership with you. Together, our approach is simple: we surround children with incredible books, give them the tools to read with confidence, and inspire them to find their own unique voice as writers.
🔤 Phonics: The Building Blocks of Reading
We believe every single child can become a fluent, confident reader. That’s why we use the highly successful Read Write Inc. (RWI) phonics programme, starting right from Foundation 1.
- How it works: Children learn the sounds that letters make using fun memory hooks and rhymes. We group children based on their current knowledge so they always get exactly the right level of challenge.
- Keeping up: If a child ever needs a little extra practice, we provide quick, daily 1-to-1 or small group catch-up sessions. Working together, we ensure no one is left behind.
📚 Reading: “Every Day is a Book Day”
We don’t just want our children to know how to read; we want them to absolutely love reading!
- Early Readers: In F2 and Key Stage 1, children bring home RWI ‘Book Bag Books’. These are carefully matched to the exact sounds they are learning in class, meaning they can proudly show off their reading success to you at home!
- Growing Readers: In Key Stage 2, children can choose from a fantastic range of age-appropriate books to build their fluency and reading skills.
- Reading for Pleasure: We encourage all our children to explore our magical Whispering Woods Library. With daily class storytimes, author visits, and exciting reading events, we work hard to build a lifelong love of literature.
✍️ Writing: From Mark-Making to Masterpieces
We have a golden rule when it comes to early writing: “If you can’t say it, you can’t write it!” * Early Years & KS1: We start by building up those all-important hand muscles for pencil control. We use drama, role-play, and lots of wonderful talking to ‘hook’ children into brilliant stories, helping them gather their ideas before they even pick up a pen.
- Key Stage 2: As they grow, children learn how to write for all sorts of reasons—to entertain, inform, persuade, and discuss. We guide them through the journey of acting like real authors: planning, drafting, editing, and proudly publishing their amazing work.
📝 Handwriting & Spelling
- Handwriting: We teach correct letter formation right from the start. As children move through the school and their fine motor skills develop, they gently transition into a neat, joined cursive style.
- Spelling: We practise spellings weekly. We do a low-pressure “pre-test” on a Monday to see what we already know, and a final check on a Friday to celebrate everything we’ve learned!
🏠 Working in Partnership: How you can help at home
You are such a vital part of your child’s English journey, and we are so grateful for your support at home!
- Read together: Just 5 to 10 minutes of daily reading in Early Years/KS1 (and 15 minutes in KS2) makes a world of difference. Please don’t forget to celebrate and log these special moments in their Reading Record!
- Remembering the reading book: Because reading is the bedrock of our learning, your child’s reading book is an essential piece of equipment. In the younger years, it is a core part of their phonics lessons, and our older children have daily reading built right into their timetables. Please help us by ensuring your child’s reading book comes into school every single day. If it accidentally gets left at home, we will give you a quick, call to see if it can be dropped off so your child doesn’t miss out on their reading time.
- Use our resources: At the bottom of this page, you will find lots of helpful links—including phonics flashcards, parent guides, and our spelling progression charts—to help you support your child at home.