Writing Policy 2024-25
Vision and Rationale
At Greenfields Primary School, we believe that English and communication are essential life skills. Our writing curriculum is designed to equip children with the knowledge and abilities to communicate effectively and creatively through both spoken and written language. We aim to foster a lifelong love of reading and writing, encouraging pupils to appreciate literature in all its richness and diversity.
English is at the core of children’s learning, enabling them to express their thoughts, experiences, and emotions while developing their intellectual, social, and emotional skills. As a fundamental subject, writing supports learning across the curriculum, ensuring coherence and progression in all areas of study.
Intent
At Greenfields, we are committed to developing confident, articulate writers who can express themselves clearly and creatively. Our pupils will:
- Develop strong speaking and listening skills, enabling them to communicate their ideas and understanding effectively.
- Secure their phonics knowledge to decode words fluently and accurately, applying this understanding to their writing.
- Use phonetic knowledge and spelling strategies to write with accuracy, constructing high-quality sentences.
- Engage with a broad range of texts to deepen their comprehension and enhance their writing.
- Write with clarity and coherence, adapting language and style to suit different contexts, audiences, and purposes.
- Approach writing ambitiously and confidently by planning, rehearsing aloud, drafting, and refining their work.
- Develop a secure understanding of grammatical terms and apply them correctly.
- Critically evaluate their own work and that of others.
- Take pride in the presentation of their work, producing legible, well-formed handwriting.
Our ultimate goal is for children to leave Greenfields as skilled, independent, and enthusiastic writers, ready to communicate effectively in their future learning and beyond.
Implementation
Curriculum Design
Writing is embedded across the curriculum, ensuring children have meaningful opportunities to express themselves in a variety of styles that align with our thematic, connected curriculum. Writing outcomes are carefully planned, drawing inspiration from high-quality texts linked to half-termly topics.
Formal writing lessons follow a clear, structured sequence to ensure consistency and progression. Writing units are engaging, purposeful, and topic-based, providing pupils with authentic reasons to write. Grammar is taught in context, allowing children to apply their learning effectively.
Planning Structure
Long-Term Planning:
- Based on the National Curriculum for English (2014), ensuring full coverage of writing genres and skills.
- Teachers prepare a long term plan, mapping out genres, unit outcomes, purposes, and assessment pieces.
Medium-Term Planning:
- Teachers create half termly medium term plans which outline texts to be used, enrichment activities, genre, sequence of lessons and the outcome, purpose and audience.
- Teachers highlight grammar skills against a coverage chart termly to ensure fair and consistent coverage.
Short-Term Planning:
- Teachers use medium term plans to inform short steps planning which is done via lesson slides. There is a consistent format for units which includes;
- Sequencing lessons:
- - Introduce the purpose, audience and outcome before beginning the unit.
- Sharing the text/ WAGOLL
- Identify features of the genre
- Key vocabulary for the writing
- Live modelling
- Explicit teaching of SPaG skills and new learning
- Checklist given before they write their first draft (adapted for SEN, GDS)
- Drafting
- Editing - purple polishing
- Redrafting- editing flaps in KS2
- Each lesson begins with a ‘SPaG starter’ which revisits previously taught skills such as grammar or vocabulary needed for the lesson or revises a handwriting join.
Impact
Our English curriculum ensures sequential learning and long-term progression of knowledge and skills. Pupils regularly revisit and apply learning through high-quality questioning, discussion, and modelling, promoting strong knowledge retention.
- Independent Application: Pupils gain confidence in using their writing skills in a range of contexts.
- Writing Across the Curriculum: High standards in writing transfer into other subjects, reinforcing grammar, punctuation, and spelling skills.
As pupils leave Greenfields, we aspire for them to carry forward their creativity, passion for English, and high aspirations, using their literacy skills to succeed in future education and beyond.
PLEASE CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW FOR OUR FULL WRITING POLICY FOR 2024-2025 AND ALSO OUR LONG TERM WRITING PLAN
Writing Long Term Plan 2024-2025