Writing

English – Writing

Intent: Our Vision

At Hightown J, I & N School, writing is a vital part of the curriculum. It enables children to communicate their ideas, express themselves creatively, and engage confidently across all subjects.

Our aim is for pupils to become skillful, imaginative and independent writers who understand the purpose of writing within the wider world.

We encourage children to take risks, be creative, and reflect on their work. Through exposure to high-quality literature, pupils learn to ‘write as readers and read as writers,’ drawing on rich ideas, structures and vocabulary to enhance their writing.

Ultimately, we want every child to leave Hightown as a capable, confident writer equipped with the skills needed for future learning and life.

When children leave Hightown at the end of Class 6, our aim is that they will:

Communicate fluently and effectively in writing.

Write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences (National Curriculum).

Have the transcription and sentence construction skills and knowledge they need to then concentrate on the composition (EEF guidance).

Implementation: Our Approach

At Hightown J, I & N School, our curriculum is based on the two dimensions clearly set out in the National Curriculum: transcription (spelling and handwriting) and composition (articulating ideas and structuring them in speech and writing).

The pupils then have the transcription and sentence construction skills (punctuation and grammar) and knowledge they need to concentrate on the composition. If pupils are not fluent in transcription skills, they will have to focus on this area of their writing to ensure it is accurate and they will be less able to think about the content. (EEF guidance ‘Improving Literacy in KS1 and KS2’)

Securing the foundational knowledge is a priority across school.

At Hightown we teach spellings systematically and explicitly, starting with phonics in Reception. In Reception, Class 1 and Class 2 spelling is taught through phonics daily.

From Class 1 we use the planning and resources on the Spelling Shed scheme.

At Hightown we explicitly and regularly teach handwriting until fluent in year group expectations. From Reception to Class 6, we use the Letter Join scheme.

The Hightown Progression in writing for a purpose and audience document sets out the genres that are taught across school. They are based on: writing to entertain; to inform; to persuade; and to discuss.

The Hightown Progression in grammar and punctuation document sets out the writing skills and knowledge that are taught across school.

During their time in EYFS children begin with mark making and then ascribing meaning to these marks, then children will start to learn how to form letters correctly. They will be encouraged to use their knowledge of phonics to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds.

As they progress through school, children will explore the features and characteristics of a wide range of genres, building rich vocabularies and developing the grammatical and authorial techniques appropriate to each genre and year group, enabling them to write with purpose and effectiveness.

Over 2025/2026 the school is moving towards adopting Literacy Tree from Class 1 to Class 6.

Literacy Tree is a book-based planning sequence for writing that provides comprehensive coverage and engages children to write with a clear audience and purpose.