At Barwell Academy, we use Reading, Writing and spelling maps to outline the expectations for each year group within English. Learning in English does not involve learning isolated knowledge or facts but is a development of skills applied in increasing complexity on harder texts or at greater length. As such, our English maps (which you can find for each year group below) have been designed in a cumulative manner and maps for upper KS2 will contain prior knowledge from earlier in children’s learning. This is to ensure a consistent approach to terminology across the school and to allow regular opportunities to recall key understanding.

Learning within English is developed and consolidated over the year through repetition and repeated opportunity to apply learning and skills. Lessons within English complement each half-termly Learning Journey theme by using age appropriate books as a stimulus for English lessons. Throughout the year, a range of picture books are used to compliment the wider curriculum. Class teachers decide how to use these books to meet the needs of the class. 

In addition to whole texts and picture books, each year, children will explore a range of poetry as chosen by the class teacher. In addition, they will look closely at a particular poem that has been carefully selected to link with a LJ and that builds on difficulty level throughout the Key Stage.

Year 3: Wind On The Hill by A.A Milne (Treetastic)

Year 4: From a Railway Carriage By Robert Louis Stevenson (Spotlight on Leicester)

Year 5: Jabberwocky by Lewis Carrol (The Empire Strikes Back)

Year 6: Y6 Production (n/a)

Children will learn these poems to perform as suitable for the needs of the cohort. This may be children learning the whole poem independently or as a part of a group performance. These performances will be shared with families in a suitable way. In addition, class teachers may choose to use these poems to inspire other work such as creating their own poetry or written work inspired by the original piece

Our school also has a well-stocked library with a range of books at differing levels that children can access. In addition to this, we also have a mobile library to ensure that children can change books when needed.

Children are given the opportunity to write at length on a variety of topics and using a range of text types over the year. Each half-termly Learning Journey Outcome enables children to explore the full writing process from start to finish and children should understand how their work is building to their final draft and where it sits within the writing process.

Please click on each year group to see our writing maps:

Spelling is taught each day as an isolated lesson. These lessons are designed to be regular, short exposure to curriculum spellings. Lessons focus on being able to spell the words, understand word meaning, how words are formed and to provide children with the necessary skills to apply their learning into other contexts. As such, each block of spellings is delivered twice in a two year cycle to ensure children have a deep understanding of the words themselves and how the can be applied to other contexts.