Intent

At St. Sebastian’s we believe that all our children are entitled to a language-rich English curriculum, where they appreciate the power of the spoken and written word. As a trauma & attachment informed school, we recognise that pupils learn best when they feel happy, safe, secure and regulated.

We acknowledge that the foundations for teaching the English National Curriculum begin in the Early Years, with the development of a high-quality programme planned within Communication, Language and Literacy.

The school's reading curriculum is designed to foster a love for reading, develop strong comprehension skills and promote a rich vocabulary. The intent is to ensure that all pupils, regardless of their background or starting point, become confident readers, who can access a wide range of texts with fluency and understanding.

As an inclusive school, our curriculum recognises the varied needs of our children and allows every child to maximise their learning potential and achieve in English. Our curriculum is ambitious and designed to give all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND, the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. Our aim is to prepare them for the application of English skills across the whole curriculum and life beyond education.

We believe reading is a passport to the world and strongly feel that cultivating a “reading for pleasure” culture in our school is imperative.

‘Reading for pleasure is the single most important thing that will make a child successful in life’ (UNESCO)

The National Curriculum for English places reading for pleasure at the heart of the English curriculum. Our text-based approach allows children to immerse themselves in great literature, opening them up to ideas, experiences, places and times they might never otherwise experience in real life. Thus giving our children the chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually.

'All pupils must be encouraged to read widely across both fiction and non-fiction to develop their knowledge of themselves and the world they live in, to establish an appreciation and love of reading, and to gain knowledge across the curriculum.’ (National Curriculum in England, DfE, 2014)

We believe in a strong sense of community and provide opportunities for children to display their English skills and achievements through planned special events, e.g. assemblies, pantos, nativities, speech choir festival, individual speaking, debates, etc. At the heart of our curriculum, the principal aim is that children leave our school with a wide range of happy memories in English formed through exciting enrichment activities beyond the classroom.

• Reading Plus (UK)

• Oxford Owl Reading Free e-book library

• Struggling Readers Advice for parents & carers

• Reading Comprehension To read a text & understand its meaning

• Spelling An important part of the process of learning to write

• Grammar & Punctuation What concepts the children are taught

• Developing Vocabulary Understanding a wide range of words and how to use them in context

• Writing Transcription & Composition

• Handwriting Developing the fine motor skills children need to write

Policy Statement on External Links

St Sebastian’s Website includes links to related websites which are not maintained by the school. These links are provided so that users have additional relevant information which they may wish to explore.

St Sebastian’s is not responsible for the content of external websites. The inclusion of a link to a third party website, from the school’s website, should not be understood as an endorsement.