Literacy

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English at Red Oak Primary School

Our Vision

At Red Oak, teaching our children to speak, read and write accurately, fluently and confidently is at the heart of everything we do.

We believe that a love of language and literature opens doors to learning and to life.

A high-quality education in English enables pupils to communicate their ideas, thoughts and emotions clearly, while developing understanding, empathy and imagination through the words of others.

Through reading, children grow culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually.

Reading and Phonics at Red Oak

Ofsted’s greatest focus — and ours — is on the teaching of reading.

We use Read Write Inc. (RWI) as our core phonics programme and retain full fidelity to its most important principles:

  • the systematic teaching of sounds, and

  • the explicit teaching of reading within phonics lessons.

RWI ensures that every child learns to decode accurately, read with fluency and expression, and build strong early writing skills.

Children who read regularly are successful learners. Reading enriches vocabulary, grammar, spelling and imagination. As pupils become fluent readers, they read more, understand more, and write with confidence.

Teaching children to read – and keeping them reading – are the two things that make the greatest difference to their learning and future success.

The Read Write Inc. Approach

Our approach is guided by the five key principles of RWI:
Participation – Praise – Pace – Purpose – Passion

  • Participation: Every child actively takes part through partner work and discussion.

  • Praise: Encouragement and celebration are central to building confidence.

  • Pace: Lessons move quickly to maximise progress.

  • Purpose: Each activity is designed with a clear learning goal.

  • Passion: Our teachers are enthusiastic, skilled, and committed to helping every child succeed.

How We Organise Phonics and Reading

  • Nursery: Introduces Set 1 sounds through songs, rhymes and oral blending games.

  • Reception & Year 1: Daily RWI Phonics, grouped by ability, reviewed every 6–8 weeks.

  • Years 2–4: Continued RWI Phonics support for pupils securing fluency.

 

What to Expect in RWI Phonics

Each week, children:

  • Practise Speed Sounds daily (Sets 1–3).

  • Read green and red words and build fluency with speedy words.

  • Read and discuss storybooks matched to their phonics level.

  • Develop vocabulary and comprehension through discussion.

Phonics is taught five days a week to secure rapid progress.

Our Phonics Screening Check results consistently exceed national averages, reflecting the success of our approach.

English and Writing Beyond Phonics

When children are fluent readers, they move into the Red Oak Writing Curriculum — a rich, text-based approach where reading and writing are taught together.

Each year group studies six high-quality texts per year, chosen for language richness, engagement, and links to the wider curriculum such as history, geography and science.

Through these books, pupils explore a full range of writing genres including:

  • stories and character descriptions,

  • letters and diaries,

  • reports and persuasive writing,

  • instructions and explanations,

  • and poetry.

Some examples of our chosen texts include:

One Snowy Night and Whatever Next (Year 1)

The Queen’s Hat and The Great Explorer (Year 2)

Shackleton’s Journey (Year 3)

The Firework Maker’s Daughter (Year 4)

Goodnight Mr Tom (Year 5)

Macbeth and Journey to Jo’burg (Year 6)

This consistent approach ensures that children learn to write for purpose and audience, develop strong grammar in context, and become confident, imaginative writers.

Grammar, Spelling and Vocabulary

  • Grammar is taught from the earliest stages of writing and reinforced in every year group.

  • From Year 2 onwards, pupils follow the RWI Spelling programme daily, learning patterns, morphology and etymology through engaging, multisensory tasks.

  • Vocabulary development is central to all English lessons — each text introduces new, rich words which are revisited and used in speaking and writing.

Reading for Pleasure

At Red Oak, we are passionate about creating a love of books.
Reading for pleasure is encouraged through:


Three school libraries and class reading corners

Reading rewards and certificates

Reading cafés for families

Storytelling events and author visits

Daily read-aloud sessions in every class

We believe every child should have access to “windows and mirrors” in literature — stories that reflect their own lives and open their eyes to others’.

Assessment and Impact

Progress is monitored regularly through phonics assessments, reading checks and writing moderation.
We work closely with schools across the Active Learning Trust to ensure consistency and high standards.

At Red Oak we consistently achieve:

  • Good Level of Development (GLD) in EYFS in line with or above national,

  • Phonics Screening results significantly above national,

  • Reading and Writing outcomes at KS1 and KS2 above national averages.

Children leave Red Oak as confident, articulate readers and writers — ready to succeed at the next stage of their learning journey.

 

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