Oracy
Oracy at Red Oak Primary School.
We recognise the extreme importance of being able to talk well and learn through talk. Oracy is a vital part of the Curriculum at Red Oak and we are working in partnership with Oracy Cambridge, from Cambridge University. Since 2018 we have focussed on the development and range of high quality vocabulary and exposure to it across the children’s daily lives. In 2020 we embarked on a project to develop and refine these crucial skills through joined up hub work with support from Cambridge Oracy. In 2020 we also started work through the support of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation to develop Oracy skills during Geography lessons, with the help of drama artists. From 2020 through to today we have focussed on developing skills of questionning, debating, discussing and presenting across the curriculum subjects.
What is Oracy?
‘Oracy is the ability to articulate ideas, develop understanding and engage with others through spoken language.’ (Voice21). At Red Oak, we are teaching our children to be confident, articulate speakers and effective listeners; these two skills are fundamental to all we do now and for the children’s lives when they leave Red Oak.
Why do we have a focus on Oracy?
Leaders analysed a range of information, including internal assessment, gaps in subject knowledge and end of key stage data. It highlighted that children needed additional opportunities to learn to talk and learn through talk. In addition, research (Millard and Menzies, State of Speaking) shows almost half of British employers reported that young people enter the work place with inadequate communication, presentation and interpersonal skills that are needed to thrive in the work place.
Our key Actions for 2018 – 2019
- To enhance the frequency, and the quality of the teaching of vocabulary across the school through:
- To ensure quality training is given to all staff.
- To introduce Knowledge Organisers for subjects beginning with History and Geography.
- Implementing vocabulary teaching across the curriculum, ensuring subject specific language is taught.
- Identifying next steps to support early year’s children and their vocabulary development.
- Implementation of weekly power words.
- To purchase up to date dictionaries, thesauruses and books and to use effectively within teaching.
Our key Actions for 2019 – 2020
- To develop explicit Oracy skills to enable the pupils to present confidently both verbally and in a written context across the whole curriculum through:
- Extending vocabulary opportunities through the Arts (PHF)
- Generate a love and passion for reading.
- Develop debating and discussing skills from EYFS through to Year 6
- To use the Oracy project to support children when they make decisions about their behaviour and attitudes.
- Termly targets for each key stage relating to Oracy development.
- Weekly focussed cpd training for support staff (20 minutes) and every three weeks for teaching staff. (1 hour) with focussed research shared by all staff relating to Oracy.
- Performance Management targets to directly link with Oracy development.
- To extend the use of Knowledge Organisers across the curriculum subjects.
- To develop the ICT resources at Red Oak to ensure pupils are exposed to age appropriate equipment that builds on previous skills and knowledge and to help enhance presentational skills and methods.
- To introduce key issues and questions for families to debate and discuss as a homework activity.
Our key actions for 2020-2022
- To introduce current affairs to all classes to link research with relevant areas for discussion and debate.
- To review the vocabulary within Knowledge Organisers within all subjects.
- Continue to develop vocabulary opportunities through the Arts (PHF) with other subjects.
- To develop a reading hub for the community, to enrich the vocabulary of our parents.
Improvements so far.
We are already noticing that children are more confident and effective communicators. This is evident during lessons and throughout the school day. More children take part during discussions, they use vocabulary that includes specific phrases for example: I value your viewpoint however I disagree because..
Previously our children struggled with reading of age appropriate books and books that contained language that they were not familiar with. We have seen that now they are able to access a wider range, seek support materials to find out the meaning of more challenging vocabulary (Tier 3) and choose books that challenge their thinking.
Our pupils have demonstrated a high increase in contributions to the community, more children have attended presentations and singing events at the local churches and homes for the elderly. Previously children lacked the confidence to sing publicly and talk publicly, now through the Key Stage targets all children have been given opportunities and presented through a range of audiences. Visitors regularly comment on how articulate and respectful our Red Oak children are.
During 2019-2020 we had a high priority on developing debating, discussing and presentation skills. This was approached by setting termly targets for each year group. The impact was phenomenal. 100% of pupils in Year 1 participated in the Christmas performance with a speaking part! Similarly all other year groups met their targets including Year 3 and 4 pupils writing and performing their own poems to the class. Confidence has increased and even children that were apprehensive have developed their passion for performing to an audience.
During 2020-2021 our Oracy focus continues to be in regard to finishing areas that were difficult to meet during the Summer term due to Covid-19 lockdown. We are also focussing on identifying further opportunities to develop Oracy skils within all subjects of the curriculum.
How are we teaching Oracy at Red Oak?
We have a multi-layered approach to develop Oracy and we are using the 4 domains set out by Voice 21; physical, linguistic, cognitive and social and emotional. In the Early Years, a high focus is given to the physical development of speech and positive talk. It is essential that all domains are developed effectively as children progress through our school. During the first year of our project, we focussed on the physical and linguistic domains. In our second year, we are focussing on the cognitive and the social and emotional domains. Through our Key Stage plans, we plan purposeful opportunities which enable children to take part in exploratory talk and listen carefully to one another. Teachers and adults in school model effective talk and listening skills. Whilst higher order (tier 3) vocabulary is shared and taught throughout the school.
Voice 21, Oracy Strands.
Examples of some of the support materials / research used to guide our work:
- Transform Teaching And Learning Through Talk: Amy Gaunt and Alice Stott.
- Greenfields Education: Closing The Vocabulary Gap
- Voice 21 Oracy School Self Evaluation Tool
- Speaking in Public Is Worse Than Death for Most – The Times
- Low Income and Early Cognitive Development in the UK