Writing down ideas fluently depends on effective transcription: that is, on spelling quickly and accurately through knowing the relationship between sounds and letters (phonics) and understanding the morphology (word structure) and orthography (spelling structure) of words. Effective composition involves forming, articulating and communicating ideas, and then organising them coherently for a reader. This requires clarity, awareness of the audience, purpose and context, and an increasingly wide knowledge of vocabulary and grammar. Writing also depends on fluent, legible and, eventually, speedy handwriting.                                        DFE National Curriculum, 2013

At Wigton Moor, we aim to achieve what is set out in the National Curriculum through an ambitious, progressive and inclusive English curriculum. The majority of our curriculum is based around a core text, which ignites a passion and gives the children a purpose to write. We use the Phillip Webb 5 phase approach in order to teach writing and we have developed a range of activities which support each of these stages.

We use extensive and effective practice and explicit teaching of handwriting, spelling, grammar, punctuation and sentence construction. We teach all children to use correct letter formation in Reception and year 1 and to begin to develop a neat, joined cursive style from year 2 onwards.

What does our writing curriculum look like as pupils move through school?

In Reception pupils write:

• cards and letters to their friends and families as well as invitations, shopping lists, plans etc. in the role play areas
• stories on the large and small whiteboards
• words on the iPads
• they take part in adult-directed writing tasks
• they develop their phonetically plausible writing
• they develop letter formation skills.

In KS1 pupils:

• write for a range of a purposes and audiences
• develop further their writing skills, practising accurate basic sentence punctuation
• they begin to include descriptive detail and a wider range of vocabulary in their writing appropriate to the audience and purpose of the task
• they continue to develop their phonic transcription skills and developing knowledge of spelling
• they continue to develop letter formation skills and begin to write using cursive style handwriting

Lower KS2 pupils

• continue to write using a range of genres, for a variety of a purposes and audiences
• continue to develop and expand their range of vocabulary and begin to make considered language choices
• they extend their range of sentence structures
• they begin develop their proof reading skills to further improve the accuracy of their spelling, punctuation and grammar
• they begin to evaluate and edit their work to improve their language choices
• they develop a neat, joined cursive handwriting style and are able to present neat final drafts of completed pieces of work

Upper KS2 pupils

• continue to write using a range of genres, for a variety of a purposes and audiences and develop an understanding of genre choices
• continue to develop and  expand their range of vocabulary and make considered and precise language choices
• they extend their range of sentence structures further
• they use their proof reading skills to further improve the accuracy of their spelling, punctuation and grammar
• they  evaluate and edit their work to improve their precise language choices
• they use a neat, joined and legible handwriting style and are able to present neat final drafts of completed pieces of work