Beeston Primary School Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar Policy

Transcription

1 Beeston Primary School Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar Policy Agreed by Governing Body February 2016 Review date February 2019 Responsible for this policy Our Vision S. Nicholson We believe that the most effective teaching of grammar is that which: Introduces grammatical constructions and terminology at a point in the teaching sequence which is relevant to the focus of learning. Focuses on effects and constructing meanings as well as the correct terminology Aims to open up a repertoire of possibilities, not to teach about correct ways of writing. These 3 principles underpin the practical approaches and strategies to the teaching of grammar. Teaching Grammar in Context Grammar helps us to organise and make shape of what we re trying to say. Understanding the concept of a sentence and manipulation of different sentence types is a key factor in ensuring children s progress in writing. It allows children to become more confident and versatile in their use of language. It is not the naming or the learning of a set of arbitrary rules for correct English. Our Aims To ensure that children have the time to talk about and discuss language choices. To ensure that children can explain their choices and how they impact upon the reader. How we will achieve this Planning for the effective teaching of grammar is identified within planning through Literacy enrichment and should include: Sentence games and word play activities Exploration of and response to examples in texts used- considering the way writers use grammar and punctuation to impact on readers Opportunities will be taken in guided reading sessions to discuss relevant grammatical features and their impact on the reader. Use of examples as models to experiment with and provider initial scaffolds Direct and explicit teaching of grammatical features relevant to the writing and introduced at the appropriate time see appendix 3 for specific features linked to text types All pupils should cover the expectations for their year group with differentiated planning and teaching built in for more able pupils and for those pupils who are working below age-related expectations. Grammar, spelling and punctuation targets will be included in IEPs for relevant pupils Consistent and accurate use of terminology Sufficient time to review and rework editing through improvement time

2 Punctuation Punctuation helps readers make sense of written texts and helps writers convey their meaning accurately. It chunks text into meaningful units, making a variety of grammatical boundaries and is inextricably linked to grammatical features. The most effective way of teaching punctuation is in context and linked to grammatical structures. Where pupils get stuck on a specific aspect of punctuation e.g. capital letters or full stops, this will not impede their development of other punctuation skills. The area they are struggling with can become an on-going or nag target. This should also be targeted through the COGS approach. Spelling Spelling is delivered using the NO NONSENSE SPELLING programme, devised to offer teachers a comprehensive yet accessible progression in the teaching of spelling. Guidance, rather than prescription, is provided on how to teach the strategies, knowledge and skills pupils need to learn. Spelling Bug is available to teachers as an online teaching tool to support the teaching of spelling rules through interactive games and resources. Teachers should teach the spelling rules (outlined in the National Curriculum) to all pupils. Entitlement and curriculum provision Much of the programme of study can be delivered through literacy, particularly during shared and guided writing sessions. Grammar in taught is context, however it is recognised that time may be required for teaching specific grammar and spelling skills. This should be identified in individual staff planning. Additional time for English should be used at the discretion of individual schools. This may be during the school week or in after school sessions, e.g. planning for grammar and spelling during shared, guided and independent sessions over a number of days and then having a specific grammar/spelling lesson at a particular point during the block of work. It is important that links are made between any stand-alone grammar, spelling and punctuation lessons and the main Literacy focus to ensure pupils develop an understanding of how to use new concepts appropriately in their own writing. Spellings and vocabulary should be displayed around the classrooms. Teaching and Learning: To enable access to the whole curriculum for every pupil, to cater for the variety of learning styles within each class, and to ensure progression and reinforcement of skills and concepts throughout the year groups, we employ a variety of teaching styles. Grammar, spelling and punctuation are basic skills and are key to accurate and coherent writing across the curriculum. We want our pupils to find learning exciting, compelling and intrinsically worthwhile. Therefore, we use a variety of interactive teaching and learning techniques so that pupils can respond successfully to their learning. Progression in Grammar and Punctuation As a simple overview we will follow these basic steps: Teach children to understand the concept of a sentence and how to represent an idea in a sentence. Teach children how to use different sentence types to structure and connect ideas in a range of ways. How to add detail by using specific nouns, effective verbs and developing noun, adjectival ad adverbial phrases. Teach children how to manipulate sentences-linking and expanding ideas in sentences using clauses and changing word order. Linking sentences within and across paragraphs. Making choices to create effects.

3 A detailed plan of progression in grammar and punctuation can be found in the National Curriculum Statutory Requirements Handbook for Primary Teachers in KS1 and 2, the APP criteria for KS3 and GCSE criteria. Foundation Stage: Foundation stage is not included in the progression appendices however we recognise that many of the concepts can be modelled and taught verbally to pupils in foundation stage settings. The following areas of grammar should be covered in the areas of provision: Tenses: present, past and future (in that order) prepositions, pronouns, determiners and plurals. Where pupils use these terms incorrectly in their speech, it is expected that adults would recast the phrase/sentence thereby modelling the correct usage to children. Inclusion Individual programmes for teaching and support are drawn up as appropriate by the teacher in consultation with the SEN co-ordinator. Individual targets for improving grammar, spelling and punctuation are set in the context of overall literacy targets Alternative methods of recording, e.g. use of ICT, are provided to support pupils who experience extreme problems with handwriting or spelling to demonstrate their compositional skills and understanding of text. All staff are aware of the specific grammatical challenges faced by EAL learners and regularly undertake writing scrutiny to ascertain which specific challenges their pupils need direct teaching in. This informs planning and teaching by both teachers and TAs working with small groups. The learning environment The learning environment supports the teaching and learning of grammar, spelling and punctuation. All classrooms will model good examples of the particular grammatical features being addressed in that year group. Teachers will have access to the following resources depending on their year group: A range of grammar games Developing Early Writing Grammar for Writing Grammatical Challenges for EAL learners Diagnostic tests EAL writing scrutiny template A glossary of grammatical terms Alan Peat approaches to writing Spelling & Grammar Bug Wordsmith Regular staff training will be provided depending on need. The role of parents and carers The school informs parents and carers of the school s approach to teaching grammar, spelling and punctuation through the school handbook and Literacy workshops. Parents are encouraged to support their children with regular homework in this area. Staffing (teaching and non-teaching) The role of teachers and support staff and, where appropriate, other adults:

4 to follow the school policy with the aim of helping pupils to become independent writers; to provide modelling through shared writing and focused support through guided writing; to respond to pupils writing in line with the school s marking policy; to provide explicit guidance for future development through monitoring and assessment. to make decisions about the selection and organisation of materials to support the teaching of spelling, grammar and punctuation. Assessment and recording Assessment is used to inform planning and teaching. Teachers identify key learning outcomes from the linked teaching objectives for each block of work and identify appropriate assessment opportunities. Grammar, spelling and punctuation are assessed in the course of children s writing linked to individual and group targets. Spellings Monitoring pupils progress The following forms the basis for the school s routines for marking pupils written English work: response is made to content linked to the learning objective, first marking is matched to individual pupil s targets, age and ability the pupils should clearly understand what the teacher is looking for (assessment criteria). This helps them to focus on the kinds of things they need to look for when they check/evaluate their own work pupils and parents are informed that not all errors will necessarily be corrected at Key Stage 1, teachers mark selected spelling mistakes linked to spelling targets. At Key Stage 2 errors are signalled rather than corrected and pupils are expected to correct the signalled errors at Key Stage 3 and 4 errors should be signalled and pupils are expected to correct the signalled errors teachers sometimes read, or get pupils to read their work aloud with appropriate expression, to help them to punctuate correctly teachers aim to mark some work each week with the pupil a written comment is frequently used and teachers should remember that the audience for these comments will be wider than the pupil to whom it is directed teachers try to develop the pupil s own response to a piece of work teachers try to make constructive intervention e.g. by posing a question spelling will be regularly monitored to ensure pupils are progressing towards meeting age-related expectations EAL writing scrutiny template is available for specific pupils who are not making expected progress through the year to support identification of the problem areas. Y6 pupils are given regular practice grammar, spelling and punctuation tests to prepare them for the test in the summer term. Monitoring and Evaluation of Policy The Literacy Co-ordinator is required to support other class teachers. This support also includes evaluation and monitoring through planning and work scrutiny, team teaching and observation. This policy will be reviewed by teaching and classroom support staff twelve months from its date of implementation. The following criteria will be used to measure its success: How has the quality of children s learning been enhanced/improved? How has the quality of teaching been improved? Can we identify a range of teaching and learning styles in each classroom? Are staff and pupils following routines and rules? Is there clear evidence of assessment informing planning? Do pupils know what they are learning and why? Has any part of the policy been difficult to implement, or been ignored?

5 Signed by: Literacy Co-ordinator S. Nicholson Head Teacher N. Edensor Approved by the Governing Body: February 2016 Date for review February 2019