Long Term Curriculum Overview

Derbyshire Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education 2025-2030

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  Curriculum Information

• Art and Design
• PSHE Progression of Knowledge and Skills
• DT
• Geography
• History
• Science
• Progression in Mathematics
• Progression in Writing
• Progression in Music.pdf
• Progression in PE.pdf
• RE Units of Study & Progression.pdf

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  English

Talk for Writing 

Our mission is to help all our children develop into thoughtful readers and creative writers and it is through the Talk for Writing approach that we believe we can achieve this. Through its multi-sensory and interactive teaching it enables children of all ages and abilities to learn to write a wide range of story/text types using various methods including:

• listening to and learning texts and stories;
• taking part in drama and role-play;
• drawing and story mapping;
• collecting words and language strategies
• building their working knowledge of grammar.

At Hulland CofE Primary and Nursery School we are all very enthusiastic about this approach as it brings out the best in the children and the teachers (who often write model texts for the children to use as the basis of their own writing) – we are all writers together! Writing becomes a joint adventure and the results are exciting!

What exactly is it?

Talk for Writing is an innovative approach to teaching writing developed by the literacy specialist and writer Pie Corbett (http://www.piecorbett.org.uk/) . It uses high-quality model texts to introduce the children to different story/text types which they then learn off by heart and scrutinise with a writer’s critical eye.

They learn the underlying structures and the process of planning using story maps. They also learn about the key strategies for creating interesting characters and settings and how to use a range of sentence types to create different effects, including suspense or adventure.

Imitation and immersion

We usually like to start our Talk for Writing units with a 'hook' which fires up the creativity and imagination of the children before they immerse themselves in the model text.

During this phase, the children learn a model text using actions and story maps. The key to success for the children is that they internalise the text type through repetition and rehearsal. They explore the structure of the narrative and investigate the different characters, settings and events. They also begin to look closely at the language used and the effect this has on the reader. We call this process ‘read as a reader’. The classroom becomes a dynamic, interactive resource filled with word ideas, sentence types and language tools collected by the children to use in their stories later.

Innovation

During this phase, the teacher and the children begin to change aspects of the model text using their own ideas. They explore the text using different characters, settings or events and new ideas for descriptive language whilst sticking closely to the underlying structure.

It is during this phase that the children work using their toolkits. The toolkits, based on the features and ingredients of the model text, remind children of the different strategies they could use in their stories and help them to see the progress they are making.

Invention

During the invention week, the children plan and write their own story based on the text type they have been learning. They experiment with the ideas and begin to explore their own style of writing using sentence types from the model text.

We then round the whole sequence off with a ‘hot’ writing task during which the children demonstrate what they have learnt through a completely independent piece of writing.

Phonics and Early Reading

Developing Reading Skills

We begin with our youngest learners following the ‘Little Wandle Revised’ programme for phonics. The children in Nursery, Reception and Year 1 take part in daily lessons where they learn letters and sounds which are grouped into phases. Initially, these start as 10-minute sessions when children start in Early Years, building up to 30 minutes each day. Little Wandle's thoughtful planning ensures that children learn new letters and sounds whilst revising and consolidating those previously learnt. 

Alongside this, children in Reception and Year 1 read a book aligned to their phase, 3 times per week with an adult in school. We use 'Collins Big Cat' books which are linked to Little Wandle to ensure consistency and progression. These early steps give the children the skills they need to be able to read aloud with fluency and understand what they have read.  

Everyone learns in their own way, at their own pace. Therefore, some children may need to repeat a phase, have catch-up or keep up support or a different reading book to their peers. This also extends to children beyond Year 1 who need support to master phonics. 

You can find a glossary of terms for the Little Wandle Revised scheme below. Additional resources for parents, including helpful videos, can be found here - Little Wandle for parents.

Reading for Pleasure 

All children in school are exposed to a wide range of books during their school day. This may be a book from their book corner, the library or a book linked to their topic. The books may be fiction, non-fiction or poetry; books, magazines or newspapers.  Additionally, they are given time to be able to sit and read and chat to their friends about what they've read or are reading.

For children in the Early Reading stage, they also bring home a 'book to share.' This book will have been chosen by the child and may be beyond their skill level, but they would like to 'read' nonetheless. Early readers love the rhyme and rhythm of books such as 'The Gruffalo' or are enchanted by Max's adventure in 'Where the Wild Things Are.' Research has shown that the sharing of books has a big impact on later learning and we encourage parents to read to their children regularly too.

Supporting your child at home

The Collins Big Cat books have built in resources to help you develop your child's reading skills. Begin by reading inside the front cover before you read with your child. Under the 'Talk about it' heading, there'll be some helpful prompts about how to look at the front cover and talk about it.

This page also covers the essential letters and sounds that are shared in the book. Please don't skip this page. It helps to embed the phonemes and graphemes that the children are learning.

Once you've read the book, there's a helpful 'After Reading' page which will give you further ideas about how to talk about the book with your child.

• Phonics & Early Reading Policy
  Glossary of terms
  EYFS Framework