Literacy

At North Road Academy we believe that literacy and communication are key life skills and that through the English curriculum we should help learners develop the skills and knowledge that will enable them to communicate effectively and creatively with the world at large, through spoken and written language. We also intend to help learners to enjoy and appreciate literature and its rich variety.

The Oxford Reading Tree Scheme is currently being used in our school. It is a well-established and popular reading scheme which is highly successful at teaching children to read. Using this scheme makes learning to read fun, with stories and play scripts that children want to read for themselves. At the early stages, the stories focus on situations children recognise from their own experiences, such as having a wobbly tooth, losing a favourite toy, and making a mess. The stories are carefully written using simple, natural-sounding language that children can understand. ‘Key’ words are repeated throughout the storybooks so that children gradually increase the number of words they can recognise and read.

Our School aims to:

  • To provide a rich and stimulating language environment, where speaking and listening, reading and writing are integrated
  • To provide an environment where learners are encouraged to construct and convey meaning, both in speech and writing, of factual, imaginary and personal experiences
  • To provide opportunities for learners to become confident, competent and expressive users of the language with a developing knowledge of how it works
  • To provide opportunities for learners to be reflective users of language, able to analyse and evaluate its main features
  • To foster an enthusiasm for and love of reading for life
  • To encourage learners to have fluent and legible handwriting
  • To provide opportunities for learners to communicate ideas through the use of ICT