Intent

Here at Primrose Hill it is our intent to provide all our pupils with a high quality education in English that will give pupils the tools to speak, read and write fluently. By the time they leave our primary setting they will be able to communicate their ideas and emotions  confidently and effectively both orally and in written form. It is our intention that they will be able to read confidently in any curriculum subject when they access secondary education.

Teaching phonics systematically  is a high priority in Primrose Hill as it is the basis of early reading.  We intend to encourage all our pupils to read fiction and non-fiction texts widely.  This will enable them to learn more about themselves, the wider world and the broader curriculum.  We intend they will develop a love of reading and have a good knowledge about a range of authors . We believe through structured progressive lessons and exposure to carefully selected high quality texts they will develop their comprehension skills.

Phonics at Primrose Hill

As a school, we follow the Floppy's Phonics programme. It is a rigorous, easy-to-use systematic synthetic phonics teaching programme for early reading and writing success. It introduces the children to the letters and sounds (the alphabetic code) that are at the foundation of all reading and writing. 

It follows a 4-part planning sequence: 

1. Revisit and review

2. Teach

3. Practise 

4. Apply

This is taught over 2 sessions. Part 1 and 2 happen on the 1st day and is whole class. It revisits previously taught sounds and graphemes in part 1. Then we teach the focus sound and grapheme using flashcards and Floppy's Phonics online. 

Session 2 includes parts 3 and 4 - it is a longer session and the focus is on practising the new sound and grapheme taught. We use the sound book and activity sheet to practise these.

More information about the scheme can be found on the link below. There are some useful videos on here (further down the page) that are worth watching as they show you how to pronounce the pure sounds correctly and how to blend sounds to read words.

https://home.oxfordowl.co.uk/reading/reading-schemes-oxford-levels/read-with-oxford-guide/

Owlcotes Elements

A Way With Words

During their time at Primrose Hill,  pupils are offered a  range of opportunities to foster a love of words, broaden their vocabulary and support their communication skills. 

Our youngest children will take part in author and poet workshops as part of Focus Weeks and our annual Literature Festival. Y2 pupils  see a live pantomine and our Y3 pupils will take part in a Spelling Bee competition held across our Multi Academy Trust. Year 4 pupils will aim to get their writing published in a book.  Our oldest children take part in the Owlcotes Book Awards which involves them reading a collection of diverse high quality fiction.  Y6 children take part in a  Multi Academy Trust  debating competition which culminates in a local event at Pudsey Civic Hall.