english - whole school plan

English - Whole School Plan

Introduction:

This English whole school plan was prepared by the staff of St. Joseph’s N.S.

during the academic year 2017-2018 and will be implemented in full from

September 2018. It will be reviewed periodically.

Rationale:

In St. Joseph’s N.S, we are committed to the holistic development of all pupils.

We see the development of their fluency in the English language as being central

to this process. We believe that the ability of our pupils to communicate fluently,

confidently and effectively will contribute greatly to the development of their self-

esteem and their personal growth. We also believe that their academic progress

depends to a large extent on their ability to communicate orally and through the

written word. In our school, therefore, we attach a high priority to giving pupils a

command of English.

Aims:

1. To enable the children to speak, read and write independently and effectively.

2. To foster an enjoyment and appreciation of the English language.

Broad Objectives, Content and Methodologies:

The broad objectives, content and methodologies for the teaching and learning of

oral language, reading and writing are detailed in this document. Each of these

areas is presented under the four strand headings of the Revised English

Curriculum, and reflects best current practice and pedagogy.

Oral Language

Broad Objectives:

The aim of this plan is to provide a structured sequential programme for teachers

to enable children to:

1. Gain pleasure and fulfilment from language activity

2. Develop the capacity to express intuitions, feelings, impressions, ideas and

reactions in response to real and imaginary situations through talk and

discussion, and the development of ideas.

3. Develop fluency, explicitness and confidence in communication.

4. Develop listening skills, language conventions, vocabulary, aesthetic

response and language manipulation.

Approach to Oral Language

The school’s agreed approach to Oral Language will draw on three areas of

content:

Communicating

Understanding

Exploring and using

The oral language programme will be taught from Sep to June each year.

Conversations and discussions

Interest talks

Questioning and Interviews

Story telling

Arguments and Debates

Oral reports

Instructions

Developing listening and Speaking skills

Broad rules that govern

social interaction:

Paralinguistic skills: Extra linguistic skills:

Turn taking

The floor

Adjacency pairs

Repair

Volume

Intonation

Pitch

Pause

Pronunciation

Markers

Proximity

Eye Contact

Affective Displays

Kinesics

Phonics

A systematic phonic programme with daily instruction is recommended. An ideal

lesson should follow these steps:

1 Review of sight words containing the sound, shop, ship etc

2 Isolation and identification of the sound: sh

3 Blending of the sound with known endings, e.g. sh-ape, sh-ade etc

4 Spelling the new words/Dictation

5 Activities, e.g word building sh

Phonic method

An approach to reading instruction where the emphasis is placed upon the sound

value of letters as a means of word recognition

Analysis

Breaking down a word into its individual letter sounds, e.g. ship = sh+I+p

Blending

Linking together the individual sounds to form the whole word, sh+ee+p

Digraph

Two letters, vowel or consonant, which combine to make one sound:

chin meat

Diphthong

Two vowels blending to make one sound: oil

Phonics in Junior Infants

1. Jolly phonics programme to be completed by the summer. Consonants in

initial positions (names and sounds) s, t, p, n, c, k, h, r, m, d, g, l, f, b, j, z,

v, y, x, qu (as in Jolly Phonics Programme) to be introduced by Christmas

2. The following sounds to be introduced after Christmas ai, oa, ie, ee, or, ng

oo, ch, sh, th, ou, oi, ue, er, ar

3. Short vowels in initial positions (names and sounds).

Blending of initial sounds when 3 sounds taught, i.e. s-a-t = sat

4. Short vowels in medial positions = familiarization with short vowel sounds

5. Revision of initial sounds after Christmas

6. Continue blending to make 3 letter words, e.g. cab

7. Building up work families (cat, bat, mat etc)

8. Introduction of onset and rime, e.g. c = at

Phonics in Senior Infants

1. Teachers revises Junior Infant Jolly Phonic Programme, and the learning

support teacher teaches the PAT Programme focusing on onset and rime.

2. Concentrate on analysis and blending

Phonics in First Class

1. The learning support teacher teaches the Jolly Grammar Programme.

2. Consonants in initial positions : g(hard) k v y j (fun,

king etc)

3. Final double consonants: -ss -ll (mass, hill etc)

4. Common endings: -ed -ing -s (singing, sings etc)

5. Initial blends: bl cl fl gl pl sl sp st

6. Final blends : -nd -st -nt -ft

7. Initial diagraphs: ch- sh- th-

8. Final diagraphs -ch -sh -ng

9. Common irregular words: taken from reading scheme

10. Long vowels with silent e

Phonics in Second Class

1. Long vowels with silent e: mane, fine, bone, cure

2. Double e: -ee , bee etc

3. Initial blends: sm- sn- sc- sk- sw- tw- br- cr- dr-

fr- pr- gr- tr-

4. Final blends: -lt -sp -ld -sk -ly

5. Word endings: -er -est d -ly

6. Initial diagraphs: qu- wh- ph-

7. Final diagraphs: -th -tch -st -th -ck

8. Vowel diagraphs: -ay- -ea- -ie -oe-

Teach: when 2 vowels go walking, the first one does the talking

9. Simple two-syllable words: kitchen/hotel

10. Common irregular words, e.g. cough, ghost etc based on reading scheme

Phonics in Third and Fourth Classes

1. Vowel digraphs and combinations: -ue- -oe- -igh- -ew- -ur-

2. Initial blends: scr- str- thr- shr- spl- sch-

3. Soft c and soft g: city, gentle

4. Diphthongs: -oe- -oy- -ou- -ow (bow tie/bow your head)

5. Endings: -le -ble -dle -ple etc

6. Compound words: lighthouse, searchlight etc

7. Simple homonyms: their/there see/sea no/know two/to/too etc

8. Words with silent letter: wr (write) kn(know) -mb(lamb) -t-

(listen) etc

9. -oo- -ow- combinations: soon/book town/gown

10. three and four syllable words: aeroplane television

Phonics in Fifth and Sixth classes

1. Root families e.g express/expressing/expression

2. Prefixes

3. Suffixes

4. Syllabication

5. Compound words

6. Simple homonyms

7. Irregular words based on reading scheme

Reading

Broad Objectives

The aim of this plan is to provide a structured and sequential programme for

teachers to enable children to:

1. Develop print awareness, phonemic awareness, word identification strategies

and sight vocabulary.

2. Develop their comprehension and analytical strategies.

3. Expand their understanding and usage of grammar, syntax and punctuation.

4. Develop their appreciation of the richness and diversity of reading material.

5. Experience the pleasure and fulfilment to be gained from reading.

Approach to Reading

In our approach to reading, we consider the following:

the children’s general language development

the central role of phonological and phonemic awareness

the planning of book related events such as book fairs and book weeks

the involvement of parents’ in children’s reading

These approaches will be recognised at all stages of children’s acquisition of

reading i.e. from the emergent reader, to the instructional reader and to the

independent reader.

1. Print-Rich Environment

A variety of examples of a print-rich environment are evident in our school

including big books in a range of genres, picture books, independent reading

books, charts of poems, songs and rhymes, labels and directions, name charts,

written materials produced by the children, jobs chart, timetables, word

charts, magnetic surfaces and magnetic letters, notice board (messages for

children to read), charts of days, months, seasons and festivals calendars and

theme charts.

2. Basic Sight Vocabulary

Basic sight vocabulary is an important component of the language base the child

needs before embarking on a structured reading programme. It will be acquired

from a number of sources, such as language experience material, large-format

books, environmental print, labeling, flash cards, etc. Sight vocabulary will be

developed through selecting common words, core words, words from the

reader, high interest words, Dolch list, and social sight vocabulary.

3. Phonological Awareness

Phonological awareness will be developed through:

Syllabic awareness – syllabic blending, syllable segmentation, syllable

counting, syllable isolation.

Onset and rhyme – nursery rhymes and rhyming poems, detecting rhymes in

stories, rhyme judgement, rhyme generation.

Phonemic awareness – identify initial sound – final sound – medial

sound; Phoneme blending, Phoneme deletion, Phoneme isolation, Phoneme

substitution, Phoneme transposition.

A range of specifically targeted Phonological Awareness Programmes will be

used e.g Jolly Phonics and The PAT Programme.

Assessment of Individual Phonological awareness: The class teachers and

LS/RT will use the results of Phonological Tests, along with other informal/ formal

tests and teacher observation to identify the needs of individual children.

4. Reading Fluency

The primary strategies recognised in this school to enable children to identify

words are their knowledge of letter-sound relationships (grapho/phonic cues),

their experiences and understanding of the world (meaning or semantic cues)

and their knowledge of the forms of language (syntactic cues). From the outset

children are encouraged to look at letters in words, the shape of words, for letters

they recognise, to sound out letters that they know, to look for little words in big

5. Phonics

The specific phonics programmes used in our school are The Jolly Phonics

Programme from Junior Infants to Second class. The Jolly Phonics Programme

is a Synthetic Phonics Approach. In order to develop reading fluency among our

children we ensure time is allocated daily to recreational reading activities.

6. Comprehension Skills

The comprehension skills that will be developed through language activity in our

school include analysis, synthesis, inference, deduction, summarisation,

evaluation and correlation. Teachers explicitly teach a number of strategies that

relate to factual texts and fictional texts including scanning, skimming,

search reading, reflective reading, brainstorming and categorising, sequencing,

predicting etc. by modelling the language and process for

children. Comprehension skills are developed through oral and written work with

an emphasis on discussion.

SRA: Children from First to sixth classes will use the SRA laboratory reading kit

to develop comprehension skills. Use the Use SQR technique from SRA

laboratory reading kit:

Survey picture, title, first sentence and last paragraph.

Question what the picture is about, why did the author write the story.

Read the story.

7. Reading Material

We aim to use a variety of reading material such as big books, class readers,

parallel readers, poetry anthologies, etc.

Big Books are used to expose children to reading in order to develop their

receptiveness to language. It also provides children with an opportunity to talk

about reading and expose them to the conventions of print. The class reader is

used to develop reading skills such as word attack skills, dictionary work,

comprehension, information retrieval skills etc. Teachers ensure that their use of

questioning on the class reader is differentiated to cater for the varying needs

within the classroom.

Parallel readers serve to give children the opportunity to read independently at

their level to ensure they view reading as an enjoyable activity, to develop

fluency and heighten their self-esteem. We endeavour to select reading material

that lends itself to group/individual recitation, and we aim to include

expository, narrative and diagrammatic/representational texts in our selection.

We recognise the importance of using reading material as a means to develop

our children emotionally and imaginatively and engage in activities such as

character development, discuss why they chose a particular text, respond to

material read through drama, art and music, etc We have adopted a variety of

approaches such as collaborative reading, independent reading, group reading,

whole class approach, etc and we aim to strike a balance throughout the year.

We have a celebratory Book Week for World Book Day each March. We

encourage Book Fairs to keep our reading material updated and contemporary

The school library is located next to the office. Children pick a book from the

library once a week. Senior classes endeavour to visit Dunboyne library every 3

weeks for a term.

Class novels will be used from Rang 3 to Rang 6. There are several sets of

novels currently available in the school, and a full list of these is available in the

Navan Library. When selecting a class novel, the following issues will be

considered

Suitability for reading level/age of pupils

Suitability of content/subject

Teacher’s own interest in a particular novel

Interests of a particular class

The class novels are currently banded according to class level. If teachers wish

to use a novel other than those on their own class bands, they are asked to

source a new title rather than using a novel from a different band.

Dictionaries will be used from Third Class up. Formal time will be devoted to

teaching the children how to use a dictionary correctly. For this purpose, a child

friendly dictionary will be selected, and all pupils will be encouraged to obtain the

same publication. The dictionary selected for use is Fallons Children’s Oxford

Dictionary, Irish Edition.

Children in 5th and 6th classes have access to thesauruses, and pupils will be

encouraged to use these.

Poetry

Junior and Senior Infants: nursery rhymes

First and Second Classes: acrostics and rhyming couplets

Third and Fourth Classes: adjective poems and limericks

Fifth and sixth classes: kennings, alliteration poems and haiku

3rd to Sixth classes learn a new poem or verse of poem by rote every month.

Children will write their own acrostic and adjective poems.

Writing

Broad Objectives:

The aim of this plan is to provide a structured and sequential programme for

teachers to enable children to:

1. Write clearly, correctly and fluently.

2. Use a wide range of vocabulary.

3. Use grammar and punctuation appropriately.

4. Write in a wide variety of genres encompassing differing styles, purposes,

audiences and level of formality.

5. Experience opportunities to develop presentation, editing and publishing

skills.

6. Engage in collaborative writing experiences.

7. Develop a high standard of penmanship.

Handwriting: Left handed Pupils

Children’s hand dominance will not be influenced. Children will be encouraged to

find a pencil grip that is comfortable, and allows good writing. In senior classes,

ball point pens may be more suitable for left handed children than ink pens.

Cursive Handwriting

Cursive handwriting will be introduced across the school in September 2018

using Brendan Culligan’s Go with the Flow scheme. This will enable children to

write fluently, quickly and clearly.

Writing for Junior Infants

Use of crayon and plastic materials

Scribbling and drawing shapes.

Free style drawing.

Displaying

Print with environment

Use of finger rhymes to prepare fingers for writing work

Prewriting letter patterns

Develop satisfactory grip using crayons progressing to pencils.

Use of hand hugger pencils

Emphasise posture

Introduction to cursive writing

Kinaesthetic approach emphasised

Forming individual letters in the same order as the Jolly Phonics

Programme is taught.

Formations of numerals

Creating awareness of left-right, top-bottom orientation

See teacher model writing as an enjoyable experience

By June, pupil will be able to write first name, cvc words and a sentence

Writing in Senior Infants

Children will be encouraged to write and draw frequently throughout the

year

Emphasis on proper pencil grip

Posture will be encouraged

Greater emphasis on left-right orientation

lower case letters

Writing from blackboard

Copy words from the environment

Writing dictation sentences

Capital letters introduced in alphabetical order

Write labels to name families, people and things

Write his/her full name

Awareness of lower case and capital letters and full stops

Awareness of ascenders and descendars

Awareness of spacing between words

Trying to keep writing on the line

Writing in First and Second Classes

Consolidation and reinforcement of Senior infant work

Use of HB pencils


Emphasis on good writing posture

Emphasis on proper letter formation

Emphasis on quality presentation

Ruling margins

Writing in A11 copies

Introduction of cursive handwriting

Writing in Third and Fourth Classes

Use of HB pencils





Introduction of modified letters r, k, e, f, d, b, p and q


Use of ink pen rather than ballpoint biro to facilitate good handwriting

Use of pen to be introduced in late 4th Class

Use of pen licence to encourage neat handwriting

Use of brackets plus one line to correct errors.

Use of B2 Handwriting copy

Writing in Fifth and Sixth Classes





Ink pens rather than ball points to be used

Develop a fluent personal style of handwriting

Write for more sustained periods

Use of B4 Handwriting copies

Functional Writing in First and Second Classes

Use of capital letters at beginning of sentences and full stops at the end of

sentences

The children will be introduced to the concept of Proper Nouns and

Common Nouns

‘Special’ names such as John, Mary, Rex and Mallow get capital letters,

while ‘ordinary’ words such as boy, girl, dog and town get lower case

letters.

Use of the question mark.

Awareness of inverted commas for direct speech

Use of adjectives.

Masculine and Feminine nouns, eg bull/cow; king/queen; prince/princess.

Functional Writing in Third and Fourth Classes

All of the above.

Use of the question mark.

Use of commas in lists.

Use of inverted commas for direct speech

Use of apostrophe

Plural of nouns

Use of adverbs

Use of exclamation mark

Verbs. Verbs have tense. Past/present/future tense.

Functional Writing in Fifth and Sixth Classes

All of the above.

Collective nouns

Abstract nouns

Conjunctions

Similes

Metaphors

Definite and Indefinite Article

Writing Genres

Persuasive

Narrative

Report

Recount

Procedural

Explanation

Sample plan for implementation of a genre over a seven/eight week

timeframe

Familiarisation: showing the children lots of examples of this genre.

Discovery: engaging in focussed talk and discussion, questioning, etc.

Teacher models

Discovery: breaking down the text into its various subheadings, etc.

Teacher models – highlighting the structure, the language features,

grammar and so on.

Modelled writing

Independent construction

Presentation to audience

Spellings

Children are assessed in September and in June to record progress. The

convention of spelling will be achieved progressively through a multi-dimensional

approach. This will include:

Linking spelling with the development of phonological and phonemic

awareness (see page 58 Teacher Guidelines)

Linking it with onset and rime, see page 58

Building up a bank of commonly used words

Having a rich experience of environmental print

Compiling personal word banks, eg personal names, local place names,

seasonal words

Using dictionaries and thesauruses

Using strategies such as:

Predict, look, say, cover, write, check

Mnemonics

Rhythm and rhyme

Creation of word searches

Aide memoires

Spelling buddies

Breaking words into syllables

Exaggeration of the word

Becoming familiar with common spelling rules

Accepting approximate spelling in creative writing

Spellings in Junior Infants

Learn to form and name individual letters using various materials

Understand left-right orientation when forming words

Copy letters and words informally and from signs in the classroom

Write own Christian name

Use labels to name familiar people and things

Spellings in Senior Infants

Learn to form and name individual letters using various materials

Understand left-right orientation when forming words

Copy letters and words informally and from signs in the classroom

Write own name, Christian name and surname

Use labels to name familiar people and things

Write letters and simple words from memory

Become aware of lower case and capital letters

Develop the confidence to use approximate spelling

Begin to develop conventional spelling of simple words, eg 3 letter words

using onset and rime, e.g. c-at, b-at, r-at

Simple spellings based on phonic programmes

Word banks will consist of pupil’s own name, teacher’s name, simpler words

from Dolch Lists 1 and 2

Spellings in First Class

Learn about common word endings, word families and roots of words

Spell words in a recognisable way based on an awareness of the most

common word strings and patterns (page 58, Teacher Guidelines)

Use approximate spelling as an interim measure in mastering the convention

of spelling

Break longer words into their constituent syllables - maximum 2 syllable

words

Spell correctly a range of familiar important and regularly occurring words,

and use of variety of sources as aids to spelling

Develop Word Bank to include

Spelling lists will not be taken from reader

Children will be grouped according to spelling ability in order to achieve

success. This will be achieved by either reducing the number of spellings or

by the provision of easier lists for different groups.

Formal learning of spellings begins in Rang 1.

Total of words to be tested in a test will not exceed 8

Spelling tests will be marked by the teacher, and records of progress kept.

All children will be given the opportunity to experience success, and will learn

spellings at own ability level as above

Spellings in Second Class





of spelling

Break longer words into their constituent syllables - maximum 3 syllable

words



Develop Work Bank to include

Commonly used words which are opposite, e.g. large – small

Commonly used question words, e.g. when, what, where, how etc

Dolch list 1-7

Spelling lists will not be taken from reader

daily segments, eg 2 /3 per night


Spellings from Third to Sixth Classes





of spelling

Break longer words into their constituent syllables



Develop Word Bank

Spellings lists will be taught over a two week period. The children will be

texted on week 1 and then complete dictation on week 2.

Lists of spellings to be memorised will be divided into daily segments, eg 3 / 4

per night


Full sentence testing will occasionally be used at this level

Marking – children may occasionally be involved in marking their own work or

the work of their peers at this stage, under the guidance of the teacher

Children will enjoy recording their progress on a graph template

Children having difficulty with spellings

Children attending learning support will complete the SNIP Literacy Programme

levels 1 and 2. They will also complete the PAT Programme Levels 1/2/3

studying word families.

Assessment and Record Keeping

Assessment is used by teachers to inform their planning, selection and

management of learning activities so that they can make the best possible

provision for meeting the varied mathematical needs of the children in our school.

Teachers select from the following range of assessment approaches:

Teacher observation of knowledge, skills development and participation in

activities· Teacher designed tests and task

Work-samples, portfolios and projects

Children will be encouraged to assess their own work on a continuous

basis.

Teacher Observation

The curriculum makes reference to the validity of teacher observation as a

means of building a broad understanding of a child’s strengths. Teachers will

note anything that they feel is important in relation to a child’s progress in

English.

Observations may include the following:

The level of engagement in or attention to activities

Strengths and concerns in relation to written work

Involvement in discussions

The response to and initiation of questioning during class or group-work.

Standardised Testing

Criterion referenced standardised tests are used as follows: Children are formally

assessed by means of the MIST in April of Senior Infants.

Drumcondra Reading tests are given to all classes from 1st to 6th every May.

The results of each child’s tests will be uploaded on to Aladdin.

Results are communicated to parents through the end of year reports.

In line with the school’s policy on record keeping school files are kept until the

child reaches the age of 21.

Children with Special Needs

The English programme aims to meet the needs of all children in the school. This

will be achieved by teachers varying the pace, content and methodologies to

ensure learning for all children.

The performance of pupils on the standardised tests, in conjunction with the

recommendations of the class teacher will determine their suitability for learning

support for English. The availability of supplementary teaching for English,

however, depends on the case load of the Learning Support Teacher.

Diagnostic tests may also be administered where the need arises. Parental

permission must be obtained before these tests are administered. The progress

of such children will be reviewed on a regular basis.

For children of exceptional ability, opportunities will be provided to work on

extension activities. Parents will be consulted and opportunities for further

development will be explored i.e. contact with the Centre for Talented Youth.

Khan Academy has exercises based on grammar that can be completed.

Children with exceptional ability will have differentiated homework and classwork

activities and may be using a higher reading scheme to his/her peers.

Equality of Participation and Access

All children are provided with equal access to all aspects of the English

curriculum. Boys and girls are provided with equal opportunities to engage in

mathematical activities.

Homework

In this school Homework should be line with the approaches as set out in the

curriculum for English. Homework allocated should take account of the differing

levels of ability in the class and should be a positive experience for all.

Textbooks/workbooks

Textbooks are selected as part of the Book Rental Scheme and will reflect the

objectives of the curriculum. The scheme currently in use throughout the school

From Junior Infants to 3rd Class is the Big Box of Adventures and Reading Zone

from fourth to sixth classes.

Individual Teachers’ Planning and Reporting

Teachers should base their yearly and short term plans on the approaches set

out in this whole school plan for English. Work covered will be outlined in the

Cuntas Míosúil which will be submitted to the principal monthly.

Teachers will address the three questions when preparing termly and fortnightly

plans:

1. What should the children know after a period of learning? (Learning

Outcomes)

2. How will I recognise their progression? (Form three broad groups using

the Progression Continuum)

3. What will I do to get them there? (Schemes of work and support materials)

Staff Development

Teachers are made aware of any opportunities for further professional

development through participation in courses available in Education Centres or

other venues. Skills and expertise within the school are shared and developed

through inputs at staff meetings.

Parental Involvement

Parents are encouraged to support the school’s programme for English.

Individual parent/teacher meetings are held annually in November. Teachers and

parents are afforded this chance to discuss each individual child’s progress, and

ways of assisting that progress. Parents and teachers are welcome to make

individual arrangements to discuss matters of relevance at other times

throughout the school year. Parents with particular expertise may be invited to

address classes.

Success Criteria

The success of this plan will be measured using the following criteria:

Implementation of revisions in the English curriculum will be evident in

teachers’ work

Continuity of content and methodology will be evident in teachers’

preparation and monthly reports.

School Self Evaluation Action Planning for Literacy will determine

success.

Implementation

(a) Roles and Responsibilities: Class teachers are responsible for the

implementation of the English programme for their own classes.

(b) Implementation Date: September 2018

Review Date June 2021

Ratified by the Board of Management

Signed:_______________________ Chairperson, Board of Management

Signed: ______________________ Principal

Date: __________________

english - whole school plan

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