Spoken Language

At St Peter and St Paul, we believe that the development of effective spoken language skills is key to enabling our pupils to embrace their future lives with all of the fullness that God intended them to. 

Spoken language forms a central part of our approach to teaching and learning across the whole curriculum and has informed many of our curriculum choices. The importance of spoken language underpins: 

- Sounds Write  (phonics) 

- Talk for Writing 

- Talk for Reading 

It also features prominently within The Primary Knowledge Curriculum via which we teach History, Geography, Science, Art and Design & Technology. Our curriculum design and teaching and learning approaches, further ensure that there are rich and varied opportunities to talk, discuss and question throughout all other curriculum subjects and around issues that are pertinent to the pupils' understanding of our ever changing world and current global issues. 

If you can't say it, you can't write it. 

Sounds Write

Sounds Write is a sound to print systematic synthetic approach that teaches the sounds and their corresponding spellings. Throughout all aspects of word reading, pupils are encouraged to 'say the sounds and read the word'. Similarly, when writing pupils are encouraged to say the sounds as they write, thus further underpinning the value of oral language. 

Discussion is used to great effect to support vocabulary acquisition and understanding. Pupils are supported to analyse how spoken words differ to their spellings, taking regional pronunciation as well pronunciation based on on context and formality into consideration.

(For more information on Sounds Write and our approach to teaching phonics, please visit our Early Reading page.) 

Talk for Writing

Talk for Writing, is similarly driven by the same foundational underpinning that 'if you can't say it, you can't write it. Throughout every Talk for Writing unit, pupils are supported to learn and internalise a 'model' text. It is via this model that children are able to internalise new language structures, phrasing and vocabulary. The learning to automaticity gives the pupils confidence to utilise the vocabulary and sentence structures in their own spoken and written language. The immersion in to the type of writing, also supports pupils to understand the context and uses of the language so that they are then able to draw on these independently in their future endeavours.

Talk for Writing, supports the development of spoken language skills across all four oracy strands. 

Physical - Via high quality modelling from teaching staff, the learning of the model text supports pupils to think about their voice; including their tone, pitch and pace. 

Linguistic - the model text, and the discussion and analysis surrounding it, enable children to understand how vocabulary choices, grammar and sentence structures as well as register is key to communicating to different audiences and for different purposes. The children are taught to verbalise a suspense story in a very different manner to a piece of explanation writing. 

Cognitive - particularly within the context of non-fiction, discussion of the structure of the piece is also of great importance. Children are supported to learn model texts that have been crafted in such as a way as to highlight how best to structure and convey ideas, opinions and reasons. 

Social and Emotional - we recognise that talking to bigger audiences is not everyone's favourite thing. Opportunities to learn, practice and perform model texts with their peers gives pupils the opportunity to develop their own confidence in a fun and engaging way. It also further allows for the explicit teaching of expression and flair when speaking aloud; skills that can then be transferred into wider public speaking and reading aloud. 

(For more information on Talk for Writing and our approach to teaching writing, please visit our writing page.) 

Talk for Reading

Talk for Reading provides pupils to explore and discuss high quality texts, beyond a level that they may be able to read independently. Talk for Reading holds many similarities to Talk for Writing in reference to allowing for explicit teaching and skill development within the four strands of oracy. 

Physical - pupils are supported to consider their tone, pitch, pace and volume when reading aloud but also when discussing books that they have read or been read to them. 

Linguistic - whole class and small group discussions around high quality texts support pupils to discuss vocabulary. 

(For more information on Talk for Reading and our approach to teaching reading, please visit our reading page.) 

Vocabulary Acquisition 

Collective Worship