English

Appreciate the beauty and power of literature and language

We all know the old lie in the rhyme, ’Words never hurt me’ because words do have power to emote the most wide ranging and deep emotions. Embarking upon your teen years is just the right time to safely experience the myriad possibilities of our world. By travelling in the stories of fictional and real characters, from both the past and the present, our students see how others experience life. Through an integrated programme of skills we aim to promote confidence in students finding their voice and appreciating the beauty in that of others.

Encounter, express, understand, critique, adapt

- All students encounter challenging and exciting examples of Literature appropriate to their age and that stretch their ability.

- They are encouraged to express themselves creatively and imaginatively, and to communicate with others effectively. 

- Through the study of English, looking at its patterns, structures and origins, we understand how and why words, sentences and texts work.

- Variety in modules develops individual pupils as enthusiastic and critical readers of stories and poetry, as well as non-fiction and media texts.

- Ultimately we want to see the students use this knowledge to become able to select what they say and adapt to write in different situations.

Generate excitement and passion for playing with words

Words have to come alive. They have to sink into you. You can breathe them in and absorb them through your skin. It is that feeling of being lost, yet so at home in the world created by a good story that time means nothing. Key Stage 2 is an exciting time to learn; impressionable young minds are eager and enquiring and we want to feed that with literature and techniques that will equip them for the wonderful world they will discover through English.

Live, breathe, wonder

- Every module helps the students live the words ‘off the page’ by exploring with all their senses.

- Teachers supply a rich, wide and nutritious range of texts that inspire individuals to read for pleasure and ensure they are suitably challenged by what they read and how they read.

- Children use the tools of language to communicate expressively, creatively and with increasing sophistication.

- Topics provide opportunities to write to the best of their ability and with an expanding technical knowledge, for a variety of audiences.

- Our learners are being exposed to the wonders of the English language and dream the possibilities it can unlock for them.

Find a summary of learning tools used by Dunhurst pupils below:

Accelerated Reader and MyON

All children in Groups and Blocks use the RENLearn programmes. Children are encouraged to read at the higher band of their ZPD and regular quizzing on books supports reading progress in comprehension. All children are required to have an Accelerated Reader book in school and English teachers will assist the children with their choices and use of the lending shelves and library of books in school.

Wide reading of texts is important and free reading outside of the programme is strongly encouraged.

From this year we will also be using the online library of books at MyON as another tool for guided research, independent projects and cross-curricular working.

Spellzone

This is an online spelling tool, which in conjunction with taught spelling lessons, supports the differentiation of spelling needs within the school.