At St Sidwell’s Primary School and Nursery, we recognise that writing is a fundamental skill that underpins learning across the curriculum. Our aim is to develop confident, fluent, and creative writers who can effectively communicate their ideas. We provide a structured, progressive approach to writing, ensuring that all children develop the necessary skills in transcription, composition, and writing for a range of purposes and audiences.
Our policy is informed by research from the Ofsted English Research Review (2022) and the Department for Education (DfE) National Curriculum (2014), both of which highlight the importance of direct instruction, modelled writing, and opportunities for extended composition.
Aims
To develop confident, independent, and proficient writers.
To ensure children understand the writing process, including planning, drafting, editing, and publishing.
To teach children accurate spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
To foster creativity and encourage children to develop their own writing style.
To provide opportunities for writing across the curriculum.
To support pupils who require additional help with writing through targeted interventions.
Approach to Teaching Writing
We follow a systematic, structured approach to writing, ensuring progression from the early years through to Year 6:
Early Writing Development (EYFS and KS1)
Children are encouraged to develop early mark-making and fine motor skills.
Phonics teaching through Read Write Inc. is embedded in writing instruction, ensuring children develop early spelling skills.
Emergent writing is encouraged through role-play, storytelling, and the use of ‘Drawing Club’.
Sentence construction is explicitly taught, supported by oral rehearsal.
Pupils develop confidence through structured shared and guided writing activities.
Composition and Structure (KS1 and KS2)
Writing is taught through a sequence of modelled, shared, guided, and independent writing.
Pupils are given clear writing purposes and audiences to ensure engagement.
Teachers explicitly model writing strategies, including the use of vocabulary, sentence structure, and paragraphing.
Grammar, punctuation, and spelling (GPS) are integrated within writing lessons.
Extended writing opportunities are provided across subjects to embed writing skills.
Editing and Proofreading
Pupils are taught to edit and proofread their work systematically.
Self-assessment and peer-assessment are encouraged to foster independence.
Teachers provide targeted feedback to support writing improvement.
The Ofsted English Research Review (2022) highlights that high-quality writing instruction includes explicit teaching of composition, transcription, and grammar, alongside regular opportunities for pupils to apply these skills in meaningful contexts.
Writing Across the Curriculum
Pupils apply their writing skills in subjects such as history, science, and geography.
Writing tasks are designed to be purposeful, with real-life applications.
Opportunities for non-fiction, persuasive, explanatory, and creative writing are embedded across subjects.
Handwriting and Presentation
A consistent, structured handwriting scheme is followed to develop fluent, legible handwriting.
High expectations for presentation are reinforced across all subjects.
Pupils are encouraged to take pride in their written work.
Assessment and Monitoring
Writing progress is assessed using teacher assessment, moderation, and formal spelling, punctuation ang grammar assessments.
Teachers track progress to identify gaps and inform planning.
Formative assessment informs immediate next steps in teaching.
Supporting SEND and EAL Learners
Writing support is differentiated based on individual pupil needs.
Scaffolding techniques, including sentence starters, writing frames, and visual prompts, are provided where necessary.
Children with EAL benefit from structured vocabulary support and oral rehearsal.
Children with SEND receive targeted interventions, including fine motor skills, Colourful Semantics and handwriting development where needed.
Encouraging Writing for Pleasure
At St Sidwell’s, we believe that fostering a love for writing is essential to developing confident writers.
Creative writing opportunities are provided through storytelling, poetry, and free-writing sessions.
Author studies and writing club inspires pupils to develop their own writing voice.
School writing competitions and displays celebrate pupils’ achievements.
Real life writing experiences (e.g., letters to local organisations) to encourage engagement.
Parental Engagement
Home learning tasks encourage pupils to practise their transcription skills including spelling, punctuation and grammar.
Workshops and information sessions help parents understand the writing curriculum.