Our Aim

Spelling helps children to communicate confidently in the written form. It also helps with reading and vocabulary development. We aim to teach our children to become competent at spelling but also to have an interest in words themselves, for example the word origin and history (etymology).

Teaching & Learning

All children have weekly spelling patterns to learn. These are chosen from the lists provided for each year group in the National Curriculum, whilst recapping on previous year groups patterns where needed. Specific teaching is given in school and homework set to ensure extra practice.  There are also statutory word lists that don’t follow specific patterns for each phase; common exception words for KS1, and word lists for year 3/4 and 5/6. Children will work on these at regular intervals throughout each phase, discussing the word meaning and using it in context.

Equality of opportunity

Dictionaries, thesaurus, word banks, alphabet cards etc are available for all children to refer to and are differentiated for those who find spelling particularly challenging. Additional intervention groups are provided as appropriate. All teachers have been trained in dyslexia and specific dyslexic aids (such as spelling apps) are available.