English - Reading

At Thomson House School we believe that reading is a life skill that unlocks learning in all areas of the curriculum. We give reading the highest priority to ensure all our pupils develop fluent reading skills. Additionally, we aim to cultivate a love of reading for pleasure, by exposing the children to high quality texts and giving them opportunities to read across a broad range of genres and authors.

In Reception, our reading provision ensures all children learn basic reading skills and build confidence in reading. Our intention is that all children demonstrate successful decoding skills in the Year 1 phonics check and leave KS1 as fluent readers, able to draw on both phonics and wider reading strategies to read a range of texts with accurate comprehension for both information and enjoyment.

By the end of KS2, our intention is that all children will be working at or above the expected standard in Reading. Pupils will be confident, fluent readers, able to access the wider curriculum, and decode or comprehend text in a range of fiction and non-fiction genres. They will be able to infer meaning from texts, reading between and beyond the lines and discuss authorial intent. Additionally, they will be enthusiastic and engaged readers who can choose appropriate reading matter for themselves and make recommendations to others.

English - Writing

At Thomson House School, we aim for every child to develop a love of writing, and to gain the necessary skills to write confidently for a variety of purposes, styles and genres. Inspired by Mark Hartley’s, ‘The Art of Teaching Writing’ and Pie Corbett’s Talk for Writing, we have carefully selected high-quality core texts designed to engage and inspire the children.  These texts have been chosen to reflect a diverse, modern society as well as capture the children’s interest.  To promote consistency across the school, Year 1-6 complete a cycle of immersion, skill-teaching and writing to ensure that children are enthusiastic writers who are equipped with the tools needed to write across a broad spectrum.  Our writing curriculum has been carefully planned to progress throughout the school. For this reason, children are given ample opportunity to explore different genres, vocabulary and writing features. Children therefore leave Thomson House with a sophisticated understanding of style for different purposes.