At Manor Hill First School, English is at the heart of everything we do. We strive to develop a love of reading and writing.

Our English Writing curriculum is rooted in the belief that every child should take pride in their writing, communicate clearly and accurately, and adapt their language and style for a range of contexts. Writing is centred around high-quality texts that engage and challenge students, providing a rich stimulus for independent writing. Vocabulary is at the core of our curriculum, empowering children to articulate ideas effectively and enhancing their comprehension and writing skills.

In Key Stage 1, we use Talk4Writing as a structured approach to oral rehearsal and sentence construction, utilising the work of Pi Corbett's. This method equips children with the skills and confidence to build sentences and narratives through imitation, innovation, and independent application. This progresses through to an approach which allows the children to be taught ambitious vocabulary and given the time to practice applying it within a purposeful way. Grammar is taught seamlessly through the writing process, allowing children to apply their understanding in meaningful contexts. This build up work prepares the children to then write independently.

To enrich children’s learning, we use a range of engaging stimuli, including experiential activities, drama, and the unique Manor Hill Magic, which immerses pupils in memorable and inspiring learning experiences. Spelling is taught systematically throughout the school, beginning with Little Wandle Phonics and Bridge to Spelling in early years and Key Stage 1, progressing to Spelling Shed and the Manor Hill Spelling Curriculum in Years 3 and 4.

We ensure a clear and progressive pathway as children advance through the primary curriculum, aligning our English teaching with cross-curricular, text-based units to provide relevance and depth. We believe these experiences and skills will equip our pupils with the tools they need to participate fully and confidently as members of society.