Literacy
As part of the IGNITE programme, students benefit from dedicated Literacy lessons that provide regular opportunities to develop their reading, writing and oracy skills through topical issues and themes relevant to their lives and the wider world.
Lessons encourage students to engage with a range of texts, explore different viewpoints, broaden their vocabulary and communicate their ideas effectively through both spoken and written language. Recent topics have included Macmillan Cancer Support, Black History Month and British Values, providing meaningful contexts for students to question, discuss, reflect and respond.
Through the programme, students regularly apply and develop their literacy skills beyond the English classroom, enabling them to become confident communicators, thoughtful readers and effective writers.
Oracy
Oracy is a key element of learning and is developed through explicit teaching and regular opportunities for students to speak, listen and interact in a range of contexts. Embedded across the curriculum, effective spoken communication supports students in articulating their ideas, deepening their understanding and developing the language needed for successful written communication.
Students develop their oracy skills through:
- Structured collaborative discussions that allow students to articulate and justify viewpoints, negotiate, problem-solve, synthesise ideas and respond thoughtfully to the contributions of others.
- Explicit teaching of speaking and listening skills, including the effective use of vocabulary, register, tone, pace and structure.
- Opportunities to rehearse and refine spoken language before presenting ideas independently.
- Expressive reading of a variety of texts to develop fluency, expression, interpretation and confidence.
- Explicit teaching about spoken language and how language choices influence meaning, audience and interaction.
- Regular opportunities to apply and transfer oracy skills across different subjects and contexts, helping students become confident, articulate and effective communicators.
