Literacy

Reading

“There is more treasure in books than in all the pirates loot on Treasure Island.” Walt Disney.

At Kingswood we believe in developing a child’s love of reading which will in turn allow them to explore the world around them, become critical thinkers, active global citizens and lifelong learners.

Modelled and shared reading is used by teachers to explicitly target whole class needs focusing on comprehension, accuracy, building vocabulary and fluency. Students are supported in developing the skills required to become independent readers and to think critically about texts through the use of Guided and Reciprocal Reading, as well as Literature circles.

Independent Reading time allows for students to put into practise skills which have been explicitly taught during whole class or small group sessions. During Independent Reading teachers work one on one with students at their point of need. Weekly library sessions ensure students are inspired to read new and exciting books, find books about topics that interest them and enjoy the experience of hearing a story read to them.

Writing

We develop writers who understand what high quality writing looks and sounds like through the use of the “6 + 1 Traits of Writing”. The traits focus on Voice, Organisation, Ideas, Word Choice, Sentence Fluency, Conventions and Presentation. Students are also exposed to writing for specific purposes by developing a clear understanding of the structures of various text types during these sessions. Whole class needs are explicitly taught through Modelled and Shared Writing. Individual and small group needs are specifically targeted through Guided Writing groups and one to one conferencing with the teacher.  Punctuation and grammar are taught through whole class and small group sessions based on the needs of the students.

As well as the Traits of Writing we explicitly teach how and why authors write using certain language patterns and word choices by Scaffolding Literacy. Through this approach students learn how to write using the stylistic language features authors apply to create feeling and intent. As we build student knowledge of these features using quality author mentor texts we see it transferring into their own writing.

Spelling conventions and handwriting skills are supported through whole class and small group instruction using Multisensory Structured Language (MSL), which combines the use of visual, auditory and kinaesthetic-tactile pathways to enhance memory and learning of written language.