Foundational Skills

Our Approach to Teaching Foundational Skills

At the heart of our curriculum is a commitment to securing the foundational skills that enable all pupils to become confident communicators, fluent readers, and capable writers and mathematicians. We take a deliberately coherent, systematic and cumulative approach so that each strand reinforces the others, ensuring pupils experience high quality teaching that builds securely over time.

Oracy

We prioritise oracy as the cornerstone of learning. Through structured talk, explicit teaching of speaking and listening skills, and high expectations for vocabulary use, pupils learn to articulate ideas clearly, reason verbally, and engage in collaborative dialogue. Engagement is expected by all pupils through a ‘No Hands Up’ along with my turn, your turn and say it again better. This provides essential foundations for reading comprehension, writing fluency, and wider cognitive development.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary is taught explicitly and systematically, which is supported through the use of dual coded Widgit symbols or real life examples, where more appropriate. We identify and prioritise tiered vocabulary, threading it through Reading, Writing, Maths and the wider curriculum. Repeated encounters with new words, through rich texts, oral rehearsal, and application in writing. This ensure pupils develop both breadth and depth of language, supporting not only literacy but also conceptual understanding. As a result, this links wider curriculum vocabulary to core and across Foundation subjects. 

Phonics

Our approach to phonics is rigorous, sequential and aligned to a validated SSP programme. Daily Read, Write, Inc. lessons follow a consistent structure, with clear modelling, extensive practice, and rapid intervention for pupils who need additional support, through the school’s 1:1 tutoring, Virtual Classroom, Pinny time, Speed Minutes and ‘Wobbly “Wallets’. We ensure children secure the graphemes needed early so they can read fluently, access knowledge-rich texts, and develop a love of reading.

Handwriting

Handwriting is explicitly taught to develop automaticity, legibility and fluency. We build competence through short, frequent practice, beginning with correct grip, sitting position and letter formation before moving to joins and fluent cursive writing. The goal is for handwriting to become effortless, freeing cognitive load for spelling, composition, and deeper thinking, with the high expectations maintained across all writing opportunities.

Spelling

Spelling is taught systematically, connecting phonics knowledge with morphology, etymology and spelling conventions. Pupils explore patterns, rules, and word structure, applying knowledge in meaningful contexts. Regular retrieval practice strengthens long-term recall, enabling pupils to write with accuracy and increasing independence.

Sentence Writing

Sentence-level work is central to early writing. Through modelling, oral rehearsal, deliberate practice, and shared construction, pupils learn how sentences are formed, varied, and improved. Pupils are taught to hold a sentence and practise sentence writing through daily dictation in Phonic lessons. We teach grammar in context, focusing on meaning and clarity. As pupils gain confidence, they learn to extend, combine and manipulate sentences to express increasingly sophisticated ideas.

Number Sense

We build number sense through conceptual understanding, fluency and mathematical reasoning. Pupils develop a secure grasp of number relationships, place value, and the structures of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. High-quality models, manipulatives, and representations support understanding, while daily practice and Maths starters strengthens recall of fact families and flexibility in thinking. This is further enhanced through the KS1 Number Sense programme and the looping of worked examples on the interactive white board.