We believe that English is fundamental, not only to personal and social development, but also to our ability to understand, evaluate, dissect and disseminate knowledge and, consequently, our ability to communicate effectively in society. This enables us to develop empathy, communication skills and the ability to understand issues common to the personal and global spheres, such as prejudice and conflict. At Lawn Primary School, we recognise the importance of phonological decoding and segmenting as one of a number of strategies to develop early reading and writing skills. When combined with reading dialogue, the promotion of reading for pleasure, and the importance of correct spelling, children can apply these skills to tackle unfamiliar texts and to express themselves accurately in written form, thus becoming more independent readers and writers. They will then have access to the ability to explore global issues in real-life contexts whilst developing their core skills.

Hence, our curriculum intent for phonics and spellings encompasses our six core values. We want our children to leave Lawn as confident readers and writers, with a rich vocabulary and the confidence to use their initiative to use and explore it. This vocabulary will provide them with the ability to express themselves clearly, accurately and effectively, whether at home, school or in the workplace. These skills will ensure our children feel a responsibility and have respect for their planet and the people who live on it. They will be able to engage with a variety of different media, engaging critically with it in order to empathise with people around the world as they explore representations of peoples and places and how the English language has dominated other languages. They will view teamwork as something that can happen at many levels, demonstrating integrity, respect and empathy as they explore values, beliefs and experiences of different groups of people by drawing on texts and thinking from a range of cultures and traditions.

At Lawn Primary School, our intent is to engage our children to become confident and accurate readers and writers by incorporating the knowledge, skills and understanding from the National Curriculum (2014) and as outlined in our Progression Map for Phonics and Spellings, which details the strategies and methods adopted by Lawn to ensure that our programme is tailored to the needs of our children at the different stages of their schooling. At the core of this Progression Map is the use of Systematic Synthetic Phonics (SSP) in EYFS and KS1, using Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, which is then built upon in KS2 with the introduction of spelling rules.

Note:  LS = Letters and Sounds / LW = Little Wandle