Writing

Reception to Year 3: Laying the Foundations

At Dene House Primary School, writing instruction in Reception and Years 1–3 is carefully sequenced to build strong foundations. We place a heavy emphasis on handwriting, spelling and simple sentence structure. Children practise forming letters correctly and writing short sentences, with plenty of teacher support. In class we use dictation exercises (the teacher says a sentence aloud and children write it down), shared writing (the class creates sentences or stories together) and talking-through ideas (Talking for writing). By practising each skill many times, we reduce cognitive load so pupils don’t have to think about everything at once and can focus on writing clearly. Our aim is that by the end of Year 3 most children can spell common words accurately, write letters neatly and put words together to form whole sentences correctly. These secure transcription and sentence skills give every child the confidence they need for more advanced writing later on.

Years 4–6: Becoming Creative and Confident Writers

Once the basic skills are secure, pupils in Years 4–6 are excited to write more creatively and in longer forms. In Key Stage 2 we use structured writing sequences: teachers introduce a new text type or technique (for example by reading a strong example and highlighting its features), and pupils learn that skill. Next, children plan their own piece, write a first draft, and then edit and redraft to improve it. This cycle – model, write, revise ensures that every new writing skill is taught, practised and applied. Over Years 4–6 these pieces become more challenging in vocabulary and length, so that by the end of Year 6 children are confidently writing extended pieces with clear structure and detail.

Writing with Purpose: Entertain, Inform, Persuade, Discuss

Across the school, we focus on four main writing purposes: to entertain, to inform, to persuade, and to discuss. Each purpose exposes pupils to different styles and audiences, and we tie writing tasks to our class reading or real-life topics whenever possible. For example, after reading a story in class, Year 2 children might write an alternative ending or a diary entry from a character (writing to entertain). Year 4 pupils learning about Romans might write an informational poster to inform others about life in Ancient Rome. In Upper Key Stage 2, students might create an advertisement or a letter to persuade, learning how to use reasons and emotive language. They also write balanced arguments or debate-style texts to discuss an issue, developing skills in reasoning and formal language. These varied, purposeful writing activities cover the key genres of the curriculum and help pupils see how writing connects to the real world.

Aspire, Achieve, Smile

Everything we do in writing reflects our school motto “Aspire, Achieve, Smile.” We help children aspire by setting clear writing goals – for example, aiming for neat handwriting or exciting vocabulary in their stories. We help them achieve by guiding them step by step and celebrating successes (like mastering cursive letters or writing a polished paragraph). And we always want them to smile: our writing plans are designed to be creative and enjoyable, so pupils feel proud of their work. In this way, building strong early writing skills and then growing towards ambitious writing in Key Stage 2 ensures that all our pupils become confident and happy writer.