English Curriculum at XII Apostles
English - Subject Leader Mrs C. Marsden
English Curriculum Intent
‘Through Learning and Loving we will follow Jesus’
- To place Christ at the centre of everything we do
- To recognise that each child is unique and to ensure that each child is educated to fulfil their human potential
- To develop an understanding of Community; being able to recognise, respect and celebrate the diversity of all within it.
Our school’s Mission Statement affirms those beliefs, helps us to keep these beliefs as the basis for everything we do, and gives us the purpose for all our work in Twelve Apostles. Everyone will matter and be treated with love and will be helped to carry out their special role in God’s World. In order for every child to fulfil their potential, we ensure they experience a broad, balanced and engaging English curriculum that is accessible to all.
"Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun." – Mary Lou Cook.
The overarching aim of the National Curriculum for English is to promote high standards of language and literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the spoken and written word, and to foster a life-long love of reading and literature. At XII Apostles, we wholeheartedly embrace this aim.
We are committed to ensuring that all pupils:
- Read easily, fluently, and with good understanding
- Develop the habit of reading widely and regularly for pleasure and information
- Acquire a broad vocabulary and a strong grasp of grammar and linguistic conventions
- Appreciate our rich and diverse literary heritage
- Write clearly, accurately, and coherently for a variety of purposes and audiences
- Engage in meaningful discussion to explore and express ideas
- Are confident in speaking and listening, including formal presentations and debates
At XII Apostles, we strive to provide the very best English education, offering a curriculum that is exciting, broad, balanced, and creative. Our intent is to develop children’s substantive knowledge (what they know about reading, writing, and language) and disciplinary knowledge (how they apply and refine these skills), enabling them to reach their full human potential not only in English but across all areas of learning.
We aim to nurture confident, articulate, and thoughtful communicators who can express themselves effectively and with purpose. Through rich, meaningful experiences, pupils learn that language empowers them—to explore their identity, share their stories, connect with others, and contribute positively to the world around them.
English Curriculum Implementation
English is a core subject taught daily across all key stages. However, it is not limited to standalone lessons—it is embedded across the curriculum, underpinning learning in all subject areas through a well-planned and coherent approach.
We ensure that pupils have regular and varied opportunities to:
- Read for pleasure and purpose, through individual, group, and whole-class reading
- Write in a range of genres and for authentic audiences, across subjects
- Develop grammar, punctuation, spelling, and handwriting through structured teaching
- Speak and listen in diverse contexts—from informal discussion to formal presentations
Teaching is systematic and progressive, building on prior knowledge while ensuring children are supported and challenged. Our approach combines direct teaching with opportunities to apply learning in real, meaningful contexts, allowing children to explore language creatively and purposefully.
High-quality texts and engaging writing opportunities are carefully selected to inspire curiosity and deepen understanding. Children’s voices are valued, and their work is celebrated—helping to foster pride in communication and a sense of ownership over their learning.
Our English curriculum is designed not just to meet statutory requirements, but to ignite a passion for reading, writing, and language that stays with our pupils for life.
The overarching aim for English in the national curriculum is to promote high standards of language and literacy by equipping pupils with a strong command of the spoken and written language, and to develop their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment. The national curriculum for English aims to ensure that all pupils:
- read easily, fluently and with good understanding
- develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
- acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language
- appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage
- write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences
- use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas
- are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate
English Impact
Our mission is clear: we aim to ensure that all children fulfil their human potential. We have a supportive ethos and our approach supports the children in developing their collaborative and independent skills, as well as empathy and the need to recognise the achievement of others. Children can underperform in English because of a lack of aspiration or a fixed mind set towards their own potential. The principles behind incorporating and interweaving all elements of English throughout the writing progress, especially spoken language, ensures that all children experience challenge and success in English. Regular, meaningful and engaging practise, development and application of skills throughout all areas of the curriculum and for differing purposes, ensures children have the opportunity to communicate and express themselves. Through the development of their own ‘voice’, subsequent opportunities to further develop their self-belief and other characteristics of a growth mind set are utilised. Regular and ongoing assessment enables adaptive teaching methods to be utilised to enable the success of each child. These factors ensure that we are able to maintain high standards, with progress by the end of KS2 being well above the national average.
Handwriting Long Term Plan Overview
Writing Long Term Plan Overview
Writing Intent & Implementation
Reading Long Term Plan Overview
Reading Intent & Implementation
Spoken Intent & Implementation
