The core skill base to our curriculum is Oracy, Reading and Writing and these skills are explicitly taught throughout our curriculum and in discrete lessons, by class teachers, under the guidance of the subject leaders.

Our Oracy curriculum is developed from our work as a Voice 21 school. Oracy is the ability to articulate ideas, develop understanding and engage with others through spoken language, within and beyond school. Oracy is a powerful tool for learning; it empowers pupils to have a better understanding of themselves, others and the world around them. Through the development of Oracy skills at Pennine View, we also support pupils to be able to develop healthy, positive relationships and make and keep friends.  Pupils learn to express themselves confidently which enables them to thrive and also navigate conflicts in their relationships in a positive and productive way.

Reading is an vital skill that all our pupils learn before they leave Pennine View.  We read for pleasure, to develop our learning and as an essential life skill.  Systematic Synthetic Phonics is used to enable pupils to decode and encode written language.  We have interventions in place that overcome barriers to reading, whether neurological or physical. The school environment is reading-rich with a well-stocked library of high-quality texts and each classroom has a reading area.  Pupils in Lower School have daily phonics lessons, as do pupils in Upper School who need further phonics teaching.  Drop Everything and Read sessions take place daily where everyone can immerse themselves in the joy of reading.

Writing skills develop from oracy and reading.  Our language-rich curriculum and environment develop vocabulary and grammatical skills with writing being taught and practiced daily.  Written communication is another vital life-skill that all our pupils need for successful futures.  All pupils write daily, with a skills focus, in a ‘daily write’. Writing also features as a communication and note-taking tool across the majority of lessons and as the outcome for English learning, where each week leads to a quality writing outcome with purpose and clarity of audience.  English lessons each week develop from contextual learning, then exploration and vocabulary development through reading and drama, through to drafting and final writing outcomes.