Literacy

It is crucial for children to develop a life-long love of reading. Reading consists of two dimensions: language comprehension and word reading. Language comprehension (necessary for both reading and writing) starts from birth. It only develops when adults talk with children about the world around them and the books (stories and non-fiction) they read with them, and enjoy rhymes, poems and songs together. Skilled word reading, taught later, involves both the speedy working out of the pronunciation of unfamiliar printed words (decoding) and the speedy recognition of familiar printed words. Writing involves transcription (spelling and handwriting) and composition (articulating ideas and structuring them in speech, before writing).

Literacy at Woodcroft is about:

• inspiring a love of books
• sharing books and bringing stories alive
• adults scribing children's text
• making stories
• making children’s stories into books
• re-telling familiar stories.
• engaging with parents/carers to share stories and books at home
• adults using aspirational vocabulary in meaningful contexts
• writing for a purpose in real, relevant and meaningful contexts.