Winshill Village
Writing
Subject Leader: Mr E. Worth
“If you want to change the world, pick up your pen and write”.
Vision
At Winshill Village Primary and Nursery School, we intend to create a community of inspirational, aspirational, confident citizens with writing sitting at the heart of this. We aim to ensure that all children leave us with the tools required to communicate effectively for a range of purposes, whilst ensuring their audience is at the heart of their writing. Our carefully designed curriculum enables every child, regardless of their background or starting point, to experience each critical stage of the writing journey and understand the importance of this sequence. Our children will develop curiosity, empathy and inspiration through our engaging curriculum where a range of stimuli are used. Here at Winshill, we understand that writing creates limitless possibilities, which will inspire and empower our young people.
Aims and Goals
At Winshill Village Primary and Nursery School, our aims for writing are shaped by our DREAMBIG values, guiding both our expectations for pupils and the way we teach. We want every child to see themselves as a writer—someone with a unique voice, ideas worth sharing, and the skills to communicate with clarity and confidence.
Through a carefully sequenced curriculum, we build knowledge and key skills step by step, from sentence construction and vocabulary development to planning, editing, and publishing. Writing is not just a subject but a powerful tool for children to express themselves, respect others, aspire to do their best, and make a difference through their words.
We place a strong focus on developing positive learning behaviours such as resilience, reflection, and independence, encouraging children to persevere when challenges arise and to take pride in their achievements.
Our goal is for every child to leave Winshill inspired to write with confidence, creativity, and purpose—prepared not only for academic success but also for a lifetime of effective communication.
Curriculum
At Winshill Village Primary and Nursery School, writing is taught daily through a carefully structured and consistent approach that enables all children to succeed. We use high-quality resources such as Literacy Shed, Plazoom, Spelling Shed, Little Wandle Letters and Sounds, and the JTMAT writing sequence to plan engaging and purposeful lessons that build progressively across the school.
Our curriculum is designed so children experience the full writing journey—from exploring vocabulary and constructing sentences, to planning, drafting, editing, and publishing. Lessons are sequenced to ensure new learning builds on prior knowledge, with retrieval opportunities to strengthen long-term memory. This step-by-step approach helps pupils to develop confidence and independence while taking pride in their finished work.
Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)
In Nursery and Reception, writing begins with mark-making, name writing, and letter formation through continuous provision, adult-led activities, and phonics. Children are immersed in a text-rich environment and benefit from approaches such as Talk for Writing, which uses imitation, innovation, and invention to help them understand story structures, build vocabulary, and gain confidence in their writing. Writing opportunities are always purposeful, contextual, and celebrated through displays such as the WOW wall.
Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2
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All pupils are taught in line with the English National Curriculum.
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Daily lessons include spelling, handwriting, grammar, and writing composition.
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Retrieval tasks (“Do Nows”) are used to revisit prior knowledge and strengthen recall.
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Grammar is taught explicitly and embedded into the writing process.
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Cross-curricular writing opportunities allow pupils to apply skills in meaningful contexts across subjects.
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Carefully chosen stimuli and high-quality texts inspire children to write for real purposes and audiences.
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Pupils are encouraged to develop stamina, independence, and reflection through regular drafting and editing.
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Writing is recorded and assessed using JTMAT progression grids, ensuring accuracy, consistency, and progression.
Cross-Curricular
At Winshill Village Primary and Nursery School, we believe that writing should be purposeful and meaningful across the curriculum. Children apply their writing skills in a wide range of subjects—whether composing explanations in Science, recounting events in History, writing persuasive arguments in Geography, or presenting findings in Maths. These opportunities help pupils to see writing as a powerful tool for communication, not just in English lessons but in every area of learning.
By embedding writing throughout the curriculum, we enable children to practise and refine their skills in different contexts, deepening their understanding while developing confidence, independence, and pride in their work.
