Literacy

At The Turing School, we recognise the power of literacy as the cornerstone of all learning, a key predictor of success in later life, and an indispensable tool for personal growth and societal participation. Driven by our inspirational vision, our literacy curriculum is thoughtfully structured, ambitious, and innovative, focusing on reading, writing, and oracy across all subjects and providing targeted intervention for those that need it.

 

Reading

The profound importance of developing students' ability to read complex academic texts is not overlooked. Our teaching staff, backed by regular literacy professional learning and development, diligently nurtures the reading skills of our students to enhance their subject comprehension. We actively encourage students to engage with the texts they read, utilising their existing subject knowledge and employing reading strategies such as activating prior knowledge, prediction, and questioning. Through modelling and group work, these strategies are introduced, gradually promoting independence as the students grow confident in their abilities.

 

Writing

Understanding the challenge that writing can pose, we place significant emphasis on explicitly instructing our students on how to improve their writing. We deconstruct complex writing tasks into manageable stages of planning, monitoring, and evaluation, providing step-by-step guidance. Our creative approaches, such as collaborative writing, not only enhance writing quality but also motivate students to actively participate. We believe that the art of writing should promote recognition of the features, aims, and conventions of good writing within each subject. Furthermore, our explicit teaching of spelling, grammar, and punctuation, with a focus on meaning, ensures our students' writing is not only accurate but also meaningful.

 

Oracy

Acknowledging the pivotal role of talk in learning, we provide abundant opportunities for structured oracy activities. Our teachers model high-quality talk, incorporating key vocabulary and reflective thinking. This, combined with our emphasis on accountable talk and insights from Voice 21’s framework for oracy, ensures our students not only learn to express themselves articulately but also develop a nuanced understanding of subject-specific communication.

 

We are committed to extending exceptional interventions for students who struggle in their literacy. Our tiered support model matches students to appropriate interventions, monitored for their impact. We proactively plan to support students, particularly in Year 7, promoting a culture of respect and inclusion.

 

Our literacy curriculum is not merely about reading, writing, and speaking. It's about empowering our students with the skills to understand, critique, create, and communicate effectively in their unique voices, contributing to a diverse and innovative world.