Writing

Re-read what they have written to check that it makes sense.  

Write simple phrases and sentences that can be read by others.  

Demonstrate understanding of what has been read to them by retelling stories and narratives using their own words and recently introduced vocabulary.  

Anticipate (where appropriate) key events in stories.  

Use and understand recently introduced vocabulary during discussions about stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems and during role play.  

Make use of props and materials when role playing characters in narratives and stories.  

Develop storylines in their pretend play.  

Explain some similarities and differences between life in this country and life in other countries, drawing on knowledge from stories, nonfiction texts and (when appropriate) maps.  

Understand the past through settings, characters and events encountered in books read in class and storytelling.  

Spell words by identifying the sounds and then writing the sound with letter/s.  

Spell words by identifying sounds in them and representing the sounds with a letter or letters.  

Say a sound for each letter in the alphabet and at least 10 digraphs.  

Form lower-case and capital letters correctly.  

Write recognisable letters, most of which are correctly formed.  

Develop their small motor skills so that they can use a range of tools competently, safely and confidently.  

Suggested tools: pencils for drawing and writing, paintbrushes, scissors, knives, forks and spoons.  

Develop the foundations of a handwriting style which is fast, accurate and efficient.  

Hold a pencil effectively in preparation for fluent writing – using the tripod grip in almost all cases.  

Use a range of small tools, including scissors, paintbrushes and cutlery. Begin to show accuracy and care when drawing.  

Say, write and punctuate simple and compound sentences using the joining words and, but, so and or (co-ordination). 

Use sentences with different forms: statement, question, command, exclamation. 

Secure the use of full stops, capital letters, exclamation marks and question marks. 

Use commas to separate items in a list. 

Use apostrophes for contracted forms e.g. don’t, can’t, wouldn’t, you’re, I’ll. 

Use apostrophes for singular possession in nouns, e.g. the girl’s name. 

Use subordination for time using when, before and after e.g. We went out to play when we had finished our writing. When we had finished our writing, we went out to play. 

Use subordination for reason using because and if e.g. I put my coat on because it was raining. Because it was raining, I put on my coat. 

Use the subordinating conjunction that in a sentence, e.g. I hope that it doesn’t rain on sports day. 

Select, generate and effectively use verbs. 

Explore the progressive form of verbs in the present tense (e.g. she is drumming) and past tense (e.g. he was shouting) to mark actions in progress. 

Use past tense for narrative, recount (e.g. diary, newspaper report, biography) historical reports. 

Use present tense for non-chronological reports and persuasive adverts. 

Select, generate and effectively use nouns. 

Add suffixes ness and er to craate nouns e.g. happiness, sadness, teacher, baker. 

Create compound words using nouns, e.g. whiteboard and football. 

Select, generate and effectively use adjectives. 

Identify, generate and effectively use noun phrases, e.g. the blue butterfly with shimmering wings (for description), granulated sugar (for specification). 

Add suffixes ful or less to create adjectives e.g. playful, careful, careless, hopeless. 

Use suffixes er and est to create adjectives e.g. faster, fastest, smaller, smallest. 

Select, generate and effectively use adverbs. 

Use suffix ly to turn adjectives into adverbs e.g. slowly, gently, carefully. 

Planning 

Plan and discuss what to write about e.g. story mapping, collecting new vocabulary, key words and ideas. 

Drafting and Writing 

Orally rehearse each sentence prior to writing. 

Develop a positive attitude to writing. 

Develop stamina for writing in order to write at length. 

Write about real and fictional events. 

Write simple poems based on models. 

Make simple notes from non-fiction texts, e.g. highlighting and noting key words. 

Use specific text type features to write for a range of audiences and purposes e.g. to instruct, inform, entertain, explain, discuss, persuade. 

Evaluating and Editing 

Edit and improve own writing in relation to audience and purpose. 

Evaluate their writing with adults and peers. 

Proofread to check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation. 

Proofread to check for correct form of verbs within sentences, e.g. correcting he walking to the shop to he walked to the shop. 

Performing 

Read aloud their writing with intonation to make the meaning clear. 

Segment spoken words into phonemes and represent these by graphemes, spelling many correctly. 

Learn new ways of spelling phonemes for which one or more spellings are already known. 

Learn to spell common exception words. 

Learn to spell more words with contracted forms, e.g. can’t, didn’t, hasn’t, couldn’t, it’s, I’ll. 

Learn the possessive apostrophe (singular), e.g. the girl’s book. 

To spell correctly, distinguish between homophones (e.g. here and hear; sea and see; bear and bare; night and knight) and near-homophones (e.g. quite and quiet; one and won; are and our). 

Add suffixes ness and er e.g. happiness, sadness, teacher, baker. 

Add suffix ment to spell longer words, e.g. enjoyment. 

Add suffixes ful and less e.g. playful, careful, careless, hopeless. 

Use suffixes er and est e.g. faster, fastest, smaller, smallest. 

Use suffix ly e.g. slowly, gently, carefully. 

Spell words with: 

- the /d􀖗/ sound spelt as ge and dge at the end (e.g. age, badge), and spelt as g elsewhere (e.g. magic, giant). 

- the /s/ sound spelt c before e, i and y, e.g. ice, cell 

- the /n/ sound spelt kn and gn at the beginning, e.g. knee, gnat. 

- the /􀕾/ sound spelt wr at the beginning e.g. wrote, wrong. 

- the /l/ or /􀋎l/ sound spelt –le at the end of words, e.g. table, apple. 

- the /l/ or /􀋎l/ sound spelt –el at the end of words, e.g. camel, tunnel. 

- the /l/ or /􀋎l/ sound spelt –al at the end of words, e.g. pedal, capital. 

- the ending –il e.g. pencil, fossil, nostril. 

- the /a􀕯/ sound spelt –y at the end of words, e.g. try, reply. 

- The /􀕚:/ sound spelt a before l and ll, e.g. call, walk 

- The /􀖑/ sound spelt o, e.g. mother, Monday 

- The /i:/ sound spelt –ey, e.g. key, donkey 

- The /􀕘/ sound spelt a after w and qu, e.g. wander, quantity 

- The /􀕡:/ sound spelt or after w, e.g. word, worm 

- The /􀕚:/ sound spelt ar after w, e.g. war, warm 

- The /􀖗/ sound spelt s, e.g. television, usual 

Add –es to nouns and verbs ending in –y, e.g. copies, babies. 

Add –ed, –ing, –er and –est to a root word ending in – y with a consonant before it, e.g. copied, copier. 

Add the endings –ing, –ed, –er, –est and –y to words ending in –e with a consonant before it, e.g. hiking, hiked, hiker. 

Add –ing, –ed, –er, –est and –y to words of one syllable ending in a single consonant letter after a single vowel letter, e.g. patting, patted. 

Spell words ending in -tion, e.g. station, fiction  

Write from memory simple sentences dictated by the teacher that include words using the GPCs, common exception words and punctuation taught so far. 

Form lower-case letters of the correct size relative to one another. 

Orientate capital letters correctly. 

Use capital letters appropriately e.g. not always writing A as a capital, not using capitals within words. 

Write capital letters and digits of the correct size relative to one another and to lower case letters. 

Start using some of the diagonal and horizontal strokes needed to join letters and understand which letters, when adjacent to one another, are best left unjoined. 

Use spacing between words which reflects the size of the letters. 

Create complex sentences with adverb starters e.g. Silently trudging through the snow, Sam made his way up the mountain. 

Use commas to mark clauses in complex sentences. 

Create sentences with fronted adverbials for when e.g. As the clock struck twelve, the soldiers sprang into action. 

Create sentences with fronted adverbials for where e.g. In the distance, a lone wolf howled. 

Use commas after fronted adverbials. 

Identify, select and use determiners including: 

- articles: a/an, the 

- demonstratives : this/that; these/those 

- possessives: my/your/his/her/its/our/their 

- quantifiers: some, any, no, many, much, every 

Use inverted commas and other punctuation to indicate direct speech e.g. The tour guide announced, “Be back here at four o’ clock.” 

Identify, select and effectively use pronouns. 

Use nouns for precision, e.g. burglar rather than man, bungalow rather than house. 

Explore, identify, collect and use noun phrases e.g. the crumbly cookie with tasty marshmallow pieces. 

Explore, identify and use Standard English verb inflections for writing e.g. We were instead of we was. I was instead of I were, I did instead of I done. She saw it instead of she seen it. 

Use apostrophes for singular and plural possession e.g. the dog’s bone and the dogs’ bones. 

Planning 

Read and analyse narrative, non-fiction and poetry in order to plan their own versions. 

Identify and discuss the purpose, audience, structure, vocabulary and grammar of narrative, non-fiction and poetry. 

Discuss and record ideas for planning e.g. story mountain, text map, non-fiction bridge, story board, boxing-up text types to create a plan. 

Drafting and Writing 

Develop settings and characterisation using vocabulary to create emphasis, humour, atmosphere, suspense. 

Plan and write an opening paragraph which combines setting and character/s. 

Improvise and compose dialogue, demonstrating their understanding of Standard and non- Standard English. 

Generate and select from vocabulary banks e.g. adverbial phrases, technical language, persuasive phrases, alliteration. 

Use different sentence structures (see VGP). 

Use paragraphs to organise writing in fiction and non-fiction texts. 

Use organisational devices in non-fiction writing, e.g. captions, text boxes, diagram, lists. 

Link ideas across paragraphs using fronted adverbials for when and where e.g. Several hours later…, Back at home… 

Evaluating and Editing 

Proofread to check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation. 

Discuss and propose changes to own and others’ writing with partners/small groups. 

Improve writing in light of evaluation. 

Performing 

Use appropriate intonation, tone and volume to present their writing to a range of audiences. 

Use further prefixes, e.g. in- , im- ir–, sub–, inter–, super–, anti–, auto–. 

Use further suffixes, e.g. –ation, - tion, –ssion, –cian. 

Investigate what happens to words ending in f when suffixes are added, e.g. calf/calves. 

Identify and spell words with the /k/ sound spelt ch (Greek in origin), e.g. scheme, chorus. 

Identify and spell words with the /􀖈/ sound spelt chn (mostly French in origin), e.g. chef, chalet, machine. 

Identify and spell words ending with the /g/ sound spelt –gue and the /k/ sound spelt –que (French inorigin), e.g. tongue, antique. 

Identify and spell words with the /s/ sound spelt sc (Latin in origin), e.g. science, scene. 

Understand how diminutives are formed using e.g. suffix - ette and prefix mini-. 

Investigate ways in which nouns and adjectives can be made into verbs by the use of suffixes e.g. pollen (noun) and –ate = pollinate (verb). 

The /􀕯/ sound spelt y elsewhere than at the end of words, e.g. myth, gym, Egypt. 

Use the first three letters of a word to check its spelling in a dictionary. 

Write from memory simple sentences, dictated by the teacher, that include words and punctuation taught so far. 

Explore and use the possessive apostrophe, e.g. boy’s books (books belonging to a boy) and boys’ books (books belonging to more than one boy). 

Spell words from the Year 4 list (selected from the statutory Year 3/4 word list) 

Use a joined style throughout their independent writing. 

Write with consistency in size and proportion of letters, e.g. by ensuring that the downstrokes of letters are parallel and equidistant; that lines of writing are spaced sufficiently so that the ascenders and descenders of letters do not touch. 

Create complex sentences by using relative clauses with relative pronouns who, which, where, whose, when, that e.g. Sam, who had remembered his wellies, was first to jump in the river. The thief broke into the house which stood on the top of the hill. 

Create complex sentences where the relative pronoun is omitted e.g. Tina, standing at the bus stop, pondered the day ahead. 

Create and punctuate complex sentences using ed opening clauses e.g. Exhausted from the race, Sam collapsed in a heap. 

Create and punctuate complex sentences using ing opening clauses, e.g. Grinning with anticipation, Paul launched himself from the diving board. 

Create and punctuate sentences using simile starters, e.g. Like a fish out of water, she conversed awkwardly with the other guests. 

Demarcate complex sentences using commas in order to clarify meaning. 

Use commas to avoid ambiguity, e.g. ‘Let’s eat Grandma.’ and ‘Let’s eat, Grandma.’ 

Identify and use commas to indicate parenthesis, e.g. The house, lonely and abandoned, teetered on the edge of the cliff. 

Identify and use brackets to indicate parenthesis, e.g. in formal writing: The Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) inhabits open grassland in Africa. 

Identify and use dashes to indicate parenthesis, e.g. in less formal writing: The cake was lovely – delicious in fact – so I had another slice. 

Link ideas across paragraphs using adverbials for time, place and numbers e.g. later, nearby, secondly. 

Use devices to build cohesion within a paragraph e.g. firstly, then, presently, this, subsequently. 

Use expanded noun phrases to convey complicated information concisely, e.g. carnivorous predators with surprisingly weak jaws and small teeth. 

Explore, collect and use modal verbs to indicate degrees of possibility e.g. might, could, shall, will, must. 

Explore, collect and use adverbs to indicate degrees of possibility e.g. surely, perhaps, maybe, definitely, alternatively, certainly, probably. 

Use suffixes –ate, -ise, -ify to convert nouns and adjectives into verbs. 

Investigate verb prefixes e.g. dis-, de-, re-, pre-, mis-, over-. 

Planning 

Identify the audience and purpose. 

Select the appropriate language and structures. 

Use similar writing models. 

Note and develop ideas. 

Draw on reading and research. 

Think how authors develop characters and settings (in books, films and performances). 

Drafting and Writing 

Select appropriate structure, vocabulary and grammar. 

Blend action, dialogue and description within and across paragraphs. 

Use different sentence structures with increasing control (see VGP). 

Use devices to build cohesion (see VGP). 

Use organisation and presentational devices e.g. underlining, bullet points, headings. 

Evaluating and Editing 

Assess the effectiveness of own and others’ writing in relation to audience and purpose. 

Suggest changes to grammar, vocabulary and punctuation to enhance effects and clarify meaning. 

Ensure consistent and correct use of tense throughout a piece of writing. 

Ensure consistent subject and verb agreement. 

Proofread for spelling and punctuation errors. 

Performing 

Use appropriate intonation and volume. 

Add movement. 

Ensure meaning is clear. 

Investigate verb prefixes e.g. dis-, re-, pre-, mis-, over-. 

Recognise and spell words ending in –ant, –ance/–ancy, –ent, –ence/–ency. 

Recognise and spell words ending in –able and –ible. 

Recognise and spell words ending in –ably and –ibly. 

Recognise and spell words with the /i:/ sound spelt ei after c, e.g. deceive, receive. 

Recognise and spell words containing the letter-string ough. 

To recognise and spell the suffixes -al,- ary,- ic. 

To spell further suffixes, e.g. ll in full becoming l. 

Spell some words with ‘silent’ letters, e.g. knight, psalm, solemn. 

To spell unstressed vowels in polysyllabic words. 

Develop self-checking and proof reading strategies. 

Spell words that they have not yet been taught by using what they have learnt about how spelling works in English. 

Use the first three or four letters of a word to check spelling, meaning or both of these in a dictionary. 

Use a thesaurus. 

Spell words from the Year 5 list (selected from the statutory Year 5/6 word list)  

Write fluently using a joined style as appropriate for independent writing. 

Choose when it is appropriate to print (lower case or upper case) rather than to join writing e.g. printing for labelling a scientific diagram or data, filling in a form, writing an e mail address. 

Manipulate sentences to create particular effects. 

Use devices to build cohesion between paragraphs in persuasive, discursive and explanatory texts e.g. adverbials such as: on the other hand, the opposing view, similarly, in contrast, although, additionally, another possibility, alternatively, as a consequence. 

Use devices to build cohesion between paragraphs in narrative e.g. adverbials such as: in the meantime, meanwhile, in due course, until then. 

Use ellipsis to link ideas between paragraphs. 

Use repetition of a word or phrase to link ideas between paragraphs. 

Identify and use semi-colons to mark the boundary between independent clauses e.g. It is raining; I am fed up. 

Investigate and collect a range of synonyms and antonyms e.g. mischievous, wicked, evil, impish, spiteful, well-behaved. 

Identify the subject and object of a sentence. 

Explore and investigate active and passive e.g. I broke the window in the greenhouse versus the window in the greenhouse was broken. 

Explore, collect and use examples of the perfect form of verbs to mark relationships of time and cause e.g. I had eaten lunch when you came (past perfect); She has eaten lunch already or I have eaten lunch already (present perfect); I will have eaten lunch by then (future perfect). 

Punctuate bullet points consistently. 

Identify and use colons to introduce a list. 

Identify and use semi-colons within lists. 

Explore how hyphens can be used to avoid ambiguity e.g. man-eating shark versus maneating shark. 

Explore, collect and use vocabulary typical of formal and informal speech and writing e.g. find out – discover, ask for - request, go in – enter. 

Explore, collect and use question tags typical of informal speech and writing e.g. “He’s your friend, isn’t he?" 

Explore, collect and use subjunctive forms for formal speech and writing e.g. If I were able to come to your party, I would; The school requires that all pupils be honest. 

Planning 

Identify audience and purpose. 

Choose appropriate text-form and type for all writing. 

Select the appropriate structure, vocabulary and grammar. 

Draw on similar writing models, reading and research. 

Compare how authors develop characters and settings (in books, films and performances). 

Use a range of planning approaches e.g. storyboard, story mountain, discussion group, post-it notes, ICT story planning. 

Drafting and Writing 

Select appropriate vocabulary and language effects, appropriate to task, audience and purpose, for precision and impact. 

Select appropriate register for formal and informal purposes, e.g. a speech for a debate (formal), dialogue within narrative (formal or informal), text  message to a friend (informal). 

Blend action, dialogue and description within sentences and paragraphs to convey character and advance the action e.g. Tom stomped into the room, flung down his grubby, school bag and announced, through gritted teeth, “It’s not fair!" 

Consciously control the use of different sentence structures for effect. 

Use a wide range of devices to build cohesion within and across paragraphs. 

Deviate narrative from linear or chronological sequence e.g. flashbacks, simultaneous actions, time-shifts. 

Combine text-types to create hybrid texts e.g. persuasive speech. 

Evaluate, select and use a range of organisation and presentational devices to structure text for different purposes and audiences e.g. headings, sub-headings, columns, bullet points, tables. 

Find examples of where authors have broken conventions to achieve specific effects and use similar techniques in own writing – e.g. repeated use of ‘and’ to convey tedium, one word sentence. 

Make conscious choices about techniques to engage the reader including appropriate tone and style e.g. rhetorical questions, direct address to the reader. 

Use active and passive voice to achieve intended effects e.g. formal reports, explanations and mystery narrative.  

Précis longer passages. 

Evaluating and Editing 

Reflect upon the effectiveness of writing in relation to audience and purpose, suggesting and making changes to enhance effects and clarify meaning. 

Proofread for grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors. 

Performing 

Use appropriate and effective intonation and volume. 

Add gesture and movement to enhance meaning. 

Encourage and take account of audience engagement. 

Recognise and spell endings which sound like /􀖈􀋎s/, spelt – cious or –tious. 

Recognise and spell endings which sound like /􀖈􀋎l/, e.g. official, partial. 

Investigate adding suffixes beginning with vowel letters to words ending in –fer, e.g. referring, reference. 

Investigate use of the hyphen. 

Investigate and use further prefixes, e.g. bi- trans- telecircum-. 

Distinguish between homophones and other words that are often confused. 

Identify root words, derivations and spelling patterns as a support for spelling. 

Be secure with all spelling rules previously taught. 

Use a number of different strategies interactively in order to spell correctly. 

Develop self-checking and proof-checking strategies, including the use of a dictionary and thesaurus. 

Spell words from the Year 6 list (selected from the statutory Year 5/6 word list). 

Write, using a joined style, with increasing speed. 

Choose the writing implement that is best suited for a task e.g. pencil for quick notes, handwriting pen for letters, marker pens for posters.