How We Teach Writing

Writing at Isleham C of E Primary School

At Isleham C of E Primary School we believe that writing is a vital skill for every child’s success. Our approach ensures pupils develop confidence, creativity, and accuracy in their written work.

Our Approach

We teach writing through carefully planned units linked to high-quality texts;modern and classic fiction, poetry, and non-fiction. Each unit follows a three-phase process:

  1. Immersion – Children explore the text type, its purpose, and audience.
  2. Skills Building – Grammar, punctuation, vocabulary, and cohesive devices are taught in context.
  3. Independent Writing – Pupils plan, draft, edit, and publish their final piece, with time to improve their work.

From Year 2 onwards, pupils follow the full writing process: planning, drafting, revising, editing, and sharing. In EYFS and Year 1, this is adapted to suit developmental stages, with a strong focus on oral composition.

Teaching Strategies

We use a range of approaches to support all learners:

  • Modelled Writing (“I do”)
  • Shared Writing (“We do”)
  • Guided Writing
  • Independent Writing (“You do”)

Oral composition is emphasised in early years and Key Stage 1, helping children organise ideas before writing. In Key Stage 2, this reduces cognitive load and supports sentence structure and vocabulary choices.

Purpose and Audience

Every writing unit involves discussion surrounding the Purpose, Audience, and Text Type (P.A.T.), which is then displayed on our English working walls. This helps children understand why they are writing and who they are writing for.

Handwriting and Spelling

We teach handwriting systematically three times a week from Reception to Year 6, following advice given in The Writing Framework. We focus on sitting positions, paper position and formation. Please see the bottom of the page for example visuals. Spelling is taught through Little Wandle in KS1 and via Spelling Shed in KS2, ensuring pupils develop fluency and accuracy. 

Grammar and Vocabulary

Grammar is taught in context during writing units, and pupils learn correct terminology from the earliest stages. We also use a Word Aware approach to teach rich vocabulary, encouraging children to use new words in speech and writing. Tier 2 words are taught explicitly each week through 'spotlight words' which are then displayed in the classroom. Information about vocabulary tiers is below.