Writing

'The Write Stuff’ - our new approach to the teaching and learning of writing

At William Byrd Primary Academy, our curriculum ensures that all children have plenty of opportunities to write for different purposes.  We encourage writing through all curriculum areas and use quality reading texts to model examples of good writing.  Writing is taught through a number of different strategies. We use a method called “Sentence Stacking” which refers to the fact that sentences are stacked together and organised to engage children with short, intensive moments of learning that they can then immediately apply to their own writing. This is based upon the research of Jane Considine through the medium of ‘The Write Stuff’.

An individual lesson is based on a sentence model, broken in to three chunks:

1. Initiate section – a stimulus to capture the children’s imagination and set up a sentence
2. Model section – the teacher close models a sentence that outlines clear writing features and techniques
3. Enable section – the children write their sentence following the model and have the opportunity to 'deepen the moment' where they can explore the plot point further and demonstrate their own creative sentences using their previous learning

All of our classroom environments ensure we are celebrating the writing of all children. Below are some photos of our 'Sentence Stacking' and writing displays around the school.

The Three Zones of Writing

The FANTASTICs (Ideas), The GRAMMARISTICs (Tools), and The BOOMTASTICs (Techniques) support children's learning, precision and writing.

The FANTASTICs system, which is also used in the teaching of reading, allows children to identify the nine elements that all text types are comprised of. When pupils are familiar with these nine elements, they are able to ensure that they are incorporated into their writing. The FANTASTICs help children to sharpen their understanding of their own and others’ writing by encouraging them to be observant and reflective.

The 9 GRAMMARISTICs cover national curriculum requirements, capturing the broad spectrum of key grammar knowledge. Discrete grammar lessons are also taught to ensure specific grammar knowledge is taught and revisited.

The BOOMTASTICs capture the ten powerful ways to add drama and poetic devices to writing. They help children structure their work, teaching them to showcase their writing voice, demonstrate originality and to take risks in a bid to capture the truth of a situation.