In order to meet these aims we will…

• Select a variety of texts from different cultures, time periods, and genres (prose, poetry, drama) to ensure students are exposed to a wide range of voices, fostering critical engagement with diverse perspectives;

• Use retrieval and interleaving practices to embed key concepts in students’ long-term memory, supporting deep and sustained understanding;

• Teach key vocabulary explicitly, empowering students to confidently use literary terms and to broaden academic language;

• Employ the PETAL paragraph structure as a foundational tool for students to develop a clear and organised analytical writing style;

• Integrate marking and feedback, ensuring students receive regular, constructive responses to their work. This helps to guide improvement, set goals and clarify expectations;

• Use targeted questioning to deepen student understanding, probe their interpretations and encourage higher-order thinking;

• Offer sentence openers, planning tools and scaffolding to help students effectively organize their thoughts, while providing gradual release towards independent work;

• Provide regular opportunities for reading, including personal reading, class reading, reading aloud and reading in groups, to build fluency, comprehension and enjoyment of literature;

• Engage in live modelling to demonstrate the thought process necessary for effective writing, showing students each step of the crafting and refining process.

• Address misconceptions and mistakes in a supportive environment, allowing students to learn from errors while reinforcing correct understanding and building resilience;

• Use structured peer and self-assessment to encourage students to think critically about their work.  

• Provide opportunities for students to discuss their thoughts before writing to help generate ideas and to help them develop alternate interpretations.