Literacy

At HASN, we aim to place literacy at the heart of the academy. We believe in unlocking the curriculum and creating subject scholars who read and understand challenging texts for both information and pleasure, write with fluency, accuracy and enthusiasm, and speak and listen with confidence. Every teacher will be equipped with the skills and knowledge to empower students to use disciplinary language purposefully and efficiently to sequence, develop and articulate their thoughts in every subject. Through universal provision and effective literacy intervention, we will ensure that all students are fully equipped to succeed both within education and beyond. 

 

We believe that promoting literacy is a whole academy's responsibility and not just that of the English department. We also invite you to join us in developing your child's literacy at home.   

Reading and literacy skills are the key to learning and pleasure. They open doors and allow our students to access all aspects of the curriculum, improving oracy, communication and problem-solving skills.

You can read more about our vision in our 2023-24 Literacy Policy. Here 

Literacy in the Classroom:

• All teachers implement our three reading strategies: Double Reading, Layered Reading, and Zoning
• Students read aloud frequently in lessons​ 
• Students are reading all the time, both for information and pleasure 
• Students write/perform independently frequently (for 15 minutes of every single lesson / 30 minutes of every double lesson)​ 
• Sentence construction and paragraph organisation are explicitly taught.
• Teachers live model good writing frequently using a disciplinary approach (e.g. what does good science writing look like)​ 
• Key vocabulary is pre-taught before reading and planned for.
• Spelling is explicitly taught (using etymology for example)​ 
• Students are given frequent opportunities for structured talk through “turn and talk” activities. ​ 
• “Say it better” is used to encourage students to use good vocabulary 

 

Literacy in Tutor Time:

• Spelling Tests: All students in years 7-10 are given ten new spellings every Monday – spellings are grouped by morpheme, spelling rule or subject.
• First Chapter Thursday: All students in years 7-10 experience a new story or piece of non-fiction every Thursday. The first chapter of a book is read aloud, and students are encouraged to engage through reciprocal reading strategies.

Literacy Beyond:

• All KS3 students have a subscription to Bedrock Vocabulary and complete these lessons as homework every week.
• Students in Years 7-8 visit the library every week to read, borrow books, and work on Bedrock Vocabulary.
• English Recommended Reads: Enjoyed sleuthing with Sherlock? Growing perseverance with Parvana? Forming friendships with George and Lennie? Gossiping with Benedick and Beatrice? You can find books of similar themes, genres, authors, ideas and events like the books you read in English here. Enjoy!