Exciting News!!! In 2022. The Pilgrim School are implementing the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme to learn phonics and early reading. Look out for more information coming soon! 
Join us for our Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised Zoom Workshop where you can find out more and ask plenty of questions on Thursday 27th January at 1.45pm. See you there!
Jesus said, “I have come in order that you might have life—life in all its fullness.” (John 10:10)
forever trustworthy,
forever aspiring and adventurous,
forever respectful,
forever thankful,
forever us
… forever Pilgrim.
Our INTENT for English at Pilgrim:
At the Pilgrim School we inspire and establish an excitement for English: "Forever aspiring and adventurous"
Creating personalised knowledge and a skills-based toolkit with our children (including key features of speaking, listening, reading and writing),
we enable English learning through creative, relevant and purposeful application.
Expectations for each year group are underpinned through structured teaching, using our own Pilgrim Progress,
developed through our Pilgrim School identity, vision and the National Curriculum requirements.
We choose to invest time, to value, and to prioritise English learning,
in order that (along with our Pilgrim Christian values)
this may be applied to enhance every other aspect of the curriculum,
to build our identity and to equip us to flourish in our daily life.
Priorities for Pilgrim children include:
- Reading easily, fluently and with good understanding
- Developing the habit of reading widely, and often, for both pleasure and information
- Acquiring a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar, a knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and speech
- Appreciating our rich and varied literary heritage
- Writing clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting language and style through a range of contexts, purposes and audiences
- Using discussion in order to learn
- Competency in the arts of speaking and listening
- Phonics writing
- Lockdown spelling
- Reggie, our reading dog - we miss you!
- Describe a dream home
- Design a dream home
- Pilgrim School News Report
- Reading skills book
Speaking and Listening at Pilgrim
The skills of active speaking and listening are something we work hard on at Pilgrim. We create as many real-life and purposeful opportunities as we can.
Constructive advice and peer suggestions form a crucial part of the process as we scaffold and support to enable all children to succeed in speaking aloud.
As in writing, where we teach the writer to be mindful of their audience; the same is true in speaking aloud.
Children are taught methods and strategies, language and atmosphere appropriate for the message, task and audience.
Every day, Pilgrim children are actively encouraged to greet and initiate conversation, to enquire after each other's well-being, to respond with compassion and respect.
Within our reading, we teach prosody and within our speaking we apply the same thought - how we speak can alter the effect of the words we say.
The ability and confidence to ask questions provides the opportunity to extend learning - those skills in the right learning environment aid progress in many areas.
Active and purposeful listening is fundamental too.
Following instructions, gathering information, being absorbed in description, establishing detail are every day processes.
Applying knowledge from other parts of the Pilgrim day secures understanding throughout the curriculum eg. knowledge from engaged listening in worship will add substantial depth to classroom learning in many subject areas.
Listening helps to develop the relationships we value so highly at Pilgrim.
Teachers are skilled and creative in modelling and developing these attributes; from the low-key informal moments shared together to the larger, planned and performed pieces - all are important feature of the Pilgrim day and all are applicable to life as our children move forward beyond Pilgrim.
Whole school performances, end of year productions, courtroom dramas, subject debates, school council surveys, reading a prayer, performing a poem, forecasting the weather, discussing British values and current affairs, chatting in the Sanctuary.....
our Pilgrim voices are important and we know how to make ourselves heard!
Exciting news!!! This year we will develop our Speaking and Listening skills further in our brand new Story Tent....look out for further details in the Spring! 
One of our favourite aspects of Speaking and Listening is PSN (Pilgrim School News).
A top team of roving reporters update our school on important current affairs and Pilgrim News - their interviews and broadcasts never fail to inform and entertain!
Reading at Pilgrim
Writing at Pilgrim
Below are the Pilgrim writing genres used across the school. The range of genres are increased each Key Stage to build knowledge and understanding of the conventions of each of these and to allow maturing practice and application of greater acquired skills. From Early Years and emergent writing to accomplished and purposeful pieces, Pilgrims love to write.
At Pilgrim, we use the National Curriculum suggested categories of genres, but encourage our teachers to use their professional judgement to plan inspiring writing opportunities to be relevant and effective, making the most of real-life and cross curricular links. These genres are not ordered, although the writing skills used are cumulative, in order that they might be adapted and personalised for each particular cohort.
Handwriting at Pilgrim
Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar at Pilgrim
Our Impact in English at Pilgrim:
Teachers complete assessment at many levels in English and these assessments are carried out for a variety of purposes:
- On-going assessment is an informal part of English lessons. The purpose is to review a pupil's previous learning and is therefore used to inform future planning.
- Pilgrim Progress is used as a form of recorded assessment in each of the key English elements.
- Teachers make termly judgements of children’s attainment and progress against year group expectations.
- Parents are informed of children’s progress and targets throughout the year.
- Analysis of whole-school English data to establish strengths and areas for development for whole school focus and target groups
Impact is also measured through:
- Monitoring of teaching, book scrutiny, pupil interviews, Pilgrim progress analysis
- Early learning goals, Phonics screening, KS1 & KS2 English SATs, 11+ English
- Internal, MAT, local authority and regional writing moderation
- Reading café attendance, reading team data, reading rewards data
- Family involvement (book fair, world book day, competitions, workshops)
Children leave The Pilgrim School knowing how to read and how to access information.
They are equipped to move onto their next stage of English learning.
They are building a life-long love of reading and the skills to discuss, inform, entertain and persuade.
Their learning is relevant and real to their world - a world in which they can go on to flourish.
We are writers, we are readers, we are speakers and listeners....we are Pilgrim!
Reading Café
Every Tuesday lunchtime, the Pilgrim School hosts the Reading Café where children are able to read to both their peers and volunteer adults. It is aimed to encourage the love of reading and enable the children a quiet space to explore the wonderful world of books! It is loved by the children and is always washed down nicely with a yummy milkshake!
Useful Websites:
https://clubs-kids.scholastic.co.uk/wizard
https://www.topmarks.co.uk/english-games/7-11-years/spelling-and-grammar
http://www.fcbg.org.uk/childrens-authors-and-illustrators/
Pilgrim Progress - English
