Speaking, Listening and Drama
OUR VISION FOR SPEAKING, LISTENING AND DRAMA AT CHERRY TREE HILL PRIMARY SCHOOL
“The way we communicate with others and with ourselves ultimately determines the quality of our lives.”
(Tony Robbins)
Communication is central to our curriculum at Cherry Tree Hill Primary school and is developed from EYFS throughout our school, across the curriculum. We believe spoken language to be fundamental to the achievement of our pupils and our aim is to enable the children to
improve their levels of oracy so that all pupils are able to communicate effectively and confidently in front of a range of audiences.
We nurture children’s speaking, listening and drama skills through a variety of approaches: exploratory play, story time, hot-seating. We develop these skills so that our children are capable of expressing their own ideas clearly and confidently, in a safe and supportive environment, in all aspects and areas of their school life and into their future.
OUR INTENT IS TO:
To help children understand how to adapt their use of language, varying use in relation to purpose and audience.
- Participate with varying groups to present ideas with confidence whilst valuing the views of others.
- Speak audibly and confidently before an audience of differing size.
To encourage children to develop proficiency in Standards English as well as promote a respect for other language and dialects.
HOW WE TEACH SPEAKING, LISTENING AND DRAMA AT CHERRY TREE HILL
In line with the National Curriculum Programmes of Study, we teach speaking, listening and drama using our Quality Text based curriculum. Our staff understand the importance of quality and varied language that the pupils hear and speak, knowing these are vital for developing their vocabulary and grammar and their understanding for reading and writing.
Although all lessons provide opportunities to develop the pupils’ spoken language, one week every term is dedicated specifically for developing Oracy and drama skills, called our ‘Pens Down’ week. These lessons build specifically on Oracy skills using the Oracy framework, and are documented in our Learning Journey books. Our Oracy skills are developed from the Oracy framework and consist of Physical, Linguistic, Cognitive and Social and Emotional objectives which allow pupils to develop key skills over the year. Each year group have three oral outcomes over the year, including performing poetry, taking part in debates and retelling stories.
HOW CAN YOU HELP AT HOME?
Oracy is all about being a confident speaker and listener. Have a go at a few of our challenges! What do you think? Your thoughts might be different to someone at home – this is great! Explain your point of view and listen to others.
