Key Learning in Writing

Compostion

Vocabulary, grammar and punctuation

• Explore and identify main and subordinate clauses in complex sentences.
• Explore, identify and create complex sentences using a range of conjunctions e.g. if, while, since, after, before, so, although, until, in case.
• Identify, select, generate and effectively use prepositions for where e.g. above, below, beneath, within, outside, beyond.
• Select, generate and effectively use adverbs e.g. suddenly, silently, soon, eventually.
• Use inverted commas to punctuate direct speech (speech marks).
• Use perfect form of verbs using have and had to indicate a completed action e.g. I have washed my hands. We will have eaten our lunch by the time Dad arrives. Jack had watched TV for over two hours!
• Use the determiner a or an according to whether the next word begins with a consonant or vowel e.g. a rock, an open box.
• Explore and collect word families e.g. medical, medicine, medicinal, medic, paramedic, medically to extend vocabulary.

Explore and collect words with prefixes super, anti, auto.

Composition

Plan their writing by:

• Reading and analysing narrative, non-fiction and poetry in order to plan and write their own versions.
• Identifying and discussing the purpose, audience, language and structures of narrative, non-fiction and poetry for writing.
• Discussing and recording ideas for planning.
• Creating and developing settings for narratives.
• Creating and developing characters for narrative.
• Creating and developing plots based on a model.
• Generating and selecting from vocabulary banks e.g. noun phrases, powerful verbs, technical language, synonyms for said appropriate to text type.
• Grouping related material into paragraphs.
• Using headings and sub headings to organise information.

Evaluate, and edit by:

• Proofreading to check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation in own and others’ writing.
• Discussing and proposing changes with partners and in small groups.
• Improving writing in the light of evaluation.

Perform their own compositions by:

Using appropriate intonation, tone and volume to present their writing to a group or class.

Transcription

Spelling

• Use further prefixes and suffixes and understand how to add them.
• Spell further homophones.
• Spell words that are often misspelt.
• Use the first two letters of a word to check its spelling in a dictionary.
• Write from memory simple sentences, dictated by the teacher, that include words and punctuation taught so far.
• Learn to spell new words correctly and have plenty of practice in spelling them.
• Understand how to place the apostrophe in words with regular plurals (e.g. girls’, boys’).
• Spell words as accurately as possible using their phonic knowledge and other knowledge of spelling, such as morphology and etymology.

Handwriting

• Form and use the four basic handwriting joins.
• Write legibly.