Writing

Being a Writer at Herne View

An Author reads a lot and uses what they have read to help them write what is inside their heads. This means other people can read what they have written to help them understand something, entertain them or make life better.

At Herne View CofE Primary School, we are excited to introduce Jane Considine’s ‘The Write Stuff’ as the foundation for our writing curriculum across EYFS to Year Six. This is a new approach for us, and we are already seeing how it supports our pupils in developing their writing skills, while strengthening their understanding of grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and exploring the features of a wide range of genres.

Each unit is centred around a high-quality model text and includes a combination of Experience Lessons and Sentence Stacking Lessons. Experience Lessons immerse children in the context of the text, using engaging hooks and rich vocabulary to spark curiosity and deepen understanding. Sentence Stacking Lessons then guide pupils in crafting varied and impactful sentences, helping them to understand how word choices influence the reader.

At the heart of this approach are the Three Zones of Writing: The FANTASTICs (Ideas), The GRAMMARISTICs (Tools), and The BOOMTASTICs (Techniques).

The FANTASTICs system allows children to identify the nine elements that all text types are comprised of. When pupils are familiar with these nine elements, they are able to ensure that they are incorporated into their writing. The FANTASTICs help children to sharpen their understanding of their own and others’ writing by encouraging them to be observant and reflective.

The 9 GRAMMARISTICs cover national curriculum requirements, capturing the broad spectrum of key grammar knowledge. Discrete gammar lessons are also taught to ensure specific grammar knowledge is taught and revisited when needed. 

The BOOMTASTICs capture the ten powerful ways to add drama and poetic devices to writing. They help children structure their work, teaching them to showcase their writing voice, demonstrate originality and to take risks in a bid to capture the truth of a situation.

Following these lessons, children move on to plan, draft, and edit their own independent writing. By embedding this new methodology, responding to the unique needs of our learners, and extending writing into other areas of the national curriculum, we aim to ensure that our Writing provision is purposeful, progressive, and engaging for all pupils at Herne View.

Handwriting is taught discretely using a structured handwriting programme called Write Well. The programme guides pupils from their first pencil movements to fluent, legible, joined handwriting, providing consistency and progression across all primary year groups. This is practised at least 3x weekly until children are able to join fluently. Children with additional needs have further support to aid fluency in writing.