At Overdale Infant School, we endeavour to foster a love of writing within our pupils. We strive to equip children with a range of tools and strategies to allow them to become confident writers who are ready to explore and express their unique ideas. Through a carefully designed writing curriculum, children are given many opportunities to write for different purposes. We are committed to creating a supportive environment where all children can thrive and feel empowered in their writing journey.

By the end of EYFS, pupils will:

Be able to write recognisable letters, most of which are correctly formed. They will be able to spell words by identifying sounds in them and representing the sounds with a letter or letters. It is expected that they will also write simple phrases and sentences that can be read by others. Pupils will show good control and co-ordination in their small movements.  They will handle equipment and tools effectively, including pencils for writing.

By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils will:

Be able to write narratives, both real and fictional, using varied sentence types. Pupils will write using past and present tense mostly correctly and consistently. Pupils will demarcate sentences using capital letters, full stops, exclamation marks and question marks most accurately. Pupils will spell most common exception words correctly, using some prefixes and suffixes. Pupils will be able to use subordinating and coordinating conjunctions accurately. Handwriting will show consistency in letter sizing.

Overdale Writing Curriculum

Handwriting

At Overdale Infant School, we teach handwriting through Penpals for Handwriting. We aim for our children to leave in Year 2 with the ability to write using their own style of fast, fluent, legible and sustainable handwriting, as well as other styles of writing for specific purposes.  In addition to teaching handwriting during our regular handwriting lessons, we have high expectations that what is taught and practised in handwriting lessons will be used in all writing activities. We believe that handwriting is integral to a child’s personal development and know that children’s engagement and self-esteem can be improved by their satisfaction and pride in good quality presentation. 

500 Words

Each year our Trust holds a writing competition for Year 2 and Year 6 children. We are pleased to share that we have won the Gold Writing Prize for Year 2 for two years in a row. 

Gold Winner 2023

2024 Gold Winner 

No More Marking 

We participate in No More Marking tasks each year. Children complete a set task and schools across the country assess the writing. One of our pieces was selected to feature in the No More Marking blog to represent Year 1 age related expectations. 

Assessing Primary Writing 2023–24 Year 1 exemplars - The No More Marking Blog