Teaching Strong Foundations in Writing - Y3 - Y6
Summary
Overview
Teachers will have a clear understanding of the research and rationale underpinning best practice in the teaching of early writing for lower achieving pupils including those with SEND and new arrivals. Training will be broken down into small steps so that practitioners have the opportunity to apply it in their classrooms, before reflecting on its impact during follow up sessions.
The focus of these sessions is to develop effective teaching of strong foundations in writing for lower achieving pupils across KS2, ensuring that all pupils make progress. There will be a focus on supporting learners to develop fluency and automaticity in the transcriptional elements of writing to reduce the cognitive load required of writers in writing composition. The training will include a mix of subject knowledge and pedagogy and will be closely linked to the recent publication, Strong Foundations in the First Years of School, Ofsted report. Content will include diagnostic review of lower achieving pupils' writing to identify need and provision of scaffolding to meet them. A range of scaffolding techniques, including oracy, will need to be introduced alongside advice on the removal of scaffolding to lead to independence. Gap tasks will be set for teachers to ensure development of teaching practice and impact on their lower achieving pupils' writing, including those with SEND.
This course will also provide opportunities to develop generic subject knowledge and pedagogical knowledge in writing, share good practice and network with other schools.
Course Content:
Session 1
1) Diagnosis of writers' needs.
2) Understanding the teaching of writing and the cognitive load required to write effectively. Teaching of strong foundations in handwriting and phonics for spelling to build fluency and automaticity.
3) Understanding end of year expectations for KS2 pupils and how to support LA writers and stretch and challenge able writers.
4) Use of scaffolds, including dictation, to support accurate writing of sentences and build strong foundations in writing.
Session 2: Development of effective teaching of strong foundations in writing through linked shared and guided writing.
Gap task: Videoing of your teaching of shared and guided writing
Session 3: Development of the teaching of strong foundations in English through video coaching of shared and guided writing. Time to reflect and build on strategies to develop independent writing.
Session 4: Development of composition through the use of oracy and planning. Presentations of impact.
When completing this booking form, you will be booked onto all four training dates as below. (The booking confirmation will only show the date for session 1)
Session Dates
Session 1: Monday 5th October 2026, 9am - 3pm, NSPCC
Session 2: Tuesday 1st December 2026, 9am - 12pm, NSPCC
Session 3: Thursday 11th February 2027, 9am - 12pm, NSPCC
Session 4: Thursday 22nd April 2027, 9am - 12pm, NSPCC
Recommended for
KS2 teachers (who are second year ECTs and beyond) and subject leaders who have not previously undertaken this course.
Venue
NSPCC National Training Centre, 3 Gilmour Close, Leicester LE4 1EZ
Cost
Free for Leicester City maintained schools. £395 for non-maintained city schools and all Leicestershire schools.
Further Information
For further information, visit the PDL website, or contact beth.dixon@sdsa.net
