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The National Curriculum and supporting guidance

KS1 National Curriculum for Writing

Year 1 Program of Study

Spelling

Pupils should be taught to:

spell:

words containing each of the 40+ phonemes already taught
common exception words
the days of the week

name the letters of the alphabet:

naming the letters of the alphabet in order
using letter names to distinguish between alternative spellings of the same sound

add prefixes and suffixes:

using the spelling rule for adding –s or –es as the plural marker for nouns and the third person singular marker for verbs
using the prefix un–
using –ing, –ed, –er and –est where no change is needed in the spelling of root words [for example, helping, helped, helper, eating, quicker, quickest]

apply simple spelling rules and guidance, as listed in English Appendix 1
write from memory simple sentences dictated by the teacher that include words using the GPCs and common exception words taught so far.

Handwriting

Pupils should be taught to:

sit correctly at a table, holding a pencil comfortably and correctly
begin to form lower-case letters in the correct direction, starting and finishing in the right place
form capital letters
form digits 0-9
understand which letters belong to which handwriting ‘families’ (i.e. letters that are formed in similar ways) and to practise these.

Writing composition

Pupils should be taught to:

write sentences by:

saying out loud what they are going to write about
composing a sentence orally before writing it
sequencing sentences to form short narratives
re-reading what they have written to check that it makes sense

discuss what they have written with the teacher or other pupils
read aloud their writing clearly enough to be heard by their peers and the teacher.

Writing - Vocabulary and Grammar

Pupils should be taught to:

develop their understanding of the concepts set out in English Appendix 2 by:

leaving spaces between words
joining words and joining clauses using and
beginning to punctuate sentences using a capital letter and a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark
using a capital letter for names of people, places, the days of the week, and the personal pronoun ‘I’
learning the grammar for year 1 in English Appendix 2

use the grammatical terminology in English Appendix 2 in discussing their writing.

Year 2 Program of Study

Spelling:

Pupils should be taught to:

spell by:

segmenting spoken words into phonemes and representing these by graphemes, spelling many correctly
learning new ways of spelling phonemes for which one or more spellings are already known, and learn some words with each spelling, including a few common homophones
learning to spell common exception words
learning to spell more words with contracted forms
learning the possessive apostrophe (singular) [for example, the girl’s book]
distinguishing between homophones and near-homophones

add suffixes to spell longer words, including –ment, –ness, –ful, –less, –ly

apply spelling rules and guidance, as listed in English Appendix 1
write from memory simple sentences dictated by the teacher that include words using the GPCs, common exception words and punctuation taught so far.

Handwriting

Pupils should be taught to:

form lower-case letters of the correct size relative to one another
start using some of the diagonal and horizontal strokes needed to join letters and understand which letters, when adjacent to one another, are best left unjoined
write capital letters and digits of the correct size, orientation and relationship to one another and to lower case letters

use spacing between words that reflects the size of the letters.

Writing - Composition

Pupils should be taught to:

develop positive attitudes towards and stamina for writing by:

writing narratives about personal experiences and those of others (real and fictional)
writing about real events
writing poetry
writing for different purposes

consider what they are going to write before beginning by:

planning or saying out loud what they are going to write about
writing down ideas and/or key words, including new vocabulary
encapsulating what they want to say, sentence by sentence

make simple additions, revisions and corrections to their own writing by:

evaluating their writing with the teacher and other pupils
re-reading to check that their writing makes sense and that verbs to indicate time are used correctly and consistently, including verbs in the continuous form
proof-reading to check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation [for example, ends of sentences punctuated correctly]
read aloud what they have written with appropriate intonation to make the meaning clear.

Writing - Vocabulary and Grammar

Pupils should be taught to:

develop their understanding of the concepts set out in English Appendix 2 by:

learning how to use both familiar and new punctuation correctly (see English Appendix 2), including full stops, capital letters, exclamation marks, question marks, commas for lists and apostrophes for contracted forms and the possessive (singular)

learn how to use:

sentences with different forms: statement, question, exclamation, command
expanded noun phrases to describe and specify [for example, the blue butterfly]
the present and past tenses correctly and consistently including the progressive form
subordination (using when, if, that, or because) and co-ordination (using or, and, or but)
the grammar for year 2 in English Appendix 2
some features of written Standard English
use and understand the grammatical terminology in English Appendix 2 in discussing their writing.

Vocabulary Grammar and Punctuation

Year 1

Word	Regular plural noun suffixes –s or –es [for example, dog, dogs; wish, wishes], including the effects of these suffixes on the meaning of the noun Suffixes that can be added to verbs where no change is needed in the spelling of root words (e.g. helping, helped, helper) How the prefix un– changes the meaning of verbs and adjectives [negation, for example, unkind, or undoing: untie the boat]
Sentence	How words can combine to make sentences Joining words and joining clauses using and
Text	Sequencing sentences to form short narratives
Punctuation	Separation of words with spaces Introduction to capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks to demarcate sentences Capital letters for names and for the personal pronoun I
Terminology for pupils	letter, capital letter word, singular, plural sentence punctuation, full stop, question mark, exclamation mark

Year 2

Word	Formation of nouns using suffixes such as –ness, –er and by compounding [for example, whiteboard, superman] Formation of adjectives using suffixes such as –ful, –less (A fuller list of suffixes can be found on page 57 in the year 2 spelling section in English Appendix 1) Use of the suffixes –er, –est in adjectives and the use of –ly in Standard English to turn adjectives into adverbs
Sentence	Subordination (using when, if, that, because) and co-ordination (using or, and, but) Expanded noun phrases for description and specification [for example, the blue butterfly, plain flour, the man in the moon] How the grammatical patterns in a sentence indicate its function as a statement, question, exclamation or command
Text	Correct choice and consistent use of present tense and past tense throughout writing Use of the progressive form of verbs in the present and past tense to mark actions in progress [for example, she is drumming, he was shouting]
Punctuation	Use of capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks to demarcate sentences Commas to separate items in a list Apostrophes to mark where letters are missing in spelling and to mark singular possession in nouns [for example, the girl’s name]
Terminology for pupils	noun, noun phrase statement, question, exclamation, command compound, suffix adjective, adverb, verb tense (past, present) apostrophe, comma

Guidance from the Department of Education regarding the teaching of English

The National Curriculum and supporting guidance

Pupils should be taught to:

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