Oracy is at the heart of all learning at Woodhall. Students will be taught both to and through talk to enable them to discuss, perform, debate and express themselves in a range of contexts, for a range of purposes.
Students will learn to listen carefully to others, building on their views or showing empathy as appropriate. Opportunities to learn active listening skills will become increasingly advanced as students move through the school. This will be supported by a culture which celebrates a range of accents and dialects, including those who use non-standard varieties of English. An example of this is ‘Oracy October’, which focused on being an effective listener.
We recognise that oracy in the classroom should be seen, by both teachers and students, as a valuable activity. Oracy plays an important role in collaborative learning activities, starting from when the students enter Early Years. Our aim is to enable students to improve their levels of oracy so that they can all communicate effectively and confidently in front of any type of audience. These skills are encouraged in every area of our curriculum as good communication skills can enhance every type of learning.
Many of our students start early school life without the oracy skills relevant for their age. We strive to develop spoken language skills through the taught curriculum, the hidden curriculum, playtimes and lunchtimes, extra-curricular activities and the whole ethos of the school.
Aims
- Oracy to be at the heart of all teaching and learning activities
- To create opportunities for students to speak with confidence to different audiences
- Encourage respectful and productive relationships
- To ensure that standards of oracy improve as students progress through the school
- To nurture students’ pride in their voices, creating opportunities for them to reflect on and share their own linguistic repertoires
- To provide a range of interventions and support for students with identified language needs
Objectives
For students:
- To develop oracy skills to be able to communicate effectively in a range of contexts; understanding others, being understood and expressing themselves effectively.
- To develop oracy skills to be able to articulate views and express feelings constructively and appropriately.
- To be open-minded, to value the contribution of others and to take account of their views.
- To appreciate the diversity of languages, dialects and accents in the school and value the experience and contributions of children with a wide variety of linguistic backgrounds.
- To understand the progress they have made in their oracy skills.
For parents and carers:
- To actively support Woodhall’s oracy, understanding the importance of oracy skills to success in and beyond the classroom.
- To support students by discussing different subjects and areas of interest at home.
For teachers:
- To provide a role model to consistently demonstrate high standards of oracy to all students.
- To challenge linguistic prejudice and encourage students to recognise the richness and diversity of communication and language in their classrooms and communities.
- To ensure that oracy is at the heart of all teaching and learning activities.
- To develop the oral skills of students.
- To create a culture of talk where every voice is valued.
For SENCOs/ALNCOs:
- Identify intervention strategies, assess and monitor students with speech and language needs.
- Support students with additional needs to take a full and active part in spoken language activities at a level appropriate for their needs.
- Advise teachers when setting targets which are then worked on individually or in small groups.
- Provide specific intervention programmes for adults to work with individuals or groups of students specifically in the areas of speaking, listening and collaboration
- Liaise and jointly plan with subject teachers to meet the individual needs of students.
For the leadership team:
- To actively raise the profile of oracy as a leading feature of all curriculum areas, ensuring that the oracy needs of every student are met through the curriculum.
- To ensure that the impact of an oracy education is monitored, making it part of your regular evaluation schedule.
- To ensure that each subject area has a broad range of oracy skills embedded within the schemes of work, and that the quality of oracy teaching and learning is of an excellent standard.
- To be responsible for identifying where staff development and support is required, offering appropriate professional development opportunities.
- To ensure that oracy standards, targets, provision and monitoring is embedded within School Development Plans.
For governors/ Trust executives:
- To support the implementation and development of the Woodhall’s drive to improve standards of Oracy for all students.