Ridgeway Primary Academy

Oracy Curriculum Overview

Intent

At Ridgeway, we believe that talk is the foundation of learning and should permeate the whole curriculum. We recognise that children who communicate well are more likely to form good relationships with other children and adults, therefore it is important that our children are able to listen to others, and respond appropriately. We want to develop children’s speaking and listening skills, to make sure that they develop a rich and varied vocabulary, learn to listen attentively and speak clearly and confidently. Purposeful talk is used to drive forward learning, through talk in the classroom, which has been planned, designed, modelled, scaffolded and structured to enable all learners to develop the skills needed to talk effectively.  

Oracy is the thread running through the curriculum and the daily life of our school. By building a culture of oracy in school, children will develop resilience when dealing with challenging concepts, which they will be able to apply to other aspects of life.

Implementation

At Ridgeway, we have adopted the Voice 21 framework for oracy which breaks down the teaching of speaking and listening into four strands: Physical; Cognitive; Linguistic; and Social and Emotional. 

Teachers set high expectations and model the correct use of oracy to enable the children to become confident speakers for a range of different purposes and audiences. Classrooms are rich in talk, and questions are planned, peer conversations are modelled and scaffolded and the teacher uses talk skilfully to develop thinking. Teachers plan using an Oracy Progression Map. This maps out core skills for each year group and ensures children continue to build on these skills throughout their time in school. Oracy skills are tracked using the Oracy Progression Map to measure progress and attainment. Each year group has oracy objectives which build on and extend from the previous year ensuring progression as the children move through the school. Teachers can select an oracy learning objective to develop within their lesson and include an aspect of oracy in the steps to success as appropriate.

From EYFS to Year 6, talk guidelines are set and children are given opportunities to develop oracy skills and build their confidence in talk for formal and informal situations, both in and outside the classroom. Children in Upper Key Stage 2 are beginning to use their talk tactics during class and group discussion. Talk tactics are a range of strategies to build and challenge the ideas of others through talk. By embedding an oracy curriculum, the children have an opportunity to practise a variety of types of talk and practise the skills needed for different oracy outcomes: exploratory talk; interactive/negotiation; recitation; debate and persuasion; building understanding; entertainment and expression; and to inform/teach.

We enrich our curriculum and increase the children’s oracy opportunities by planning visits and visitors every half term. By building a culture of oracy within our school, we want to develop the children’s confidence, spoken language and written outcomes across and beyond the curriculum.

Impact

Oracy is integrated throughout the curriculum and pupils develop the skills to reason, discuss, debate and present their learning in a variety of contexts with increasing skill and confidence. The children are able to explore ideas through discussion, to format their own reasoned arguments, to challenge each other’s opinions, to develop critical thinking skills as well as talk in full sentences with a clear and confident voice.  

The teaching of oracy is important because it: increases pupil confidence in all areas of the curriculum; improves academic outcomes; supports wellbeing; and promotes social equity. The impact of the oracy curriculum is measured through termly pupil voice meetings. 

At Ridgeway, we believe spoken language to be fundamental to the achievement of our children. We understand that communication and language are the roots underpinning success in reading and writing and that good communication skills can enhance learning. Cultural capital is at the heart of our oracy curriculum and teaches our children to value their own voice and respect the voices of others. As a result, children are able to positively contribute to their community, both now and in the future.

Click here to see Oracy in action at Ridgeway Primary Academy...