Articulate

Oracy

St Mary’s vision for oracy:

​At St Mary’s, we believe that everyone has the right to have their voice heard and feel valued. We will support every member of our school community to have the confidence and emotional intelligence to communicate effectively, build positive relationships and prepare for their next steps in life.​

 

Our philosophy and intent for our children’s oracy and communication align with the view below from Voice 21: 

‘In school, oracy is a powerful tool for learning; by teaching students to become more effective speakers and listeners we empower them to better understand themselves, each other and the world around them. It is also a route to social mobility, empowering all students, not just some, to find their voice to succeed in school and life.’ 

 Teachers plan to develop a range of oracy skills through other subjects, but may also plan to teach the skills through discrete oracy tasks.

 

Vocabulary

 The teaching of vocabulary and the acquisition of language is a school priority as we recognise that pupils acquisition and command of vocabulary are key to their learning and progress, across the curriculum. We know that vocabulary acquisition is vital to ensure a good level of development and growth both academically, socially and emotionally, and will increase pupil life-chances in later life. 

 Vocabulary forms a key part of all planning, teaching and learning. The recall, understanding and application of prior vocabulary acquisition as well as new vocabulary learnt, is at the heart of assessment for and of learning. 

 Teachers plan explicit lessons to explore and develop vocabulary as well as being a focus in all curriculum areas.