Blog | Identifying priorities to secure the foundations of English

“Research is clear that high-quality early education establishes the foundations for later success, including academic achievement, good health and well-being. While high-quality education benefits all children, it is especially important for those whose early learning has been limited. This may include children who come from disadvantaged backgrounds and those whose language and communication are delayed. Making sure that all children have the best start in life is one of Ofsted’s strategic priorities.”  (Strong foundations in the first years of school - Ofsted 2024 *)

It makes sense to everyone that good levels of reading, writing and spoken language are vital across the board. These skills form the basis of everything we do, at every stage of our lives. Ensuring strong foundations in these inter-dependent skills is integral through the early years and into Key Stage 1. We don’t need research to tell us that gaps in learning in young children will continue to throw up challenges as they move through school, navigating greater and more complex challenges – all of which are overwhelmingly difficult if the basics aren’t in place.

However, the curriculum expectations in Key Stage 1 are extensive and it can be complicated knowing where to allocate limited time and resources effectively. This is something we can help with.

Ofsted’s recent research report, ‘Strong foundations in the first years of school’, suggested several areas that schools may benefit from further support with. We have designed our course ‘Early English – Strong Foundations in Writing in the First Years of School’ to provide exactly this – further guidance for schools to navigate the challenges of ensuring secure foundational knowledge for all children.

It also refers to Ofsted’s ‘Best start in life’ Part 3 review** which highlights the importance of early literacy development. It detailed that, for an effective early years’ education, you would expect to see “language rich-environments, high-quality interactions with adults, carefully considered curriculum content and new knowledge building on prior learning”. 

Some of the findings include:

• Schools often introduce complex reading and writing tasks too early and do not 'give children enough teaching and practice for them to become fluent in foundational knowledge and skills, such as in handwriting and composing simple sentences.' 
• Recommendations to pay more attention to spelling and oral composition to enable young children to successfully compose pieces of extended writing. 
• The importance of assessing foundational knowledge and skills in writing, for example, pencil grip, letter formation and the spelling of common exception words, to pick up children’s misunderstandings quickly and give 'teachers early opportunities to help children who need extra teaching and practice'.

Our role, working with KS1 teachers and TAs is to:

• bring clarity to the curriculum content, including schools who are new to the national curriculum
• clarify requirements and navigate Ofsted recommendations successfully
• highlight the main areas of improvement that we can provide support with
• support teachers by cutting through the ever-increasing burden of reports and reviews with strategies and practical ideas

Our Early English course is a great place to start – or contact Lisa Baggaley to discuss the specific challenges or needs your setting is facing.