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Cotmanhay Junior School

Safe, Happy Learning

Cultural opportunities in reading

Cultural opportunities in our curriculum

Our curriculum is carefully designed to provide pupils with a wide range of cultural opportunities expanding their understanding of the world.

In all subject areas, pupils learn about significant individuals who made a life-changing contribution to our society. This includes scientists, inventors, athletes, composers, mathematicians and writers. We want our children to appreciate these achievements and understand the impact on our lives today.  

 

Reading

Our library is full of amazing books! We have a fantastic range of fiction, non-fiction, magazines, comics and newspapers. Books are chosen by the reading coordinator to ensure pupils have the opportunities to read a wide range of authors including children’s classics, traditional tales and recent book releases. We want our children to experience different writing styles from Shakespeare to David Walliams.

 

Cracking Comprehension

 

Pupils study in detail extracts from the following fiction texts:

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Year 6

Fantastic Mr Fox

Roald Dahl

 

 

The children of Green Knowe

Lucy Boston

Stig of the Dump

Clive King

The Railway Children

E. Nesbit 

Grandpa’s Indian Summer

Jamila Gavin

 

The Diary of a Killer Cat

Anne Fine

 

The Cat Who Walked By Himself

Rudyard Kipling

 

Just William

Richmal Crompton

 

Mr Majeika

Humphrey Carpenter

 

Gangsta Granny

David Walliams

 

Skellig

David Almond

 

Shine

Jill Paton Walsh

 

The Lost Happy Endings

Carol Ann Duffy

 

Mackerel and Chips

Michael Morpurgo

Robert The Bruce and the Spider

Geraldine McCaughrean

The Tempest

William Shakespeare

 

There is a fantastic variety of male and female authors, across different time periods, writing in different styles. Pupils also study a range of poems and non-fiction texts.   

 

Reading Avengers

 

Our Reading Avengers scheme is deliberately designed to challenge higher ability readers and increase pupils’ knowledge of authors including Children’s Laureates, children’s classical books and other renowned writers. Some examples are:

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Year 6

Ottoline and the yellow cat

Chris Riddell

 

George’s Marvellous Medicine

Roald Dahl

 

The abominables

Eva Ibbotson

 

 

You’re a bad man Mr Gum

Andy Stanton

Winnie the Pooh

A.A Milne

 

 

The firework maker’s daughter

Philip Pullman

 

The Butterfly Lion

Michael Morpurgo

 

 

Tom’s Midnight Garden (graphic novel)

Edith 

The lion, the witch and the wardrobe

C. S. Lewis

  

 Charlotte’s Webb

E. B. White

 

 

 Asha and the Spirit Bird

Jasbinder Bilan

 

 

Street Child

Bernie Doherty

Holes

Louis Sacher

 

 

The Secret Garden

Frances Hodgson Burnett

 

 

Harry Potter and the philosopher’s stone

J. K. Rowling

 

Graphic novels

 

 

 

Comprehension through song

 

Comprehension is also taught by studying song lyrics. This engages children with comprehension as it is fun and active. Song lyrics contain a wide variety of poetic devices such as metaphors, similes, personification and often there is a hidden meaning to discover. Songs allow for acquisition of new, exciting vocabulary. In addition, pupils will experience a range of musical genres and listen to artists that perhaps they have never heard before!

 

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Year 6

Disney musical soundtracks from The Lion King, Moana, Frozen, The Little Mermaid and Peter Pan

 

Disney musical soundtracks from Aladdin, Jungle Book, Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame and The Nightmare Before Christmas

Ironic

Alanis Morissette

 

Indian Sunset

Elton John

 

Space Oddity

David Bowie

 

The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald  Gordon Lightfoot

Thriller

Michael Jackson

 

Big Yellow Taxi

 Joni Mitchell 

 

Pompeii

Bastille

 

The Trooper

Iron Maiden

 

What Is Truth? Johnny Cash

 

Class books

 

Teachers are provided with a varied box of books to borrow and read to their class. These books are deliberately chosen to target particular cultural themes and to expose children to the very best picture books, short stories and poems.
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