Oracy at King Richard III
Communication is at the heart of everything we do in life, and our aim is to teach all children the skills to be successful communicators, through our implementation of Oracy across our curriculum. At King Richard III we develop the children's ability to speak in different settings, be a good listener and confidently share their ideas with others. These skills are not taught in standalone lessons, but instead are threaded through the school day and all subjects, as communication happens in every minute of every day.
Every year group has their own set of listening and speaking skills, tailored to their age, that are broken down and introduced at the start of the year, then referred to and followed in daily lessons. These skills are built upon and developed further as they progress through the school. Teachers use the power of talk in lessons to stimulate interest, develop thinking and enable children to engage in meaningful conversations with their peers as well as their teachers and other adults.
The teaching of language and vocabulary is an extremely vital area of oracy, and one that is even more important at King Richard III because a large percentage of our children arrive at our school with English not being their primary language. We deliver multiple small group sessions for these children to help build up their vocabulary base, and support them with how to compose their thoughts into sentences, then giving them continuous opportunities to practise this. Alongside this, we have a high expectation of all children to use technical vocabulary relative to the subject area they are studying, modelled by teachers and support staff around school.
Perhaps most importantly though, we aim to instil the confidence in each and every child to express their own thoughts and opinions, to ask questions, and become independent explorers of their own learning. This confidence will allow them to become 'free thinkers' and effective communicators, 'future proofing' them for new challenges and situations as they move through life.
As a Leicester City school, we've taken part in Voice 21 training about Oracy (Speaking and Listening) across the curriculum.
Language and Communication, 'Oracy' and Voice 21 approaches are at the heart of everything we do.