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Year 3/4 English Curriculum Objectives

Reading - Word Reading

  • apply their growing knowledge of root words, prefixes and suffixes (etymology and morphology) as listed in - see English appendix 1, both to read aloud and to understand the meaning of new words they meet
  • read further exception words, noting the unusual correspondences between spelling and sound, and where these occur in the word

Reading - Comprehension

  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by listening to and discussing a wide range of fiction, poetry, plays, non-fiction and reference books or textbooks
  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by reading books that are structured in different ways and reading for a range of purposes
  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by using dictionaries to check the meaning of words that they have read
  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by increasing their familiarity with a wide range of books, including fairy stories, myths and legends, and retelling some of these orally
  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by identifying themes and conventions in a wide range of books
  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by preparing poems and play scripts to read aloud and to perform, showing understanding through intonation, tone, volume and action
  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by discussing words and phrases that capture the reader’s interest and imagination
  • develop positive attitudes to reading, and an understanding of what they read, by recognising some different forms of poetry [for example, free verse, narrative poetry]
  • understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by checking that the text makes sense to them, discussing their understanding, and explaining the meaning of words in context
  • understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by asking questions to improve their understanding of a text
  • understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by drawing inferences such as inferring characters’ feelings, thoughts and motives from their actions, and justifying inferences with evidence
  • understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by predicting what might happen from details stated and implied
  • understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by identifying main ideas drawn from more than 1 paragraph and summarising these
  • understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by identifying how language, structure, and presentation contribute to meaning
  • Retrieve and record information from fiction and non-fiction
  • participate in discussion about both books that are read to them and those they can read for themselves, taking turns and listening to what others say

Writing - Transcription

Spelling

  • use further prefixes and suffixes and understand how to add them - see English appendix 1
  • spell further homophones
  • spell words that are often misspelt
  • Add suffixes beginning with vowel letters to words of more than one syllable
  • Spell words with the /ɪ/ sound spelt y elsewhere than at the end of words
  • Spell words with the /ʌ/ sound spelt ou
  • Spell more prefixes
  • Spell using the suffix –ation
  • Spell using the suffix –ly
  • spell words with endings sounding like /ʒə/ or /tʃə/
  • Spell words with endings which sound like /ʒən/
  • Spell using the suffix –ous
  • Spell words with endings which sound like /ʃən/, spelt –tion,–sion, –ssion, –cian
  • Spell words words with the /k/ sound spelt ch (Greek in origin)
  • Spell words words with the /ʃ/ sound spelt ch (mostly French in origin)
  • Spell words words ending with the /g/ sound spelt – gue and the /k/ sound spelt –que (French in origin)
  • Spell words words with the /s/ sound spelt sc (Latin in origin)
  • Spell words words with the /eɪ/ sound spelt ei, eigh, or ey
  • Spell using the possessive apostrophe with plural words
  • spell homophones and near-homophones
  • Spell words from the word list – years 3 and 4
  • place the possessive apostrophe accurately in words with regular plurals [for example, girls’, boys’] and in words with irregular plurals [for example, children’s]
  • use the first 2 or 3 letters of a word to check its spelling in a dictionary
  • write from memory simple sentences, dictated by the teacher, that include words and punctuation taught so far

Handwriting

  • use the diagonal and horizontal strokes that are needed to join letters and understand which letters, when adjacent to one another, are best left unjoined
  • increase the legibility, consistency and quality of their handwriting, [for example, by ensuring that the downstrokes of letters are parallel and equidistant, and that lines of writing are spaced sufficiently so that the ascenders and descenders of letters do not touch]

Writing - Composition

Pupils should be taught to:

  • plan their writing by discussing writing similar to that which they are planning to write in order to understand and learn from its structure, vocabulary and grammar
  • plan their writing by discussing and recording ideas
  • draft and write by composing and rehearsing sentences orally (including dialogue), progressively building a varied and rich vocabulary and an increasing range of sentence structures - see English appendix 2
  • draft and write by organising paragraphs around a theme
  • draft and write by in narratives, creating settings, characters and plot
  • draft and write by in non-narrative material, using simple organisational devices [for example, headings and sub-headings]
  • evaluate and edit by assessing the effectiveness of their own and others’ writing and suggesting improvements
  • evaluate and edit by proposing changes to grammar and vocabulary to improve consistency, including the accurate use of pronouns in sentences
  • proofread for spelling and punctuation errors
  • read their own writing aloud to a group or the whole class, using appropriate intonation and controlling the tone and volume so that the meaning is clear

Writing - Vocabulary, Grammar and Punctuation

English Appendix 2 guidance:

Year 3

Year 4