Writing Curriculum Design

At Caldecote Primary School, our writing curriculum is informed by the principles of the Department for Education Writing Framework (2025) and Cambridgeshire's Routes to Writing. We recognise that pupils become successful writers when they are immersed in high-quality texts, have meaningful reasons to write and are explicitly taught the knowledge and skills required to communicate effectively. Writing is therefore taught through carefully planned units that place quality literature, authentic purpose and audience at the heart of learning. 

Each unit is built around a carefully selected text, chosen not only for its literary quality but also for its ability to engage pupils, broaden horizons and provide meaningful contexts for writing. Texts are selected to reflect our curriculum themes, promote diversity and representation, and enrich pupils' cultural capital. Teachers adapt text choices to meet the needs and interests of their classes while ensuring progression in knowledge, vocabulary and writing outcomes. 

Our curriculum follows a phased approach to writing that enables pupils to move from reading as a reader to writing as an author. Through exploration of model texts, pupils develop an understanding of purpose, audience, language and structure before applying their learning in increasingly independent writing outcomes. Grammar, punctuation and language choices are taught in context so that pupils understand how writers make deliberate choices to achieve specific effects on their readers. 

Writing opportunities are carefully sequenced to ensure progression across the four key purposes for writing: to entertain, to inform, to persuade and to discuss. These purposes are introduced cumulatively across the primary phase, enabling pupils to make increasingly sophisticated choices about form, style and language according to audience and context. By Year 6, pupils can independently select and adapt the most appropriate writing approaches for a range of real and purposeful outcomes.

Through this approach, pupils develop secure transcription skills, a rich vocabulary, growing knowledge of text structures and the confidence to craft writing that informs, entertains, persuades and discusses. Writing becomes both a vehicle for learning and a powerful means of self-expression, preparing pupils to become successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors.

Key Features of Writing at Caldecote

• High-quality texts at the centre of every unit.
• Explicit teaching of purpose, audience, language and layout (PALL).
• Authentic and meaningful writing outcomes.
• Grammar and language taught in context.
• Progressive development of the four purposes for writing.
• Opportunities for spoken language, reading and writing throughout every unit.
• Flexible text selection to meet the needs, interests and context of our pupils.