Speaking and listening skills are fundamental to children's progress in all areas of the curriculum, and the need for effective oral communication is vital to develop and enhance life skills.

At Wicklewood, we value and look to develop children's speaking and listening skills as an integral part of the school curriculum. We also wish to prepare our children to establish positive relationships inside and outside of the school environment so that they are equipped with the ability to communicate thoughts, feelings and ideas confidently and successfully. Our aims are to ...

• To develop children's speaking and listening skills through a wide range of opportunities.

• To value children's contributions during discussions.

• To encourage all children to listen carefully and actively, valuing and responding to others viewpoints and opinions.

• To enable children to speak audibly, clearly and confidently in 1 to 1, group and whole class situations in a variety of contexts.

• To help children understand how to adapt their use of language, varying use in relation to purpose and audience.

• To encourage children to develop proficiency in Standards English as well as promote a respect for other language and dialects.

• To raise children's attainment in writing through their ability to initially express themselves effectively orally in order to produce writing of a higher quality.

As a school we strive to maximise creative aspects of the curriculum and provide all pupils with speaking and listening opportunities through drama, role play, school trips, visits  and visitors, class assemblies, school productions, vocabulary lessons and stimulating, innovative classroom teaching.