Cairnlea Park Primary School recognises the importance of literacy learning for all children. It sets the foundation for all other elements of education and enables active and effective participation in society.

Literacy is given a high priority across every level of the school. Our comprehensive and sequential literacy program aims to develop each student’s ability to speak, listen, read, view and write with confidence, purpose and enjoyment.

Students engage in two hours of focused literacy instruction each day. A comprehensive assessment and monitoring program supports teachers to track student learning and deliver targeted teaching across all areas of English. Students are encouraged to take ownership of their learning through the setting of personal reading and writing goals. Their progress is continually monitored during regular conferences with the teacher.

The reading workshop incorporates the explicit teaching of decoding, fluency and comprehension skills. Students learn to analyse, evaluate and respond to texts. They are provided with opportunities to apply their skills through independent reading and a range of purposeful reading tasks.

Students are taught to write for a range of audiences and purposes. By linking writing with our inquiry learning units, students are provided with authentic opportunities for writing. They learn to research, plan, revise, edit and publish texts in a range of genres. Through the study of mentor texts, students explore the qualities of good writing and learn how to apply these in their own writing.

The explicit teaching of speaking and listening skills is embedded in literacy lessons. Students learn the skills and language required across a range of contexts such as everyday communication, literature discussions and presentations.