The philosophy for teaching English at Brentwood Park Primary School is grounded in explicit teaching and strong student engagement. A range of English programs and assessments are tailored to The philosophy for teaching English at Brentwood Park Primary School is grounded in explicit instruction and high levels of student engagement. A range of English programs and assessment practices are carefully tailored to meet students’ diverse abilities and stages of development. Wherever possible, English learning is integrated across the curriculum, including mathematics, science, the arts, and digital technologies, enabling students to apply their literacy skills in meaningful and authentic contexts. This whole-school approach promotes continuity, consistency, and deeper learning.
The teaching of English is underpinned by the Big Six components of reading: oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. These evidence-based components are explicitly taught across all areas of English, providing students with a strong foundation for reading, writing, speaking and listening.
To ensure consistency and excellence in English instruction, the English leaders provide regular professional learning for all teaching staff. Ongoing professional development supports the implementation of evidence-based teaching practices and fosters a consistent approach to English teaching across the school.
Reading:
The CAFE framework (Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency and Expanding Vocabulary) and the DailThe Department of Education’s Text Studies lessons form the foundation of the reading program at Brentwood Park Primary School. These lessons are complemented by standalone lessons that reinforce and extend the skills introduced through the Text Studies program. Together, these lessons explicitly teach the Big Six components of reading, including comprehension, vocabulary, phonics, fluency, oral language, and phonological awareness.
Reading instruction explicitly develops strategies such as retelling, reading accurately and fluently, making inferences, and expanding word knowledge. Teachers use high-quality literature to engage students in meaningful discussions and provide opportunities for them to demonstrate their understanding through speaking and writing. The Phonics Plus program further supports students in developing strong decoding and word recognition skills.
All students participate in regular independent reading, set individual reading goals, and take part in the Premier’s Reading Challenge. Ongoing assessment is used to monitor student progress, inform teaching, and provide targeted differentiation to ensure all students are appropriately supported and challenged.
Writing:
The 6 + 1 Traits of Writing framework is implemented across the school using the Victorian Teaching and Learning Model (VTLM 2.0). This whole-school approach aims to embed effective writing practices by providing a supportive and engaging learning environment that motivates students to write for a range of authentic purposes and audiences. Writing instruction is delivered through explicit teaching, purposeful learning activities, regular opportunities to write, and ongoing formative assessment to monitor understanding and inform next steps.
To monitor student progress and support consistent assessment practices, Cold Writes are completed four times each year. These sessions are conducted in a calm and reflective environment, with dim lighting and relaxing music to encourage students to focus and produce their best independent writing. Students across the school respond to the same writing topic and text type appropriate to their year level. Teachers assess Cold Writes using the Writemark AI platform, followed by year-level moderation to ensure consistency of teacher judgement and to identify future teaching priorities.
All students set individual writing goals and are encouraged to write regularly across the curriculum. Students are also provided with opportunities to participate in writing competitions to further develop their skills and celebrate their achievements as writers.
Spelling:
Phonics Plus, a research-based Systematic Synthetic Phonics program developed by the Department of Education, forms the foundation of spelling instruction in the junior school (Foundation–Year 2). This explicit program focuses on letter–sound correspondence, spelling, handwriting, high-frequency words, dictation, and reading fluency. Through systematic and sequential instruction, students develop the decoding and encoding skills that are essential for reading and writing success.
From Years 3–6, students are explicitly taught the three key spelling strategies—sound, visual, and meaning—using the Words Our Way approach. Spelling instruction includes both whole-class teaching and individualised spelling goals, enabling teachers to differentiate learning according to students’ needs. Spelling is taught through a six-session cycle over a two-week period, incorporating written tasks, games, word sorts, and word investigations to deepen students’ understanding of spelling patterns, word structure, and vocabulary.
Speaking and Listening:
Students are explicitly taught a range of speaking and listening skills to develop their confidence and effectiveness as communicators. These include active listening, clear articulation, effective voice projection, and the ability to communicate ideas confidently to a variety of audiences. In the junior years, students regularly participate in classroom discussions, Show and Tell, sharing feedback with the class, and oral presentations. As students’ progress through the school, they further develop their oral language skills through debates, project presentations, school assembly speeches, and other public speaking opportunities. Year 6 students culminate their learning by presenting formal speeches at their Graduation Ceremony.
Speaking and listening are also embedded within the school’s reading program through Text Studies, where students are provided with frequent opportunities to discuss texts, share ideas, justify their thinking, and respond to the perspectives of others in whole-class, small-group, and partner discussions.
Oral language is one of the Big Six components of reading, alongside phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. These evidence-based components are explicitly taught across all areas of English to support the development of confident readers, writers, speakers, and listeners.
To ensure consistency and high-quality English instruction across the school, the English leaders provide ongoing professional learning for staff. Regular professional development supports the implementation of evidence-based teaching practices and a consistent whole-school approach to English.