Our daily, two-hour literacy block addresses the curriculum content areas of Reading and Viewing, Writing, and Speaking and Listening. We believe in a careful balance of direct instruction and explicit teaching (Structured Literacy Program), while exposing our students to a wide range of good quality literature from diverse voices.

In Prep Year 1 and Year 2, the literacy block starts with explicit teaching of phonics, using the Multisensory Structured Language (MSL) approach and Heggerty Phonemic Awareness Curriculum. MSL incorporates five essential steps for effective reading instruction: identifying letter sounds, sounding out words, fluency, accuracy and comprehension. Students in Years 3 to 6 receive direct instruction around sound-letter patterns and spelling generalisations, using the evidence-based Spelling Mastery program.

In the P-6 Writing program, using The Writing Revolution (TWR), students progress from sentence construction to complete compositions. They are explicitly taught concepts of grammar and punctuation, before practising these in the construction of a range of text types. Students learn to use text features and structure to entertain, persuade or inform the reader, all while developing their author’s voice.