Oracy

Time to talk and listen - Oracy is the ability to articulate ideas, develop understanding and engage with others through spoken language.  Oracy is at the very core of St James' C of E Infant and Nursery School.  We all enjoy the benefits oracy brings to our school community.  We believe spoken language to be essential in the development and achievement of our children across the curriculum.  We have an oracy element across our curriculum.

At St James' C of E Infant and Nursery School, we strive to develop spoken language skills through the taught curriculum, the hidden curriculum, playtimes and lunchtimes, extra-curricular activities and the whole ethos of the school.

As the children's time progresses in our school community, they learn progressive talking and listening skills. They also develop the skills of reasoning and debate.  This is a skill we feel passionately about as a school.  Every child has a voice and that voice is valued.

In school, oracy is a vital tool for learning: by teaching students to become more effective speakers and listeners we empower them to better understand themselves, each other and the world around them.  Speaking and listening play a large part in a child's progress in all curriculum areas and teachers plan to develop these skills in a wide variety of ways both formally and informally. We aim to develop and encourage fluent speakers, with rich vocabulary, who are confident to operate in a wide variety of situations.

Good oracy skills support wider literacy skills; improvement in oracy is also linked to improvements in reading, writing and overall attainment.