English
In Pre-Prep and Year 3, English is taught by the class teacher, which allows for more extra-curricular links and for the skills of reading and writing to be taught through wider topics.
The English curriculum at St Hilary’s lays the foundations for future learning by providing a deep and thorough grounding in all core skills, which are then enriched with a broad, imaginative and exciting range of texts and authors. Starting with a strong foundation in phonics using the Animaphonics program for pre-Prep, this is built upon as the children move into Prep using a text-based approach. This enables the curriculum to be delivered in a variety of fun and stimulating ways, as well as allowing the children to explore key skills in a variety of contexts and allow in-depth studies of many wonderful books and genres.
Pre-Prep and Year 3 are taught English by their form teacher, allowing for cross-curricular links and opportunities to be absorbed seamlessly into their learning experiences. English in Years 4 – 6 is taught in sets, preparing students fully for Common Entrance exams and future senior schools.
Reading is at the heart of our curriculum and remains a key focus from Reception to Year 6. The children are exposed to a range of authors, genres and subjects through the texts studied and participate in specific Library lessons from Reception, giving children the opportunity to browse, compare and discuss their reading choices and preferences, and encouraging the importance of finding joy in reading.