Year 0-2

What are the children learning?

During Year 0-2 students will plan for writing, using talk or pictures. They will independently write simple text, drawing on their personal experiences and their knowledge of the world,.

The text that students write will begin to include:

• several sentences (including some compound sentences with simple conjunctions such as 'and')

• some key personal vocabulary and high-frequency words

• attempts at transferring words encountered in the writer's oral language or reading to their writing.

An example of a written text after one year at school:

By the end of Yr 2 students will independently write simple text. These text will include, when appropriate:

• experiences, information, and/or ideas that relate to a curriculum topic, supported by some (mostly relevant) detail and/or personal comment

• mainly simple and compound sentences that have some variation in their beginnings

• simple conjunctions correctly used

• mainly personal content vocabulary, as well as words and phrases that are drawn from the student’s oral vocabulary and from the book language that they know

• some attempts at variety and precision in the use of adjectives, nouns, and verbs.

An example of a written text after two years at school:

What does it look like in the classroom?

Writing is underpinned by Oral Language, so writing in Years 0-2 is often a result of student’s own experiences, that they can they can talk about in class or group situations and then write about.  These experiences include the student’s own personal experiences, as well as special learning ‘language experiences’, created through fun, messy or challenging activities at school.

Writing in the first two years of school is modeled by the teacher to enable students to see the process of writing, including having an idea for writing, using capital letters and full stops, writing known words independently and hearing and recording the many sounds in new words.  In Years 0-3 teachers and students use "Writing Checklists" which are visual tools that support the development of writing skills and an understanding of the writing process.

At times the students will work on their writing independently, while at other times they will work in guided groups with a teacher to explicitly focus on their goals.