Oracy
Oracy is the ability to articulate ideas, develop understanding and engage with others through spoken language, including debate. At Princess May we provide a high-quality oracy education by explicitly teaching children through talk and to talk. Confident spoken language is the foundation for everything else our pupils learn.
Why oracy matters to us
Children who can explain their thinking, listen carefully and build on what others say learn more in every subject. Spoken language also underpins reading and writing: pupils rehearse sentences aloud before they write them, and discuss texts before they are asked to comprehend them. Oracy is one of the ways we develop our school values of Respect, Empathy and Determination, because good talk means taking turns, listening to different views and sticking with an idea until it is clear.
How we teach oracy
Oracy is planned into every year group’s curriculum and taught across all subjects, not only in English. Teachers use sentence stems, structured partner talk, class discussion and debate, and give pupils regular chances to present to an audience, from sharing work in class to performing in assemblies and school events. Our Pupil Leaders put these skills into practice by representing their classmates.
We focus on four strands of oracy, which build year on year:
- Physical – voice, posture, gesture and eye contact
- Linguistic – vocabulary, sentence structure and the language of discussion
- Cognitive – giving reasons, asking questions and summarising
- Social and emotional – listening, turn-taking and adapting to an audience
What we teach in each phase
| Strand |
Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 |
Years 3 and 4 |
Years 5 and 6 |
| Physical |
Use non-verbal signals to show you want to contribute to a discussion. Understand the importance of posture. |
With guidance, use posture and gesture to engage an audience. Understand the importance of tone of voice and projection. |
Use posture, gesture and tone of voice effectively to engage an audience. |
| Linguistic |
Choose an appropriate sentence stem. Use taught vocabulary accurately in discussions. |
Choose an appropriate sentence stem. Use taught vocabulary accurately in discussions. |
Use evaluative language and sentence stems. Use accurate and effective vocabulary. |
| Cognitive |
Justify an opinion with an explanation. Ask a relevant question. |
Explain reasoning using a range of conjunctions, such as because, but and so. Ask relevant questions and summarise the answer. |
Summarise a discussion. Consider and respond to others’ contributions, for example by clarifying. |
| Social and emotional |
Show active listening, for example by looking at the speaker. Follow the structure for turn-taking. |
Show active listening by responding to the speaker. Manage a talk task independently, such as a chaired discussion. |
Notice the audience and adapt delivery accordingly. |
