At St Stephen's Infant School there are over 30 languages spoken at home by our children and staff. Some children are multilingual or bilingual, some are fluent, whilst others have no English at all. We like to celebrate the diverse range of cultures, languages and religions that we have in our community. We believe that all children, including those who use English as an Additional Language, should have the opportunity to fully access the curriculum and fulfil their potential.
Bilingualism gives pupils many advantages in life. We encourage pupils to use and develop their home language as having a strong home language, provides a solid foundation for children’s learning, thinking and vocabulary development.
Underpinning our practice is the ideal that pupils develop English through immersion in class. We are aware that not all children who are learning English as an Additional Language are the same and may need supporting in different ways. We feel that learning basic literacy skills such as learning letter formation and phonics, as well as learning all the components of reading and writing is fundemental.
Key support strategies
Using greater use of visuals/ gestures/ signing/ communication boards providing oral and written models and scaffolds
Providing pre teaching vocabulary and context to learning.
Targeted phonics support
Pupils are given increased opportunities to work with others either through pairing with same language or good English Language role models.