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28/11/22

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28/11/22

Please see our website for information about the Year 7 Language choice process.https://t.co/ob1pEQCkli

28/11/22

Reminder: Sixth Form Open Evening Tuesday 29th November from 4.30pm to 6.30pm pic.twitter.com/vpMQVdSZBC

24/11/22

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08/11/22

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12/10/22

Reminder: Tomorrow, Thursday 13th October is the last day of term for students (Friday 14th October is an INSET day so school will be closed for all students). Students return to school on Monday 31st October.

12/10/22

Message from Havering Council: The Council have created a one-stop-shop for all of the financial & other support that may be out there for residents this winter and beyond, all in one handy place on our website.https://t.co/wmO4LD98Gq

05/10/22

YEAR 11 REVISION EVENING We are inviting you and your child to attend our mock examination preparation information evening which will be held on Tuesday 11th October 2022 at 6pmPlease see our website for full detailshttps://t.co/ob1pEQBMvK

01/09/22

You are invited to attend the Year 11 parents’ consultation evening on Thursday 8th September 2022 between 4.00pm and 7.00pm. This evening will be held onsite at Harris Academy Rainham. See our website for full details https://t.co/ob1pEQBMvK pic.twitter.com/ZvgTeGccBU

31/08/22

We are delighted to welcome our students back to the Academy next week. Dates and times for each year group are as follows;Year 7 - Monday 5th September 8.30amYear 11 - Monday 5th September 8.55amYears 8,9 & 10 - Tuesday 6th September 8.30am pic.twitter.com/WTAfsqVUuq

27/05/22

The Harris Academy Rainham Geography department is excited to launch a new gardening club In the spirit of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle”, we would appreciate donations of gardening equipment, hand tools, gloves, seeds, soil, pots and anything gardening related. pic.twitter.com/98pgR2c7pb

23/05/22

Please go to our website for details of the Y11 intervention sessions on offer during the May half term.https://t.co/lEOke73VV9

23/05/22

Year 8 and 9 Parent Information Evening Your are invited to a parent information evening on Wednesday 25th May at 6:00pm, where we would like to speak with you on e-safety and how you can ensure your child is protected online. pic.twitter.com/qxjSVYynY9

19/05/22

HAR Sixth Form Consultation: See the letters home page of our website for the latest letter from the principal with details of upcoming consultation events.https://t.co/ob1pEQBMvK

12/05/22

Year 10 students visited Blenheim Underwriting in Fenchurch Street yesterday as part of their mentoring programme with an award-winning charity, Future Frontiers, where they received a warm welcome from CEO John Lynch.https://t.co/KmQkj5cJop pic.twitter.com/5Hr3boPZIy

09/05/22

Year 11 English Literature Challenge Seminars Friday Mornings 8.15-8.50 B33 with Mrs. Turker

09/05/22

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05/05/22

Yesterday some of our Y10 students visited London firm Crawford & Co. where they met the CEO and were mentored by business professionals to develop aspirations and build a life-long engagement with learning. Full story at https://t.co/5jIPxtE3I8 pic.twitter.com/hYsGeSbuAq

04/05/22

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31/03/22

April 1st will be a "wear something yellow or blue" non-uniform day, students and staff are encouraged to donate £1.We will also have a bake sale on this day so bring some cash and buy some treats!All money raised will be donated to The British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal. pic.twitter.com/0w0YfT9YLj

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Writing, Oracy & Reading Development

We work hard to help students become confident, articulate and thoughtful in their appreciation of the English language, because excellent literacy skills are vital for our students' future education, employment and general well-being.

Writing, speaking, and reading with fluency provides young people with the building blocks not just for academic success, but for fulfilling careers and rewarding lives. As such, we place great emphasis on WORD (Writing, Oracy and Reading Development) at Harris Academy Rainham.

As a parent or carer, you can do a lot to support your son or daughter in their writing, oracy and reading development. Below you will find some strategies to try at home, as well as additional information on how we embed WORD within our school.

To discuss how best to help your son or daughter with WORD at home, please contact Mrs Turker, Executive Head of English responsible for Literacy (e.turker-glodowska@harrisrainham.org.uk).


Why does WORD matter?

Evidence suggests that language development is the best predictor for later achievement in school. So, if we as a school, and you as parents, focus relentlessly on developing the ability of our young peoples’ writing, oracy and reading, they will be able to achieve ambitious life goals in the future.


Harris Rainham108Writing development

How does the school promote writing?

  • In lessons: teachers will focus on explicit teaching of vocabulary. Teachers will also focus on explicit teaching of more sophisticated sentence structures. There will also be frequent opportunities for students to practice extended writing in lessons (for example in History, English, RS and Geography).
  • Extracurricular clubs: We have a Creative Writing Club and Debate Club that encourages extended writing.

How I can support my child with writing at home?

  • Write letters: a simple way helping your child develop their writing skills is to write letters. For example, writing a thank you letter to a family member, teacher, or member of the community would encourage your son or daughter to articulate themselves to a more formal audience.
  • Writing emails: this can also help develop writing skills. For example, writing an email to set up some work experience would need to be written formally, using language appropriate to someone who is not known to the writer. 
  • Writing diary entries: this can also help provide both an opportunity to develop writing skills as well as the ability to reflect on ones relationships and events of the day or week at school.

Oracy development

How does the school promote oracy?

  • Structured Partner Talk: every subject prioritises opportunities in lessons for group discussion. We call this ‘partner talk’. Teachers will use specific strategies to ensure the talk is of a high quality.
  • Extracurricular clubs: We have a host of clubs which will encourage high quality oracy including Debate Club, Drama Club, and active engagement clubs such as Eco Club which present to the senior leadership team.
  • School plays/performances: each year the school will hold a school play, as well as celebrations such as the Winter Performance.
  • Competitions: we hold competitions across the year which promote oracy. For example, the Jack Petchey Challenge.

How I can support my child with oracy at home?

  • Make your home a talking rich environment: this involves carving out time to get together as a family to talk. For example, at mealtimes or on the journey to school in the morning. Using focus points for discussion can widen your son or daughter’s vocabulary, for example talking about the ‘word of the day’ or current events in the news.
  • Reading aloud: encouraging your child to read aloud at home will help develop not only their reading skills, but also their oracy. We encourage pupils to read for 30mins a day at home.

Harris Rainham115Reading development

How do we test pupils reading abilities?

  • The New Group Reading Test (NGRT) is a standardised assessment to measure reading skills of students aged 5-16 years against the national average. Through a variety of exercises, NGRT can assess students’ knowledge of phonics, comprehension, decoding ability, vocabulary, grammatical knowledge, deduction and inference skills, authorial intent, and ability to deal with figurative and idiomatic language.
  • The Lucid Exact provides a comprehensive assessment of literacy from age 11 to 24. Lucid Exact provides precise standardised assessment of word recognition/reading accuracy, reading comprehension, reading speed, spelling, writing to dictation and Keyboarding to dictation.
  • The Lexile Level of a student is measured by their taking a SRI (Scholastic Reading Inventory) test which is specifically designed to measure Lexile or reading ability. The Lexile level will always be shown as a number with an “L” after it — for example 770L = 770 Lexile. The higher the Lexile measure, the higher the student’s reading level.

How does the school promote reading?

  • Guided reading and independent reading. In learning guide time each Friday, pupils are either exposed to articles and extracts from books. These are read as a class, with pupils and teachers reading, followed by discussions based on the text read or they are given an opportunity to read their own books.
  • Pre-reading. Literacy based subjects (RE, History and English) ask pupils to complete pre-reading before each lesson.
  • The Rainham 100. To help students choose entertaining books that will help their literacy levels we've compiled the Rainham 100 - one hundred books that the staff, students and parents believe to be classics and that students should aim to read during their time at the academy. Download the Rainham 100 list of books. Which one will you read next?
  • Regular promotion. We promote weekly new books and books of the week, and also promote books that teachers are reading to encourage conversations between teachers and pupils.
  • Author visit: The HAR library organises author visits throughout the year in school and virtually.
  • Bedrock: All pupils are signed up to Bedrock vocabulary and grammar. This is an online platform which supports students in their reading and vocab development.
  • Meta-cognitive approaches to reading: The simplest definitions of metacognition are “thinking about one’s thinking” or “knowing about knowing.” Metacognition refers to the process of considering and regulating one’s own learning. In reading this means the reader can think critically about their own understanding as they read. Bookmarks with meta-cognitive questions on them are available from the library. There is evidence which suggests the use of ‘metacognitive strategies’ – which get pupils to think about their own learning - can be worth the equivalent of an additional 7+ months’ progress.

How I can support my child with reading at home?

  • Check that they have a book to read for pleasure: the best way to develop a love of reading is to make sure your son or daughter has a book, and one that is appropriate to their age, ability, and interests. This will help them read for pleasure (rather than because they have been told to!).
  • Build time into the day to read: we suggest that each child reads for thirty minutes a day. Where possible this should involve reading aloud to you, a sibling, or even a pet!
  • Make your home a reading environment: this involves having books available, reading to your son or daughter when the opportunity arises, talking about books that you or they have read, and celebrating their successes in their reading development.
  • Phonics: use phonics to help your child sound out new and unfamiliar words. You can find some helpful information on how phonics works on the BBC’s webpage ‘The Alphablocks’ Guide to Phonics’. Books in the Oxford Owl free eLibrary are suitable for students who are at the early stages of developing their reading skills.

Vocabulary development

How does the school teach vocabulary?

  • 2+1: All lessons have three key terms for each lesson. These are two subject-specific terms and one tier two word which will be used in that lesson. Pupils are encouraged to use these words in their written work and verbal responses in lessons.
  • Bedrock: All pupils are signed up to Bedrock vocabulary and grammar. This is an online platform which supports students in their reading and vocab development.

How I can support my child with vocabulary at home?

  • Make your home a talking rich environment: Encourage conversations with your child about any new words they may not have come across before. Talk about ways in which they can use these words in sentences.
  • 2+1: Ask your child what words they learnt in school today – what were their 2+1 words in each lesson.
  • Bedrock: When your child is completing their bedrock for homework, talk it through with them and the meaning of new vocabulary that they may come across.