What is oracy?

 

"Writing and everything else floats on a sea of talk."

At Healdswood Infant and Nursery School, we believe oracy is a vital skill in order to support our pupils to develop in all areas of the curriculum. Oracy describes both the act of learning to talk and learning through talk. We know that children who can communicate clearly feel more able to participate in class discussions and communicate their understanding in assessments. Developing strong speaking and listening skills has a positive impact across all areas of learning. It helps children become more confident, strengthens their writing, supports their wellbeing, develops social and problem-solving skills, and enriches their language and understanding of the world. These lifelong skills also help prepare our students for future education, employment and life beyond school. That is why oracy is at the heart of everything we do.

 

Our children are encouraged to explore ideas through:

• Talk
• Listening to each other
• Building on and challenging each other’s opinions and develop their own reasoned arguments
• Talking in full sentences with a clear and confident voice to a variety of audiences.

 

Why Oracy matters?

By helping students become confident speakers and thoughtful listeners, we enable them to understand themselves, build positive relationships with others, and engage with the world around them with confidence and respect.

• Speaking and listening skills are critical foundations for reading and writing.
• Students with better oral language skills are more likely to achieve the highest grades in GCSE Maths and English.
• Young people with good communication skills are less likely to have mental health difficulties.

At Healdswood Infant and Nursery School, we put Oracy at the heart of our teaching and learning across all subject areas, enabling students to develop and deepen their knowledge and understanding through talk in the classroom.

We help every child develop the confidence and communication skills they need to express themselves clearly and respectfully. Through regular opportunities to talk, listen, discuss and present, our students learn to share their ideas with confidence in a wide range of situations.

 

The Oracy Framework

From Nursery to Year 2, we have introduced The Oracy Framework. This breaks down Oracy skills into different strands, allowing our children to grasp a deeper understanding of how we can develop and improve our speaking and listening skills.

The four key strands of the Oracy framework are:

• Physical aspects – how we use our voice and body to communicate;
• Linguistic aspects – how we structure what we say and choose appropriate vocabulary;
• Cognitive aspects – staying focused whilst speaking and when listening to others, asking appropriate questions and explaining opinions using reasons;
• Social & emotional aspects – working with others, listening and responding, increasing confidence.

 

Every class has developed its own Discussion Guidelines. These shared agreements, created together with the students, help to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to speak, be listened to, and feel respected.

 

 

At Healdswood Infant and Nursery School, we nurture confident communicators who can express their ideas, listen with respect and thrive in every aspect of school life.

 

“If you can speak, you can influence.

If you can influence, you can change lives.”

 

Queries

The school's Oracy Lead is Miss Stretton-Clarke.

If you have any questions about the school's Oracy journey, please contact Miss Stretton-Clarke via the school office.