Year 1 English Scheme of Work
In Year 1, pupils build on the phonics knowledge and skills they developed in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Reading and writing are taught together, with a strong focus on decoding, blending and segmenting. Pupils begin to read aloud with growing fluency and confidence, and they start to write simple sentences with correct punctuation.
Spoken language underpins all English learning throughout KS1. Pupils are given frequent opportunities to listen attentively, to respond to what they hear, and to speak clearly in full sentences. Grammar and punctuation are taught explicitly but always in the context of reading and writing meaningful texts.
Expected prior knowledge
- ✓Ability to recognise and write most letters of the alphabet
- ✓Knowledge of all 44 phonemes taught in Phase 1-4 of Letters and Sounds
- ✓Ability to segment and blend CVC words
- ✓Understanding that print carries meaning and that books are read left to right
Units across the year
Six half-term units covering all strands of the KS2 English programme of study.
Sentences and Punctuation
- –Leaving spaces between words
- –Beginning to punctuate sentences using a capital letter and a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark
- –Identifying sentences in shared texts and discussing what makes a complete sentence
- –Practising finger spacing between words using whiteboards
- –Writing simple sentences about a familiar topic using capital letters and full stops
- –Editing own sentences to check for spaces and end punctuation
Nouns and Verbs
- –Using common nouns and proper nouns with a capital letter
- –Using verbs to express actions clearly in writing
- –Sorting picture cards into nouns and verbs and discussing the difference
- –Identifying nouns and verbs in simple sentences from shared texts
- –Writing sentences that include a noun subject and an action verb
- –Playing naming and action games to reinforce parts of speech
Joining Ideas with And
- –Joining words and joining clauses using and
- –Writing sentences with more than one clause
- –Using picture prompts to join two ideas with and
- –Sorting single sentences and compound sentences to compare their structure
- –Writing a short description using and to link ideas
- –Reading aloud compound sentences to develop fluency
Question and Exclamation Marks
- –Using question marks and exclamation marks to demarcate sentences
- –Recognising the difference between statements, questions and exclamations
- –Reading sentences with different end punctuation and discussing meaning and tone
- –Sorting sentences into statements, questions and exclamations
- –Writing a character interview using question marks correctly
- –Performing sentences aloud with appropriate expression
Describing with Adjectives
- –Using adjectives to describe nouns
- –Expanding noun phrases to describe and specify
- –Exploring sensory language through objects in a feely bag
- –Identifying adjectives in picture books and discussing their effect
- –Writing expanded noun phrases to describe story characters
- –Creating a class word wall of descriptive adjectives
Retelling Stories
- –Retelling key stories, fairy stories and traditional tales orally
- –Writing sentences to retell a familiar narrative in sequence
- –Listening to and discussing a traditional tale, identifying key story events
- –Using story maps and story mountains to sequence events
- –Orally retelling the story with a partner before writing
- –Writing a short retelling using time connectives such as first, then, next and finally
Progression into Year 2
In Year 2, pupils will extend their sentence writing to include coordination and subordination, use apostrophes for contraction, and write in both past and present tense. They will read a wider range of texts and begin to make simple inferences.
Individual lesson plans
Full lesson frameworks — learning objectives, vocabulary, lesson structure, and common misconceptions — for each unit in this scheme.
View all Year 1 English lesson plans →