English Language
- Our Department’s Vision
Critical Readers, Effective Communicators
Curriculum and Pedagogy Approach
North View’s English Language Department adopts a three-pronged approach in our curriculum to cater to the diverse learning needs of our students.
Our curriculum and pedagogy approach is built on the guiding principles of the English Language Syllabus 2020, which focuses on the development, reinforcement and extension of language use through an enjoyment of the language and the promotion in extensive reading.
To support the enactment of the English Language Syllabus 2020, the department leverages on the Strategies for English Language Learning and Reading 2.0 (STELLAR 2.0) curriculum. STELLAR 2.0 continues to develop students who love reading and have a strong foundation in the English Language. It also prepares our students for language learning and use in the 21st century, going beyond the basic notion of literacy to include multiple competencies so that our students can capitalise on the rich opportunities of the digital age.
Key Programmes
- Read, Enjoy and Discover (REaD)
The objective of the REaD programme is to build a school-wide reading culture.
School Environment
The department collaborates actively with the National Library Board (NLB) to showcase novel and interesting titles during Book Buzz assembly talks. The public library’s collection is also brought to the students during Books 2 Go mass borrowing sessions held in the school.
Common Reading Spaces are set up within the school to promote a positive and conducive reading environment.
We also screen stories during the various recesses to showcase the multimodal representation of texts.
School Library Activities
The school library is not only a place where students borrow books to read, but also a hub for student activities to take place.
The scheduled REaD periods provide opportunities for students to go to the library on a regular basis to borrow new titles.
Library activities are carried out during recesses to introduce new titles and highlight noteworthy authors and titles.
Classroom Instruction
The department has developed a sustained silent reading programme known as GRIP10 (Guiding Readers with Interest & Pleasure for 10 minutes a day) to develop a community of keen readers who share the pleasure of reading with their classmates.
In addition, students also subscribe to the Scholastic Literacy Pro web-based reading portal. It is a digital reading tool that determines students’ Lexile Scores and, promotes independent and extensive reading at students’ convenience. Teachers make use of the information and insights from the portal to better understand their students’ needs and facilitate reading development. A curated list of books is also generated from the students’ Lexile Score. Such books correspond with the student’s current reading score so that they will read without frustration and enjoy the reading process.
- Good English Movement (GEM)
The department’s Good English Movement (GEM) encourage students to speak in grammatically correct English that is universally understood.
Through the GEMs of NVPS award, we recognise students who are good role-models in the speaking of Standard English.
- English Language Fiesta (ELF)
The annual English Language Fiesta (ELF) hopes to provide the avenue for students to enjoy the language outside their classrooms, and at the same time, develop love and appreciation for it. During the week long fiesta, students take part in a series of language-related competitions and activities.
- Creative Writing Programme
The Creative Writing Programme is offered to selected P4 and P5 students. It seeks to enhance students’ literary understanding of the styles and traditions of both prose and poetry through the application of critical and theoretical approaches to the reading and analysis of literary texts. Students become more confident in expressing themselves in the written form through the use of appropriate word choices and a distinct writer’s ‘voice’.