At Our Lady’s, we believe that literacy is foundational to all learning and essential for every child to flourish. Guided by the MACS Vision for Instruction and the principles of equity, access, and participation, we are committed to ensuring all learners are empowered through language to shape their lives and contribute to a just and compassionate world.

We implement the Victorian Curriculum: English and the EAL (English as an Additional Language) Curriculum, providing a structured and inclusive framework that supports all learners, including those from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

English is central to learning across the curriculum. Through rich experiences in Speaking and Listening, Reading and Viewing, and Writing, students develop the ability to communicate effectively, think critically, and engage meaningfully with others and the world around them.

We recognise oral language as the cornerstone of literacy development. We provide opportunities for students to build vocabulary, express ideas, and construct meaning through diverse modes of communication, both linguistic and non-linguistic.

Our aim is to foster confident communicators, imaginative thinkers, and informed citizens who can actively participate in contemporary and future contexts – locally and globally. Literacy learning at Our Lady’s supports students to become collaborative, reflective, and adaptive learners who work from evidence and lead with faith and courage.

We are committed to honouring and including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives and texts, and to celebrating the richness of Australia’s diverse literary heritage.

By developing deep understandings of language and meaning-making, we empower students to access all learning, realise their goals, and become agents of change in an evolving world.

To ensure this vision is realised in practice, we:

• Use both the Victorian Curriculum: English and the EAL Curriculum to guide planning, instruction, and assessment
  
  
• Ensure inclusive and equitable access to English learning for all students, particularly those from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds
  
  
• Engage in collaborative planning between year-level teams and the Literacy Leader, using the Teaching and Learning Cycle (Bruner and Vygotsky) to scaffold learning
  
  
• Implement structured planning stages: Setting the Context, Modelling and Deconstruction, Joint Construction, and Independent Construction
  
  
• Document weekly literacy programs that include clearly identified, differentiated teaching groups based on assessment data
  
  
• Use a variety of assessment tools and scheduled evaluations within grade levels to monitor student learning and inform planning (see Assessment Schedule – Appendix)
  
  
• Engage in ongoing professional learning to ensure instructional practices are evidence-based, reflective, and responsive
  
  
• Learning experiences are designed to embed multiliteracies and develop 21st-century skills by integrating digital tools, fostering collaboration, and encouraging critical thinking across disciplines.
  
  
• Integrate literacy across the curriculum, including within Faith-Life Inquiry units
  
  
• Implement Discovery Learning in Foundation to Year 2, with a focus on oral language, content-specific vocabulary, and language of social interaction
  
  
• Deliver targeted Literacy Intervention Programs based on student needs and informed by data
  
  
• Use rich literature to support deep thinking, reflection, and engagement with diverse cultural and social perspectives
  
  
• Support students to understand and use language appropriately for audience, purpose, and context
  
  
• Teach students to create a variety of texts — to entertain, inform, and persuade — using strong vocabulary and clear structure
  
  
• Enrich learning with authentic experiences such as excursions, author visits, and whole-school events
  
  
• Engage students in literacy experiences that include:
  
  
• Clear learning intentions and inquiry-based learning questions
  
  
• Opportunities for critical and creative thinking, vocabulary development and rich discussion
  
  
• Whole-class focus, small group instruction, and opportunities for reflection
  
  
• Differentiation and personalisation to meet diverse needs
  
  
• Use of contemporary tools and digital technologies
  
  
• Student goal-setting and regular feedback
  
  
• Independent and collaborative learning tasks

Leadership, Collaboration and Support Structures

The Literacy Team, in collaboration with classroom teachers, plays a key role in driving improvement in English across the school. Using the Annual Action Plan, the Literacy Leader works with Leadership and Curriculum teams to set directions for improvement. The team supports Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) and planning, facilitates the use of data to inform differentiated instruction, and provides in-class support through modelling, team teaching, coaching, and resource management. The team also manages testing schedules, monitors progress, and ensures alignment with current initiatives in English education.

Classroom teachers are expected to use student data to guide instruction, participate in PLCs and planning sessions, document weekly literacy programs with targeted groups, and liaise with the Literacy Team regarding resourcing needs.