Vcop

V.C.O.P. is a core component of Ros Wilson's Big Writing method for raising standards in writing that has been implemented in thousands of primary schools throughout the United Kingdom and around the world. The method relates to the English language only.

History

Ros Wilson developed her Criterion Scale to standardise the assessment of over twenty thousand pieces of children’s writing between October 1999 and October 2002. As an associated project setting short-term targets for children, it became evident that there were 'Four Generic Targets' for writing, Vocabulary, Connectives, Openers and Punctuation or V.C.O.P.. This was true regardless of the age or level of writing skill of all pupils writing within Level 2 and above. Further work and assessment led to the realisation that the Four Generic Targets that ‘grow’ as the pupil’s writing skill grows.

Wilson was able to refine her method during a period working in Qatar, whilst helping to establish an English speaking school near the city of Doha. All of the staff were trained to employ her method for teaching writing across the school and the results were remarkable. Upon her return to the U.K., she published her first book with Kirklees LEA and subsequent titles documenting the method with Andrell Education Ltd.

Description

V.C.O.P. and Big Writing itself are all based on the premise If a child can't say it, they can't write it!. Big Writing and its associated strategies stress the importance of talk and that 'boys love to talk and what is good for the boys is good for the girls!'

As opposed to discussing subordinate clauses etc with children, V.C.O.P. simplifies matters to discuss:

  • V: The range of ambitious vocabulary a pupil knows; WOW words.
  • C: The range of ways pupils have of joining ideas, phrases & sentences
  • O: The strategies pupils have for opening sentences; especially the 3 key openers: connectives, ‘ly’ words & ‘ing’ words
  • P: The range of punctuation a pupil can use & the accuracy with which they use it.

Pupils are encouraged to be ambitious, to up-level their work and pay attention to their use of V.C.O.P., which with The Punctuation Pyramid, becomes a toolkit for writing at a higher level. Stealing and borrowing are encouraged when pupils see elements of V.C.O.P. in peers' work that they like. The concept is simple, that children do not need to understand the educationalist terminology to use the skills in their work.

References