A Primary 2 boy turns to his friend and asks: “Is this the right way to spell oilcan and toilet paper?”, before writing both correctly on his whiteboard. P2 pupils at St Margaret’s Primary in Johnstone are enjoying the familiar pattern of language time in class.

Two groups in class are doing daily work on the “oi” letter blend. They practise the sound, rediscover learned words then run through their daily list of “tricky words”. Then there’s a bit of “oi” word dictation into their jotters, which reveals few if any errors.

Afterwards, left to write their own lists of words, two boys decide to add some “oy” words - “just for good practice” - and fill their whiteboards with 16 words.

While these children are working on letter blends, another group has gone with nursery nurse Alison Reilly for listening and talking work, where they hear a taped story, then discuss it. Ms Reilly spends a day in St Margaret’s and four other Renfrewshire primary schools as part of the council’s “early intervention” literacy and numeracy scheme.

The head of St Margaret’s, Anne Hutchison, was previously a co-ordinator of the council’s early intervention initiative, launched in 1997. One of the aims of the scheme is to build effective liaison between primary and nursery schools, something Ms Hutchison believes is a significant factor in its success.

P1 teachers learn about their class from nursery colleagues who have already taught them. This means they can set more ambitious targets and avoid wasting time re-teaching basic knowledge such as colour and letters. It is an additional bonus to be able to involve a nursery staff member in the primary teaching programme.

Ms Reilly enjoys the variety of her work with different teachers and classes. In listening and talking work with P1 and 2 at St Margaret’s, she says the programme has given a “sharper focus” to comprehension and discussion work.

The results are obvious. P1 children’s prediction skills are clearly well developed when they offer Goldilocks advice about what she should do next in the bear’s house: “She just shouldn’t go up there!”

All Renfrewshire primaries now do a baseline assessment at P1 and assess again at P2 and 3. This tracks progress in language and maths work.

Performance in national tests show the system is proving its worth. Ms Hutchison says significant numbers of children at St Margaret’s are passing level A early in P2 and are ready to sit Level B by the end of that year.

The council’s curriculum services manager, Liz Jamieson, emphasises the importance of staff training and development in the success of early intervention.

She says: “Teachers have had to take a new and more detailed look at their learning and teaching methodology.” A “refreshed mind-set” makes teachers consider the many different ways in which language and maths may be taught.

They have been encouraged, for example, to take a closer look at research findings to give them ideas for their own practice.

St Margaret’s has adopted the “Jolly Phonics” scheme and P2 teacher Ann Johnston is enthusiastic, saying “the children respond really well to the constant repetition of sounds.”

In maths, more emphasis is placed on spoken work and on “handling” letters and numbers. Magnetic letters and boards let children “make” words. They respond well to a structured use of blocks, for example, learning about tens and units by placing blocks in hoops.

Renfrewshire Council has created a central library of materials for early years. There are story bags with books and toys, to encourage parents to read with their offspring. Similar “Curiosity” kits for P3-P4 include a tape of the stories to encourage independent reading. These kits target boys, with more non-fiction material.

Ms Hutchison emphasises the importance of teachers’ flexibility in early intervention work. One part-timer spends half her week supporting language and maths. She enjoys working closely with nursery colleagues and has seen a rise in attainment. She is also delighted by a significant improvement in childrens’ attitudes to reading and writing.