English Reading Subject Leader: Mrs R Dunne
Reading is one of the most important life skills. It promotes achievement and ensures access to the breadth of the curriculum. We teach our pupils to extend their concepts and find information, helping them to learn more when reading. We aim to develop a varied diet of reading, improving focus, concentration and memory. When reading, we become immersed in stories, visualising imagery, opening our minds and opening doors to new and exciting worlds. Books can take us to new places, describing events and people from the past. This year we have focused on expanding our vocabulary and language usage. We have investigated new words and the roots of similar words. This allows us to subconsciously absorb information on sentence and language features, therefore, improving our writing skills.
Intent
Reading is fundamental in order for children to discover and learn vital knowledge. Reading is highly valued and celebrated here at Sedley’s. Children are given many opportunities to read individually, with peers and with adults.
We aim to encourage and foster a love of reading right from the very start of Reception through to Year 6. Early reading is taught through a robust synthetic phonics programme (Little Wandle), guided reading, home reading, reading across the curriculum, regular opportunities for independent reading and hearing quality texts read aloud every day. All of these are essential components as they offer the range of opportunities needed to develop fluent, enthusiastic and critical readers. We want all of our children to enjoy reading, stories and a wide range of texts and genres.
Implementation
Our curriculum is developing and evolving, as we recognise the importance of adapting to the needs and interests of our children, therefore we choose a range of high-quality texts for use in the classroom. These are carefully planned out and link with our learning themes across the school. We aim to develop a language-rich environment by exposing all children to a wide range of genres that explore a variety of themes and are written by a range of authors. We encourage children to read from a selection of books and we ensure that reading is happening regularly across the school in a variety of ways. Opportunities for reading are embraced across the whole curriculum.
Parents are valued in their contributions to supporting reading and all children are expected to regularly read at home, using their chosen text and also other books that are read for even wider enjoyment. As part of our recognition of the significant input from parents, we have provided workshops and opportunities for learning about phonics and early reading, so that help at home can be of a high standard leading to a greater impact on progress and enjoyment.
We celebrate reading and recognise the efforts and achievements of all children.
Impact
We are determined that every pupil will learn to read, and we closely assess and review progress in order to ensure gaps are addressed. Our children are enthusiastic in their reading approach and we are developing confident readers that are able to access wider learning by applying their skills.
Accelerated Reader
At Sedley’s C of E Primary School, the children from Year Two upwards follow Accelerated Reader. Class teachers will decide when it is appropriate for the children to start using Accelerated Reader. A child needs to have some fluency in their reading as this programme does not help children learn to read – it consolidates their learning and promotes reading comprehension rather than decoding and word reading skills.
Accelerated Reader is a computer program that helps teachers manage and monitor children’s independent reading practice. Children, with the support of their class teacher, pick a book at their own level and read it at their own pace. When finished, the children take a short quiz on the computer or iPad. (Passing the quiz is an indication that the child understood what was read).
If a child does not do well on the quiz, the teacher may help them choose another book that is more appropriate or ask more probing questions as they read, and before they take their next quiz. In most cases, children really enjoy taking the quizzes. Since they’re reading books at their reading and interest levels, they are likely to be successful. This is satisfying for most children. Best of all, they learn and grow at their own pace.
English Reading in Each Stage
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Recommended Books for Reception
For more recommended reading, please visit the EYFS Class page
To read our Phonics and Early Reading Policy, please visit the policy page.
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Click the links below to view recommended texts for year 1 and year 2:
Recommended Texts for Year One
Recommended Texts for Year Two
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Click the links below to view recommended texts for year 3-6:
Recommended Texts for Year Three
Recommended Texts for Year Four
Recommended Texts for Year Five
Recommended Texts for Year Six
English Reading Progression
Reading Vipers is our toolkit for teaching the range of reading skills needed. It enables the identification of the key areas of reading and helps to give us prompts and questions to use in order to develop a range of reading strategies. As your child becomes a more fluent reader, the Vipers areas of reading will help to continue to challenge and teach a range of reading skills.
When progressing, young readers will, at a particular stage, successfully make the leap into their first chapter of books. Please click here to help pupils pick a selection of short, illustrated chapter books that are perfect for children launching into independent reading.
Assessments
Assessments are used to monitor progress and to identify any child needing additional support as soon as they need it. This is evaluated daily within the class to identify children needing ‘Keep-up support’. Each week teachers use ‘Review lessons’ to assess gaps, address these immediately and secure fluency of GPCs, words and spellings.
Every six weeks teachers will perform a ‘summative assessment’ to assess progress, identify gaps in learning that need to be addressed, identify any children needing additional support and plan the ‘Keep-up support’ that they need.
Through the Senior Leadership Team and the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised assessment tracker, teachers will be able to narrow attainment gaps between different groups of children and offer any additional support needed.
Children in Year 1 will sit the Phonics Screening Check. Any child not passing the check will re-sit this in Year 2.
Ongoing assessments will continue for children in years 2 to 6 through their teacher’s ongoing formative assessment as well as through the half-termly Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised summative assessments.
SEND Information
Teachers adapt activities for accessibility for SEND groups and challenge more able and confident readers. Additional reading support is available for vulnerable children.
Children in Reception and Year 1 who are receiving additional phonics ‘Keep-up sessions’ read their reading practice book to an adult daily, this ensures consistency and pace of progress.
Remote Learning
As a parent, you are your child’s first and most important teacher. When you help your child learn to read, you are opening the door to a world of books and learning.
Reading aloud to children is the best way to get them interested in reading. Before long they will grow to love stories and books. Eventually, they will want to read on their own.
With the help of parents, children can learn how to read and can practise reading until they can read for their own enjoyment. Then they will have a whole world of information and knowledge at their fingertips!
Reading can be a family activity. Spending time with word games, stories, and books will help your child to:
• gather information and learn about the world
• learn how stories and books work – that they have beginnings, endings, characters, and themes
• build a rich vocabulary by reading and talking about new words
• learn how to listen and how think
• learn the sounds of language and language patterns
• fall in love with booksIt’s natural to want to compare your child’s reading abilities with those of other children of the same age, but not all children develop reading skills at the same pace.
What’s important is that you are aware of your child’s reading level so that you can choose books and activities that will help him or her improve. Use the tips in this guide and work with your child’s teacher and others to improve your child’s reading skills.
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