Intent
By the end of Key Stage Two, we intend for children to be able to:
- Develop an enjoyment of reading
- Produce fluent readers (this includes both word recognition and comprehension of a text)
- Enable children to read and respond to a wide range of literature including fiction, non-fiction and poetry.
Implementation
We achieve these aims by:
- Having an inviting reading environment in all classrooms in addition to the school library.
- Many exciting and rewarding activities occur in school to promote reading for pleasure. This includes world book day, book weeks, visits from authors, and many book fairs.
- Staff also promote reading in all areas of the curriculum and prioritise ensuring children have time in every school day to read. This may be independently, aloud to an adult or to have an adult to read to them.
- Some strategies that are used to encourage reading for pleasure include recommended books, reviewing books and showing children what adults around school are reading.
- In EY and KS1, children have access to e-books which are phonetically linked to our school phonics and reading scheme. They are advised on books according to their reading ability.
- In KS1, each child has a reading record where adults in school and at home can share information about a child’s reading. Adults at home are encouraged to read with their child daily. Information is given on how to support their child in reading at reading workshops and through curriculum letters.
- In KS2, children have opportunities to choose books to take home and read. Adults will advise children on their choices where required. There is a selection of banded books available for children in LKS2 to support appropriate text choices.
- As a school, there is access to the Project X programme which is used as an intervention with children who require additional support in reading as we acknowledge that, although phonics is the primary method of teaching reading, some children require an additional approach. Whichever system is used, the rapid progression to fluent reading is the prime objective.
- In addition to time each day for children to read independently, reading comprehension is taught both discretely as part of English lessons across the week and embedded into theme lessons to provide contexts for reading and to develop subject specific vocabulary.
- Texts chosen for reading comprehension lessons are of a challenging standard for all children. Where possible, they will be linked to themes. However, there is also value in using standalone, quality books and extracts to ensure pupil engagement and progress.
- As a school, we have a subscription to the Power of Reading and Literacy Shed Plus which can both be used to supplement reading comprehension lessons and as a guide to quality texts.
- Reading comprehension lessons focus on a specific text, ensuring coverage of fiction, non-fiction and poetry and learning objectives are driven by the content domains that are tested at the end of each key stage as well as referring to the national curriculum. This includes skills such as skimming, scanning and text marking which are continuously modelled to support retrieval of information precisely and efficiently from a text.
- All children have access to the school library. Here, there is a wide range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry texts for children to borrow from school and take home
- All classrooms have a reading area which is welcoming and inviting for children displaying a range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry texts for children to access
Impact:
- Data shows good progress in reading and this influences writing data
- Children are keen to talk about books with adults and can talk about their preferences
- Children are enthusiastic to read aloud to adults
- Displays show work that children are proud of and children talk about work they are proud of
- Children use influences from books they have read in other subjects
- Children apply learned vocabulary to their theme lessons