We love READING!
Learning to read and becoming a fluent reader is our main priority and our aim is to teach children to read, so they can read to learn. We want to instil enjoyment of reading and help children progress towards becoming fluent, accurate, independent readers.
We strive to ensure that all pupils learn to read regardless of their background, needs or abilities. All pupils are immersed in a wealth of books from different genres, authors and cultures. At the heart of our reading curriculum is children’s enjoyment of reading. We aim to create an engaging and fun learning environment with reading at the centre of it.
We know that being a fluent reader holds the key to unlocking a world of adventure, fantasy, enjoyment and learning!
At Hardwick Primary, we want our pupils to develop a life-long love of books by exposing them to a range of authors and high quality texts. We aim for all children to become fluent readers with a love of reading through the high quality teaching of phonics and reading skills in order to develop their knowledge of the world in which they live.
How is Reading taught?
Reception and Key Stage 1
In Reception and Key Stage 1, children are taught to read during their daily Read Write Inc. Phonics session. For more information about Read Write Inc. Phonics, please see our English Phonics pages dedicated to this.
Once children complete the Read Write Inc. Phonics programme, they are confident, fluent readers. This will usually happen in Year 2.
Following on from the Read Write Inc. Phonics programme, children move to Accelerated Reader to ensure they are reading the correct level book.
Children in KS1 also take part in a daily 30 minutes Hooked on Books lesson (guided reading). Please see our section on Hooked on Books for more details.
Reading Books – In Reception, the children read their Read Write Inc. Phonics Book Bag books. They also read and take home picture books.
In Year 1 and Year 2 initially, the children take home a copy of an appropriate Read Write Inc. Phonics Book Bag book (assessed at their reading level). These books all fully decodable and include prompts to help parents/carers read with their child at home.
In addition, all children take home a book for reading for pleasure. Practicing reading at home is part of the children’s daily homework.
Key Stage 2
If required, Read Write Inc. Phonics groups are run for children in Years 3 and 4, and we use Read Write Inc. Fresh Start for those who require a boost in Years 5 and 6.
From Year 3 to Year 6, the children choose their reading books from the school library, which is aligned to ‘Accelerated Reader’. To ensure children are reading at the correct level, children take a reading and comprehension skills assessment, which gives a reading point range. Children then choose a reading book from this range, which include a large range of fiction and some non-fiction books, all of which are at their reading level. The majority of our reading books are novels/chapter books from well-known children’s authors, all of which are age appropriate.
After each book is read, the children take an Accelerated Reader online quiz, to assess their comprehension of the book. This allows teachers to monitor the progress of their pupils and ensure they are making progress in reading. Children also take home a book to read for pleasure, which they can choose from the school library.
Please see the Accelerated Reader parent’s guide below for more information.
The Accelerated Reader Bookfinder is a great way to search for books that are in your child’s ZPD range, so if you are going to the local library or a book shop, you can see what books are at your child’s reading level.
Hooked on Books
As a school we are determined to ensure all of our children can read accurately and fluently. Learning to read is the most important thing our children will learn; everything else depends on it, so we put as much energy as we possibly can into making sure that every single child learns to read as quickly as possible.
Hooked on Books, developed by Jane Considine, is a structured, rigorous system for teaching reading, research informed and evidence based.
Key aspects of the Hooked on Books system
A fortnightly cycle of reading lessons consisting of:
- Book Talk (5 lessons) – a whole class comprehension and a targeted group approach, ensuring all individuals are accountable
- Demonstration Reading – the art of modelling the internal thinking of a reader. This is to demonstrate how a reader thinks during the process of ‘reading for meaning’
- Demonstration Comprehension (3 lessons) – clear, out loud thinking by the teacher whilst modelling answers to questions and showcasing ‘thesaurus thinking’ to ensure the most precise words are used.
- Independent Comprehension (2 lessons) – pupils apply their learning by completing comprehension activities.
In Book Talk lessons we use The Reading Rainbow – a fully comprehensive approach that targets reading competencies, covers the National Curriculum and develops understanding. The ‘Reading Rainbow’ consists of;
- The ideas of reading = The FANTASTICs
- The understanding of reading = The STYLISTICs
- The competencies of reading= The ANALYTICs
Reading for Pleasure
We have a brand new library, which is stocked with a range of fiction and non-fiction books from a variety of children’s authors, that children are able to take home to read for pleasure.
In our school library, we use Junior Librarian (Reading Cloud) library management software, so just like the local library, every child has a school library card and books are scanned in and out, so we have a record of exactly what the children have been reading. Children can also search our school library stock, reserve books and do book reviews for others to read.
Hardwick's Reading and Poetry Spines
Using book guides from Pie Corbett, Jane Considine, CLPE and books teachers love, we have created a Reading Journey for each year group/phase. The aim is for the children to read for pleasure, all the books in the spine independently or have them read to them by the time they finish the year group. Have a look at the great books we have chosen:
National Curriculum Reading Progression Map
Useful Websites
Accelerated Reader Bookfinder – Searching for Accelerated Reader books is fun and easy with this free online tool.
Junior Librarian Reading Cloud app – information about the Reading Cloud app available from the Apple App Store or for Android.
Oxford Owl eBook library – Free Ebooks to read online.
Decodable phonics comics – Comics to read online that focus on different phonic sounds.
Love Reading – A fantastic website to explore and find new books to read.
Book Trust – Reading advice for parents.
