Reading at St Gregory’s

It is with great determination that we strive to engender a lifelong love of reading and language through the immersion of stories and texts that interest, inspire and excite our children. We strive for children to read a variety of genres and use these as models for their own writing.  

The staff at St Gregory’s are committed to providing a reading culture and supporting children in developing good reading habits that will support them throughout their education, in their personal life and beyond.   It is our vision that these exciting materials and opportunities will inspire our children to write.

Encouraging children of all abilities to emulate the writing styles of famous authors and in turn inspiring a generation of children to use word choice and style to engage the reader and eventually lead to them being innovators of their own masterpieces, producing writing that they feel proud to read aloud; knowing that others will enjoy. 

English Speaking and Listening  
Pupils at St Gregory’s are taught to speak clearly and convey ideas confidently using standard English. We encourage children to justify their ideas with reasons; ask questions to check understanding; develop vocabulary; negotiate; evaluate and build on the ideas of others and select the appropriate register for effective communication.   It is evident to anyone who visits St Gregory’s that there is an ethos where children feel safe and valued, thus encouraging them to interact in a respectful and expressive manner.   The classroom environments are stimulating and creative and there is a rich diet of vocabulary in and around the school, which enhances the speaking and listening skills taught.   Each week in our Celebration Assemblies the children speak with clarity and enthusiasm as they share the work they have completed throughout the week.   The children regularly take part on leading worships and church services. We encourage children to show respect and respond to the views of other children and adults in an appropriate way and this is done at every point of the school day, not just in focused English lessons.

Reading for Pleasure

Reading for pleasure is at the heart of all that we do here at St Gregory’s and we have pupils that have developed the habit and passion for reading regularly and widely. The vast array of opportunities supports the children in becoming skilled in reading, but most importantly our children love nothing more than getting lost in the pages of a book.   Early reading is high on our agenda and we recognise that the early years of a child’s life are crucial. The experiences that we offer the children in the EYFS and Year 1 are fundamental in laying the foundations for future reading success.  
Reading interest is sparked in our children from day one and children have picture books to read, leading to phonic based books and on to more complex novels as they reach KS2.   Class libraries, mystery readers, daily reading, our Reading Dog, initiatives to encourage regular reading and celebrations of authors are just some of the many experiences we provide for our children.

Reading

Intent

At St Gregory's we believe that a quality English curriculum should develop children’s love of reading.  We want to foster a lifelong love of reading by exposing our children to various literature across all curriculum areas. We believe that reading opens up a new world for children and gives them the opportunity to explore new ideas, visit new places, meet new characters and develop a better understanding of other cultures.

Through building up children’s vocabulary, we give them the word power they need to become successful speakers and writers as well as confident readers. Reading is a key life skill and we strive to embed a culture of reading into the core of what we do. Children have opportunities to read independently and be read aloud to as well as having opportunities to discuss and recommend books they have read to their peers.

Reading of quality literature is interwoven into our curriculum through the use of key texts to expose our children to various genres and authors and to enhance the variety of topics that we teach.  We reflect the diversity of our nation in our English curriculum promoting equality and tolerance each and every day.  Our reading material is carefully chosen to show progression through and across the year groups.

We understand the importance of parents and carers in supporting their children to develop both word reading and comprehension skills so we want to encourage a home school partnership which enables parents and carers to understand how to enhance the skills being taught in school, as such, we offer regular parent information sessions and provide opportunities to talk about their children’s progress in reading.

Implementation

Reading is a vital skill that will support children’s learning across the whole curriculum. As a school, we ensure that our children are taught to read with fluency, accuracy and understanding. We want our children to become enthusiastic, independent and reflective readers. Reading is taught regularly right through school from Reception.

Within Reception, reading is taught through both literacy focussed activities such as Drawing Club based on books and through specific teaching using the Little Wandle phonics programme. In EYFS and KS1, assessments are made every term to ensure the children are learning at the appropriate stage. Phonics is taught daily.  The skills of reading comprehension are taught discretely throughout KS2 during whole class reading lessons each day. In these lessons, a wide range of high-quality extracts are used to support the teaching of reading. 

At St Gregory’s we have a lwonderful ibrary stocked with fiction and non-fiction books all colour coded. Children are free to access the main library and take home books which are of interest to them.  In addition, every classroom has a well-stocked library from which children can take books home.

At St Gregory’s, we identify children who need support and provide intervention in the most effective and efficient way that we can. We run intervention reading groups. Many children on the SEND register have reading and comprehension as one of their targets. We help each child maximise their potential by providing help and support where necessary whilst striving to make children independent readers once we have helped to equip them with the confidence, tools and strategies that they need.

We love to celebrate success of all learners and strive to help all children achieve their goals. Reading is celebrated in classrooms and around school at St Gregory’s. In addition, throughout the school year our English curriculum is enhanced through World Book Day, drama workshops, whole school book weeks, author visits and a range of trips and visits which enrich and complement children’s learning.

Impact

The outcome of phonics teaching at our school will be that children will have a secure knowledge of phonics, enabling them to become confident readers, making expected progress or more, with a life-long love of reading. Children will be able to apply their phonic knowledge to confidently spell many words either correctly or phonetically using the sounds they have learnt. They will know spelling alternatives for different sounds and be able to apply these consistently.

By the end of LKS2 we expect our children to:

·    have decoding skills that are secure and hence vocabulary is developing.

·    Be independent, fluent and enthusiastic readers who read widely and frequently.

·    Be developing their understanding and enjoyment of stories, poetry, plays and non-fiction and learning to read silently.

·    Be developing their knowledge and skills in reading non-fiction about a wide range of subjects.

·    Be able to justify their views independently about what they have read.

By the end of Year 6 we expect our children to read sufficiently fluently and effortlessly with understanding of age appropriate interest level in readiness for secondary school.

       We would also expect our children to:

·    Have a love of reading that feeds the imagination

·    Read widely across both fiction and non-fiction, developing knowledge of themselves and the world in which they live.

·    Have a developed vocabulary beyond that used in everyday speech

Library

Children have opportunities to visit the school Library on a daily basis. Children are encouraged to read for pleasure at home and at school and the books stocked in the library are chosen and organised by the children themselves. Furthermore, St Gregory’s collaborates with the local library and invites them in to speak to both children and parents with children taking part in the Summer Reading Challenge.   Our library is manned by our team of Junior Librarians. They open the library daily and recommend books to their peers. Our library is also open to the Jungle Hut Pre School, who visit to use our facility regularly.  

Phonics at St Gregory’s

At St Gregory's School we believe that for all our children to become fluent readers and writers, phonics must be taught through a systematic and structured phonics programme.

We use the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised to plan and provide daily engaging phonics lessons. In phonics, we teach children that the letters of the alphabet represent a different sound, that these can be used in a variety of combinations and are put together to make words. The children learn to recognise all of the different sounds and combinations that they might see when they are reading or writing.

Our phonics teaching starts in Reception and follows a very specific sequence that allows our children to build on their previous phonic knowledge and master specific phonic strategies as they move through school. As a result, all our children are able to tackle any unfamiliar words that they might discover. At St Gregory's we also model these strategies in shared reading and writing both inside and outside of the phonics lesson and across the curriculum. We have a strong focus on the development of language skills for our children because we know that speaking and listening are crucial skills for reading and writing in all subjects.

Why learning to read is so important

• Reading is essential for all subject areas and improves life chances.
• Positive attitudes to reading and choosing to read have academic, social and emotional benefits for children.

How children learn to read

• Phonics is the only route to decoding.
• Learning to say the phonic sounds.
• By blending phonic sounds to read words.
• Increasing the child’s fluency in reading sounds, words and books.

Reading fully decodable books

• Children must read books consistent with their phonic knowledge.
• It is essential not to use other strategies to work out words (including guessing words, deducing meaning from pictures, grammar, context clues or whole word recognition).  
• Books must be fully decodable and follow the Little Wandle scheme
• Children need to read books in a progressive sequence until they can decode unfamiliar words confidently.

The role of Parents’ and Carers’ 

• Have a positive impact on their child’s reading.
• Should model the importance of reading practice to develop fluency.
• Children take home books they have read at school to re-read at home to build fluency.
• There are two different types of books that pupils bring home: reading practice and books to share for pleasure.
• Reading at home encourages a love of books, along with developing vocabulary and discussion.
• Parents should use voices, expression, discuss unfamiliar vocabulary, talk about the pictures, and predict what might happen next.

Supporting your child with reading

Although your child will be taught to read at school, you can have a huge impact on their reading journey by continuing their practice at home.

There are two types of reading book that your child may bring home:

A reading practice book

This will be at the correct phonic stage for your child. They should be able to read this fluently and independently.

A sharing book

Your child will not be able to read this on their own. This book is for you both to read and enjoy together.

Reading practice book

This book has been carefully matched to your child’s current reading level. If your child is reading it with little help, please don’t worry that it’s too easy – your child needs to develop fluency and confidence in reading.

Listen to them read the book. Remember to give them lots of praise – celebrate their success! If they can’t read a word, read it to them. After they have finished, talk about the book together.

Sharing book

In order to encourage your child to become a lifelong reader, it is important that they learn to read for pleasure. The sharing book is a book they have chosen for you to enjoy together.

Please remember that you shouldn’t expect your child to read this alone. Read it to or with them. Discuss the pictures, enjoy the story, predict what might happen next, use different voices for the characters, explore the facts in a non-fiction book. The main thing is that you have fun!

Videos

These three videos show you how to pronounce the sounds. Notice how the children don’t add an ‘uh’ sound at the end, so they say: ‘t’ not ‘tuh’.