Reading

Reading Curriculum Statement

Intent
Reading is a fundamental part of everything we do at Flintham. At FPS we value reading as an essential life skill, and we are dedicated to enabling our pupils to become lifelong readers and develop that love of reading which will never leave them. We believe reading is the key to academic success and so to ensure this we have a holistic approach to the teaching of reading. Children are exposed to high quality texts across the school and reading skills are taught explicitly in all year groups. Alongside the skills of decoding and comprehension, book talk encourages children to think as a reader and discuss their preferences, likes and dislikes.

Implementation
Early reading is prioritised in EYFS and KS1. It is underpinned by the coherent and systematic phonics scheme, Read Write Inc (RWI). which is taught daily. RWI is a phonics complete literacy programme which helps all children learn to read fluently and at speed so they can focus on developing their skills in comprehension, vocabulary and spelling. Impactful phonics sessions are timetabled from the moment our children start at school as N2s. EYFS and KS1 staff are trained in teaching RWI Phonics to ensure all teaching is to the same high standard following the outlined session structure. Each child is individually tracked. Teachers draw upon observations and continuous assessment to ensure children are stretched and challenged and to identify children who may need additional support. All children are also assessed regularly by our RWI lead teacher so they work with children at the same level. This allows complete participation in lessons. Reading books are completely matched to children’s phonic abilities; there is a clearly coded system and tracking for reading/sound knowledge in EYFS and KS1. The use of phonetically decodable books ensures the application and consolidation necessary for effective decoding. Home/school reading books match each stage of phonics learning. A clear progression through the phonic stages and appropriate books supports the process leading to automaticity and fluency.
Assessment of comprehension is also through shared reading in phonics sessions and the reading of books to the children in KS1 and EYFS.
Children in EYFS and KS1 are read to daily. Children who are unable to achieve the phonics expected standard at the end of Year 2 will proceed to reading intervention support in Year 3. Phonics is continued in KS2 for those who need it including application practice with decodable reading books.
Our school library is being further developed and now has a range of non-fiction, fiction, magazines, newspapers and a variety of reading materials. All books are colour coded.

KS2 Reading is planned through whole class guided reading to cover all National Curriculum reading objectives i.e. recording and retrieving information, inference with evidence, words in context, enhanced meaning and choice, summarising main ideas, comparisons within text. Reading across subjects is greatly encouraged. Reading for pleasure is a cornerstone of our approach and reading is prioritised and promoted across the school the following ways:

Teachers reading to their children. We believe it is fundamental that children are read to and every class teacher regularly reads to and discusses books with their pupils. Progression of texts chosen across school
Daily phonics lessons in EYFS and KS1
Daily Reading Activity in all Classes
Expectation of reading taking place at home. Parental guides with suggested times sent home and available on website
Annual RWI Phonics and Reading Parents Evening
Promotion of ambitious Tier 2 vocabulary across school
Literacy Volunteer once a week
‘Mystery Reader’ in Foundation Class
Teachers’ Favourite books –bought for the library and read in assemblies
Dedicated reading area in every class with a range of high quality texts

Impact
Past KS1 and KS2 SATs papers are used for assessment purposes at the end of the Autumn and Spring Terms. These are undertaken by the whole of the Equals Trusts schools so comparisons can be made. Years 3,4,5 are assessed NfER tests. These are used to see whether children are on track to be working towards the age related expectations, at the age related expectations or exceeding the age related expectations. Assessments are made alongside teacher assessments using their first-hand evidence of how pupils are doing, drawing on whole class guided reading sessions, reading comprehensions and discussions with pupils. Adjustments to reading/phonics interventions are made as and when teachers feel they are needed.
These judgements are quality assured by the English Subject Lead drawing together evidence from pupil interviews -discussing what they remembered about the content they have studied; observations of whole class guided reading sessions; work scrutiny and pupil progress meetings.
End of year impact is a measured through end of key stage assessments in EYFS, Year 2 and Year 6 as well as phonics outcomes in Year 1 and Year 2. Year 3, 4, 5 are assessed using the Summer Term NFER Reading Tests. These judgements will inform the curriculum and whether children are ready for the next stage of their education.

Learning to read is one of the most important things your child will learn at our school. At Flintham Primary School we believe that reading is a vital life skill and one that is high on our priority list. Being able to read fluently enables access to all other areas of the curriculum.
We want your child to love reading – and to want to read for themselves. In reading we aim to develop not only fluency and comprehension but also to foster a life-long love of words, books and stories.

At FPS school we passionately believe that every child will be a reader and are determined to promote children developing a love of reading at school and at home.

• Reading improves concentration – Children have to sit still and quietly so they can focus on the story when they’re reading. Reading also relaxes the body and calms the mind whilst also exercising the connections in the brain.

What Does Reading Do For Our Children?

Reading teaches children about the world around them – Through reading, they learn about people, places and events outside their own experience.
Reading improves a child’s vocabulary, leads to more highly-developed language skills and improves the child’s ability to write well.
Children learn new words as they read as well as seeing how to structure sentences and how to use language effectively.
Reading develops a child’s imagination – When we read we translate the descriptions of people, places and things into pictures.
Reading helps children develop empathy – When we’re engaged in a story, we imagine how the characters are feeling and use our own experiences to imagine how we would feel in the same situation.

Reading Resources
We have put some reading resources together and hope you and your children enjoy accessing them and using them to help with your children’s reading development. Please don’t hesitate to ask if there is anything you need further clarification with.