Our reading curriculum is designed to enable our pupils to read for enjoyment, confidently, fluently, accurately and with understanding. Pupils will gain an appreciation of books from a variety of genres, while being encouraged to read with enjoyment and to evaluate and justify their preferences. It develops children’s understanding of vocabulary and the techniques authors use to show meaning, build atmosphere and add clarity. Through reading and well-chosen literature, pupils have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually.

Timetabling: We have daily guided or shared reading sessions and story time. In addition to this, children are provided with opportunities to read during the day both within and distanced from the English lesson.

Shared Reading: The whole class shares a text once a week, which links to cross-curricular learning, or is an extract from a specific group’s text. Shared reading provides a context for teacher modelling, teaching and applying of a specific reading skill (VIPERS) which has been identified through assessment as a whole-class need.

Guided Reading: Guided reading takes place in a group, with a teacher or teaching assistant, and focuses on developing children’s attainment to become independent readers, thinkers and learners. Groups will read with a teacher a minimum of once every two weeks, but most children receive weekly or twice weekly guided reading sessions. This is dependent on attainment. Children are grouped by attainment and read individual copies of the same text, which matches the reading level of the group. Narrative texts are selected so that children can foster an excitement of following a story. Guided reading with KS1 uses a combination of phonics work (to promote children’s blending and decoding skills) and other guided reading strategy work (to promote comprehension). The teacher / teaching assistant shares the key objective(s) for the session with pupils – which link to one of the VIPERS reading skills, assesses pupils’ progress within the session, and makes notes, by exception, to inform next steps.

Independent Reading Time: Children read material which interests them, to assist them in fostering a genuine love of reading and help them to appreciate its value.

Story Time: Texts that are age appropriate and of interest to the children are read aloud by the teacher. We believe that giving children the opportunity to hear and adult / teacher read to them, develops a child’s ability to comment on and respond to events and experiences within a text. These sessions also allow the teacher to check a child’s comprehension, by asking literal and inferential questions, which aid deeper understanding of the plot and themes of the story, also increasing their vocabulary.

Library Skills: We are lucky at Mead Vale to have a vast, well-stocked library. Children access the library for research purposes, when appropriate, developing skills needed to locate and effectively use information. Classes have weekly slots when they can access the library to choose books and enjoy story time.

Home / School Reading: In EYFS, children are given 100% decodable books to read at home and in school, which match to the phonics programme. From year 1, children take home book banded (colour-coded) reading books, which are suitable for their reading attainment (these books are often from a range of reading schemes) to read at home and in school during independent reading time. When children have progressed through all book bands the children join the ‘Accelerated Reader’ program.

Reading Partners: We are fortunate at Mead Vale to have members of staff dedicated to the improvement of reading across the school. Our reading partners work specifically with our pupil premium children to ensure that all of our children have the opportunity to excel in reading. Reading sessions typically last 20-30 minutes and involve 1:1 reading support.

Parental Involvement: Parents are urged to share books with their children and hear their children read at home five times a week. Parents are encouraged to use the reading prompts and make relevant comments about their child’s reading or understanding in their reading record book. We encourage all of our children to read at least three times a week. We engage in reading challenges and competitions to promote reading at home and support reading for pleasure and a life-long love of reading.

Accelerated Reader: AR is a computer program that helps teachers manage and monitor children’s independent reading practice. Children choose a book at their own level and read it at their own pace. When finished, children take a short quiz online - passing the quiz is an indication that children have understood what has been read. Children using AR, choose their own books to read within a designated reading ‘zone’, rather than having one assigned to them. This makes reading a much more enjoyable experience as they feel in control and can choose books that are interesting to them. Teachers, the year six librarians or an LSA will help your child choose books that are at an appropriate reading level. These will be challenging without being frustrating and will also be at a level at which children can pass the quizzes and experience success.