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Early Reading

St John the Baptist Catholic Primary School Early Reading Statement

Every child deserves reading success right from the start. We know that the sooner children learn to read, the greater their success at school. This is why we put reading at the heart of what we do. We also know, that to have the highest chance of success in reading, children need to learn to read from books with the sounds they know. With this in mind, all children are given books that carefully match their phonic reading ability according to the ‘Sounds-Write’ programme.

At St John’s, we follow the Sounds-Write phonics programme which is validated by the DfE. This programme ensures we follow a systematic and consistent approach to the teaching of phonics across each year group. Phonic lessons are taught daily in Reception to Year 2, please click this link to find out more information about our phonics approach.

Children are taught to read as soon as they enter our Reception class. Children learn to use and apply their phonic knowledge by reading fully decodable books that match their phonic ability.  

Our Reading Offer

 

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

 

Reception

 

Choral Reading

Small group read with adult

(20 mins)

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Reading for Pleasure

Adults to read 1:1 with vulnerable children/lowest 20%

Daily story time

The EYFS environment allows children to access books throughout the day, both indoors and outdoors.

 

Year 1

 

Choral Reading

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Reading for Pleasure

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Comprehension

Daily story time

 

Year 2

 

Choral Reading

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Small group read with adult (20mins)

Reading for Pleasure

Comprehension

Daily story time

Parental Involvement / Reading at home

Research shows that parental involvement in their children’s learning positively affects the child’s performance at school (Fan & Chen, 2001).

At St John the Baptist, we encourage parents to attend relevant meetings and workshops to help them to support their child at home. We hold meetings annually for our new reception parents that focus on phonics and reading and how parents can best support their child at home. All children have a reading record and are expected to have their reading records in school and to take them home every day. We maintain high expectations that all children should be reading and re-reading their home reading books for ten minutes every day and have stories read to them at home. Children will keep their reading book for a week. There is no limit on how many times they can read it, as re-reading the same book develops word reading and fluency. Parents are expected to write comments in their child’s reading record to show that they are reading daily and as a way of communicating, when appropriate, with their child’s teacher about their reading.

Reading for Pleasure

Evidence suggests that reading for pleasure leads to increased attainment. Clark and DeZoya (2011) found a significant positive relationship between enjoyment and attainment indicating that pupils who read more are also better readers.

At St John the Baptist, we have a strong ethos around the importance of reading and having a lifelong love of books. We have a determined approach towards teaching reading and we also recognise that children need to have very regular opportunities for reading for pleasure. Each class has reading for pleasure sessions. During this quiet and relaxed time, children can choose to read their home reading book or books available in their classrooms independently or with adult support where appropriate. Adults in the classroom may also read a book of their choice as a way of modelling this practice.

In addition to their reading book children will also choose a reading for pleasure book to take home and share with an adult. Children will change this book during their reading for pleasure session.

In addition to this, each class enjoys listening to a class story daily. These books are carefully chosen in order to expose children to a broad range of vocabulary and to provide purposeful opportunities to discuss important aspects of British values, mental health, well-being and citizenship, thus developing children’s cultural capital.

To further promote reading for pleasure a reading club takes once a week at lunchtime. Children can read quietly, in pairs or be read to by an adult. There are a range of different reading materials that the children can access and explore such as comics, magazines, non-fiction and fiction books.