Reading

At Broad Oak, it is our intention to teach Reading in alignment with our core values.

Intent

Broad Oak Primary School is determined that every pupil will learn to read, regardless of their background, needs or abilities.

To achieve this we ensure that:

• All children develop a love of reading and engage with reading regularly in school and outside the classroom.
• All children will be able to read fluently and confidently by the time they leave Broad Oak Primary School.
• Children are exposed to high quality texts throughout their time at Broad Oak. Stories, poems, rhymes and non-fiction are chosen to develop pupils’ vocabulary, language comprehension and love of reading.
• Children and staff at Broad Oak are kept up to date with the latest developments in children’s reading
• Any children that are not working at an age related level, receive additional support.
• Children are given opportunities to apply their reading skills across the curriculum.
• Children are read to regularly by an adult. This includes a combination of authors, teachers and parents/carers.

Phonics 

At Broad Oak, the teaching of phonics is embedded within English teaching in each class where appropriate. In Nursery, Reception and Year 1, phonics is taught as daily, stand-alone lessons for 20-30 minutes. These lessons are delivered to differentiated groups (aligned with their phonics stage) by teachers and teaching assistants. Phonics is systematically planned using the lesson structure and teaching order of our chosen phonics scheme, Read Write Inc. The Reading leader assesses all pupils in Reception and KS1 every half term and the children are re-grouped accordingly. Those pupils who require additional one to one support to help them keep up receive daily short targeted intervention. Reading books are selected to match the phonic ability of each child.

We follow the National Curriculum. English is both a subject in its own right, but is also essential across the curriculum to empower learners effectively to gain fluency in the English Language. Fluency in the English language is an essential foundation for success in all subjects. We know that spoken language, reading and writing are intricately linked and take every opportunity to make this known to our children.   Our curriculum will develop pupils’ reading in all subjects to support their problem solving efficiently. Children will be taught to read fluently, understand a variety of texts and to read for pleasure. Our curriculum will do everything to promote wider reading, including setting ambitious expectations for reading at home. The majority of teaching reading is through guided reading sessions. Reading consists of a range of complex dimensions:

Phonemic awareness

Phonemes are the smallest units making up spoken language. Phonemes combine to form syllables and words. Phonemic awareness refers to the ability to identify and manipulate these phonemes in spoken words. It is also the understanding that the sounds of spoken language work together to make words.

Using phonics

Phonics is the understanding that there is a predictable relationship between phonemes (the sounds of spoken language) and graphemes (the letters and spellings that represent those sounds in written language). Readers use these relationships to recognise familiar words and to decode unfamiliar ones.

Vocabulary development

refers to the knowledge of stored information about the meanings and pronunciations of words and phrases necessary for communication. Vocabulary development enables pupils to determine if a word/phrase makes sense based on their understanding of the context.

Reading fluency

Fluency is the ability to read words accurately and quickly. Fluent readers recognise words and comprehend them simultaneously. Reading fluency and phrasing is a critical factor necessary for reading comprehension. If children read out loud with speed, accuracy, and proper expression, they are more likely to comprehend effectively on the run.

Comprehension

(both listening and reading) allows pupils to summarise, infer, deduct and retrieve effectively. Comprehension is an active process that requires an intentional and thoughtful interaction between the reader and the text.

Implementation

Reading is taught daily to all pupils from EYFS to Year 6. In Nursery, there is a daily story time with the key text of the week supplemented by other stories either related to the theme or requested by the children from the book corner. Reception pupils also have a RWInc phonics/ reading session in addition to the daily story time. In KS1, pupils receive a daily RWInc phonics and reading session. In Year 2, the texts become progressively longer and pupils are taught comprehension skills in preparation for statutory testing. Pupils in years 2-6 receive whole-class reading sessions three times every week around a planned selection of class texts (approximately one in every half term). During these sessions, the text is read aloud by the teacher and the children respond to the text over a planned sequence of lessons that encompass the skills of vocabulary building, comprehension and responding to the text. This approach is supplemented with two Reading Plus sessions.

Impact

Children make good progress in reading towards clearly identified half termly targets for each year group. Those pupils who begin to fall behind are quickly identified and receive 1:1 or group tuition to help them catch up with their peers.