Reading, Phonics & Spelling
“Reading is the gateway skill that unlocks opportunity.” — Barack Obama
Reading at the Heart of Our School
Reading is at the heart of everything we do. We believe that learning to read fluently and with understanding is the key that unlocks all other learning. Our reading curriculum is carefully designed so that every child develops confidence, enjoyment and a lifelong love of reading.
How Children Learn to Read
Early Reading and Phonics
Children begin their reading journey with ELS Phonics, where they learn to recognise sounds, blend them into words and read with accuracy. Secure phonics knowledge is essential, as fluent decoding allows children to focus on understanding what they read, rather than on working out individual words.
Once children have completed ELS Phonics, they move on to Oxford Reading Tree books. These carefully structured books help children practise accuracy and build automaticity in reading. Re-reading familiar texts helps children recognise more words ‘at a glance’, which steadily increases fluency and confidence.
Moving On to Accelerated Reader
When children are ready, they progress to Accelerated Reader (AR). This system ensures that children always read books that are pitched at the right level for them.
-
Children complete a Star Quiz each term, which gives them a ZPD (Zone of Proximal Development) range.
-
This ZPD range helps children choose books that provide the right balance of challenge and success.
-
After finishing a book, children complete an online quiz to check their understanding.
This approach supports strong comprehension while keeping reading enjoyable and motivating.
Developing Fluency and Comprehension
Fluent decoding allows children to focus on meaning. As reading becomes more automatic, children can:
-
Connect words and sentences
-
Make links across a text
-
Think deeply about what they have read
As fluency improves, motivation increases. Children begin to enjoy reading more and are keen to read often.
To support this, all children:
-
Take part in daily reading lessons each morning, using carefully chosen, high-quality texts from Doug Lemov’s reading spine
-
Develop comprehension skills every day after lunch, using rich and engaging texts
-
Enjoy shared reading in class at the end of each day, helping to build a love of stories and language
Our Library and Love of Reading
Our beautiful school library sits at the very heart of the school. It is full of wonderful fiction and non-fiction books that inspire curiosity, imagination and knowledge.
-
Books are signed in and out using Libresoft, supported by our librarian
-
Children regularly borrow books for pleasure as well as their reading scheme books
-
Every child is provided with a school book bag to help them care for their books
We also have a book vending machine in school. Children can win tokens in Friday assembly or by achieving a perfect score on an Accelerated Reader quiz, which they can then exchange for a book to keep.
In addition, our TARDiS Little Library is shared with the wider village community, encouraging reading for pleasure beyond the school gates.
Reading at Home
Children are encouraged to take home:
-
An Oxford Reading Tree or Accelerated Reader book matched to their reading level
-
A book for pleasure from the school or classroom library
We value the role parents and carers play in supporting reading at home and encourage regular shared reading and discussion about books.
How Parents and Carers Can Help
We know that children make the best progress when school and home work together. Parents and carers play a vital role in developing confident, enthusiastic readers. You can support your child by:
-
Reading regularly at home – little and often makes a big difference. Even 10 minutes a day builds fluency and confidence.
-
Talking about books – ask your child to tell you about the story, characters, facts they’ve learned, or their favourite part.
-
Encouraging re-reading – reading a book more than once helps children read more smoothly and understand it more deeply.
-
Listening to your child read aloud – this helps develop accuracy, expression and confidence.
-
Celebrating success – praise effort, progress and quiz achievements, not just perfect reading.
-
Sharing stories together – reading to your child, even when they can read independently, helps build vocabulary and a love of books.
Your encouragement helps children see reading as enjoyable, valuable and something to be proud of.
Our Commitment
Through a structured approach to phonics, carefully matched reading books, high-quality teaching and a rich reading culture, we ensure that all children leave our school as confident, fluent readers who enjoy reading and are ready to access the wider curriculum.
Reading truly is the key that unlocks everything we do.
