Reading and Phonics

Reading

At SS John and Monica’s School, all pupils are encouraged to become confident, critical, and independent readers. They read for various purposes and enjoyment, information, and interest.

We aim for pupils to be able to:

• Understand the features of a book and how it works.
• Have an interest in words and their meanings.
• Use a range of reading strategies to help them read with meaning, fluency, accuracy, and expression.
• Use appropriate reading strategies to find and interpret information.
• Reflect on their reading and offer a personal response to a wide range of texts.
• Understand how the format and language change with different genres.
• Use inferential skills to find meaning beyond the literal.
• Appreciate the tools of the writer and the techniques used to involve the reader in the text and to build these strategies into their writing.
• Appreciate the work of individual authors, illustrators and publishers.
• Read for and with other children and adults in various situations.
• Use various resources, including classroom materials, the school and public libraries.
• Use ICT-based reference materials for information.

Shared Reading:

Shared reading is planned for by all class teachers across all age groups and will cover a range of texts and genres. Shared reading opportunities will also take place across all curriculum subjects. Each class has a set of core texts for shared whole-class reading and guided reading sessions.

• In Key Stage 2, each class will read a whole class text for each term.
• In Key Stage 1, each class will read a whole class text for each half term.
• In Reception, the children will listen to and/or read at least one storybook daily during a timetabled storytime.

Guided Reading:

Guided reading sessions for intervention groups take place.

• Each class teacher is responsible for planning guided reading sessions for their children. Each guided reading session will have a learning outcome and an assessment focus.

Independent Reading:

Each class has a reading area with a wide selection of independent, quiet reading books.

We have a well-stocked library, and each class is timetabled to visit the library and select a book every week.

Home Reading: 

All children from Reception to Year 6 are encouraged to read at home; home reading is part of their homework.

• Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 change their home reading books at least once or twice a week and are given two books to share at home with their parents. SEN and children identified as off track in their progress are heard read 1:1 daily in school. All other Key Stage One children are heard read 1:1 at least three times a week.
• The children choose their books from a selection of graded reading books; the books are colour-banded and use various texts and genres.
• The ‘Home Reading Diary’ records the child's book choice. Teachers comment positively on the child’s progress, and parents are encouraged to do the same.
• In Key Stage 2, the “Home Reading Diary” continues, and teachers allow the children to change their reading books weekly. SEN children and children off track are heard read 1:1 daily in lower key stage two.
• Every child in the school has a timetabled lesson once a week in the school Library and has the opportunity to borrow books for reading in class from the Library.
• The school purchases a range of ebooks, including Accelerated Reader and Oxford Owl.

  

Phonics

Children from Reception to Year 2 will follow the 'Essential Letters and Sounds' Phonics Programme. Essential Phonics and Sounds (ELS) is a systematic synthetic Phonics Programme.

This programme 

• is delivered to the whole class
• combines continuous and reactive assessment
• provides robust intervention
• is rigorous and engaging
• supports teachers to ensure the lowest attaining children keep up rather than catch up
• provides immediate, in the lesson intervention
• provides whole school training and supports Reading and Phonics Leads
• incorporates an assessment tracker and analysis dashboard

The programme teaches the children to decode to read words and to encode to spell words.

Teachers assess children and monitor their progress. Teachers will plan progressive work to meet the needs of individual groups of children. 

In Key Stage Two, phonics is taught alongside spelling, and each year, the group has its phonic programme linked to its spelling and grammar programmes of study.

Children are taught to read phonically irregular words by sight, known as the ‘ Common Exception Words. ’ All Year groups have a set of Common Exception Words matched to their Year group programmes of study.

English and Reading Documents