Phonics and Reading
Reading at Meadstead
Those who love to read are much more likely to succeed in all subjects and achieve academic success at secondary school and beyond than those who don't.
Key Stage 2 progress in reading was significantly above national and in the highest 20% of all schools in 2019. Reading progress has improved between 2018 and 2019.
We use a wide range of stories, poems, rhymes, and non-fiction texts that develop pupils’ vocabulary, language comprehension and love of reading.
To promote a love of reading at Meadstead, we:
Create class libraries (book corners) which are inviting, well-organised and contain a range of quality texts
Have daily story time sessions (class readers)
Encourage author visits
Display a features from a variety of published authors
Celebrate reading weekly with awards in our celebration assemblies (vending machine)
Provide weekly timetabled library sessions with our school library
Work closely with the local library (Royston Civic Library)
Hold regular parent workshops (Phonics and home reading)
Set reading challenges and whole school incentives
Hold weekly lunchtime clubs, where children can read for pleasure and book talk about text they enjoy with friends on playground and in outdoor library.
The scheme used for early reading is ‘Read write Inc’ complimented by ‘Bug Club’ and 'Oxford Reading Tree' to supliment hookem readers, to ensure children have books that are matched to their reading ability and phonic phase (all schemes are precisely matched). Children have access to online books matched to their phonic phase that they can access in school and at home 'Bug Club'.
In KS2 we promote a love of readning by providing a variety of appropriate textd (fiction/non fiction, newspapers, portey and graphic novels).
All children are expected to bring their reading diaries back to school daily. They take a book home to read for pleasure that the child has individually selected either from the school library or the classroom library. Children who are still learning to decode also take home a book to match their reading level and phonic phase.
Our teachers read to children and model reading aloud during shared reading, changing the tone and intonation in their voice and pausing for punctuation. Our teachers are enthusiastic and engaging readers who encourage a love of reading for pleasure. Through focussed book talk, the skills taught in reading lessons are applied to all reading across the curriculum.
Storytimes are encouraged to be engaging and interesting for all children. Each child's voice is valued during storytime, as they have the opportunity to make recommendations or choose books they want to hear read. Books are brought to life through the use of different voices, props and expression. The atmosphere for storytime is always considered, so the children can comfortably enjoy their selection.
Storytime books are selected by both the teacher and the pupils. Familiar stories are revisited and a range of genres are covered.
We encourage parents to read at home with their children by providing each child with a book to take home. Communication is key and each parent receives written messages in their child's individual reading diary to update parents with their child's progress and help parents know what they can do to support at home. We hold regular parent workshops, to advance the parents’ understanding on the development of reading and different reading strategies they can utilise at home.
Phonics and Early Reading at Meadstead
Children starting at Meadstead Primary Academy in Early Years are introduced to the ‘Read, Write Inc.’ which aligns all our home reading resources.
In Nursery this begins with whole class teaching as children are taught to listen for sounds in words; this later builds to recognising written sounds for reading. Throughout the year, children are also taught phonics in small groups, appropriate for their ability. To foster a love of reading, each week all Nursery children visit our library where they choose a library book to take home. All children in Nursery have a library book which they can change weekly in addition to a ‘picture book’ that they take home daily to share with their parents.
The teaching of high quality systematics synthetic phonics continues into Reception and Years 1 and 2. All children have a daily, dedicated phonics lesson, following the phonics programme. These lessons are engaging, interactive and fully differentiated to meet the needs of all pupils, allowing them to make sustained and accelerated progress. Children are taught to blend sounds to decode words, sentences and whole texts. Children are taught to use phonics knowledge and use visual cues to aid word recognition. As children become confident at decoding and word recognition, their fluency develops and allows them to develop their understanding of the texts they are reading (reading comprehension). Whilst both word recognition and comprehension are crucial skills to help children become confident readers who can critically engage with texts.
Children on the phonics programme will have a book sent home daily from school that matches the their phonetic ability. For some children, this may be a picture book while they are still learning phonemes and listening for sounds in words. For other children, depending on where they are on their reading journey, these books may include more words that they are able to decode with increasing fluency.
Children in Year 1 complete the Phonic Screening Check during the summer term. We strive for all of our children to pass the Phonic Screening Check and additional support is put into place for those children who require it. The children who do not achieve the pass mark in Year 1 take the test in the following academic year, when they are in Year 2. Additional support for these children is planned carefully to ensure they are confident in the resits.