ENGLISH: READING

Our reading curriculum follows the national curriculum in KS1 and KS2 and the EYFS Statutory Framework and Development Matters in the early years. The Reading curriculum is ambitious and designed to give all learners, particularly the most disadvantaged and those with special educational needs, the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. Where required, pedagogy is adapted so that all pupils including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND are on the same knowledge journey towards the same end points.

Our aim is for all pupils – irrespective of their needs, abilities or background – to learn to read fluently and with understanding. We want to develop confident, independent readers who enjoy and understand the benefits that reading brings.

Our approaches are in line with current research. Early reading is taught through the Read Write Inc phonics programme, with pupils learning to link letter sounds to written text through a detailed sequence of steps. In KS2, daily reading lessons are based around themed reading units (see Y3-Y6WCR Spines ). These ensure that pupils are immersed in a wide range of texts in order to develop vocabulary and word-recognition skills, and to build a wide-ranging knowledge base to support comprehension. Pupils are also read to each day by an adult (see REMAT Reading Spine).

The direct teaching of reading starts with oracy and phonics. We follow the Read Write Inc phonics programme, with this being complemented by purposeful talk and the use of shared reading experiences that expose pupils to a wider range of vocabulary, syntax and sentence structure. Our children receive a daily phonics lesson in which they participate in speaking, listening and spelling activities that are matched to their developmental needs.