Reading at Thorpepark

Throughout the curriculum we aim to ensure that all children become competent, confident and life-long readers. As a school, we recognise that reading underpins all other learning and is a crucial skill required to give our children the best start in life.

Intent

At Thorpepark Academy, we provide an engaging, high-quality reading curriculum that will equip all pupils with the skills they need to be accurate and fluent readers. We ensure that learning to read is prioritised when pupils join the school and that these skills are developed year upon year.

Our reading curriculum aims to lay the foundations for the children’s future and our philosophy is that pupils will learn to read, in order to read to learn. Gaining these fundamental skills will allow our pupils to become enthusiastic, effective and critical readers.

Implementation

Word Reading

Thorpepark’s chosen phonics scheme is Little Wandle Revised Letters and Sounds (see phonics page for more information).

After pupils have completed their phonics learning, they will read Collins Big Cat fluency books to embed skills, fluency and automaticity to become fluent readers. This will begin in Year 2, continue into Year 3 and into Key Stage 2 for the children who may need additional reading support.

Once children have become fluent readers, we introduce them to age appropriate texts for each year group. The purpose of this is for pupils to read widely and be introduced to a world of different authors. Pupils are always encouraged to read year group appropriate texts. Once the children have a secure skill set, they are challenged to complete Thorpepark’s reading challenge which consists of a range of different text types, authors and genres.

Both reading to an adult and adults reading to children occur often at Thorpepark.

Reading Comprehension

In addition to children’s precise word reading capabilities, we ensure that insightful comprehension is gained through developing the key reading skills that underpin Thorpepark’s reading curriculum. These skills include:

• Predicting
• Clarifying
• Inferring
• Questioning
• Thinking
• Summarising

Our engaging reading curriculum, aims to inspire children to develop a genuine and long-lasting love of reading. The use of quality texts, detailed on each year groups literacy spine, ensures that children are exposed to high quality literature and vocabulary from a young age. Literacy spines also ensure progression throughout the curriculum and exposure to a broad range of genres, authors and text types.

Through guided reading sessions, pupils in KS1 upwards will be given the opportunity to unpick the language, characters and content of different reading material. They can share their ideas and thoughts with one another, as well as ask and answer questions to deepen their understanding.

Book Spine

We want to promote quality literature in all classrooms. At Thorpepark we have a book spine per year group to ensure children have access to a range of authors, poets and playwriters. This sits alongside Thorpepark’s 101 books.

Thorpepark is also a member of the school library service which gives the school access to an array of resources such as, class texts, resource boxes, topic boxes, story sacks and book club in a bag. This subscription also enables the school to have access to author visits, Big Malarkey Festival and staff training.

Parental engagement

Thorpepark promotes reading at home and encourages children to read as often as possible. Each child has their own reading record where reading is tracked and communicated back to the teacher. Parents are encouraged to join their child in ‘stay and play’ sessions focusing on reading, phonics and mark making.

To promote reading at home in EYFS and KS1 we have launched ‘Bedtime Reading’. Every child can loan a book and a cuddly reading buddy to read at bedtime.

Thorpepark’s 101 books

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Dr. Seuss

Further information: