Our Vision for Reading

"Reading is the Gateway to all Learning."

At Longlevens Infant School we believe that ‘Reading is the Gateway to all learning’. We want to teach every pupil to be able to read and to develop a love and passion for reading that keeps them reading their whole lives.  We believe passionately that in order for pupils to learn a broad and balanced curriculum and to access the world around them, they need to be able to communicate effectively both orally and through the written word. Reading fluently and with a good level of understanding will enable that effective communication. We put as much curriculum emphasise as we possibly can into making sure that every single pupil learns to read as quickly as possible.  

We have a bespoke reading curriculum that takes into account the needs, backgrounds and interests of our pupils, in order to build on their experiences and open doors to new worlds. Reading is taught through a highly structured systematic synthetic phonics programme- READ, WRITE, INC. This enables pupils to leave year 2 as competent fluent early readers, ready for the KS2 curriculum.  

We have developed a ‘Reading Spine’ of core, high quality texts for each year group from EYFS to Year 2. Teachers have carefully chosen a selection of books that sit at the very core of the curriculum for their own year group. By the end of Year 2 pupils will have been exposed to and will know and be able to talk about a wide range of authors and genres. The books sometimes link to other curriculum areas but not always. The texts have been carefully chosen to include a range of genres, authors and themes and are selected to be progressive in their exposure to vocabulary, style, authorial choice and levels of maturity.   

They are shared with all of the pupils in different ways – Reading aloud is prioritised, they may be read to the pupils during timetabled story times, used as a stimulus for writing in English lessons or as a comprehension text whereby pupils read and respond to them using VIPERS. They may be complimented by our supplementary spine, through text type, author or genre. From EYFS to Year 2, there is a unit of reading for fiction, non-fiction and poetry, including rhyme which will be explored across the six terms.   

Reading is reinforced through the curriculum and through our reading environments both in the classroom and throughout the school including our library, as well as our partnership with parents and carers. Reading at home both to reinforce learning in school and for pleasure cements pupils ability to read and lifelong love of reading, we want to harness this attitude as early as possible. Where that partnership can’t be established the school provides additional opportunities. 

All our staff have regular training to ensure they know our expectations, keep up with the latest research and ensure that reading is prioritised as the gateway to all learning. However we recognise not all pupils learn at the same rate or in the same way. That is why we have a comprehensive regular assessment model that ensures pupils keep up with reading at the expected standard and that intervention and supplementary material is available to give breadth to those who are more able and additional support and guidance for those in danger of falling behind. 

We are determined that every pupil can be and should be a reader. The gateway to success lies in a pupil that develops a love of reading and an ability to read at young age and carries that attitude with them throughout their life.  

What we do to enrich reading:

For more detailed information about how we teach phonics and reading at Longlevens Infant School, please see our Reading Handbook.

Supporting your child to read:

Here is the link to a video we have made to help you with reading at home with your child. It includes a range of reading strategies to use for all levels of reading. With short video clips allowing you to see the reading strategies being put into practice.

For more activities for EYFS please visit our EYFS phonics pack here.

For more activities for KS1 please visit our KS1 phonics pack here.

The sounds from our phonics scheme are split into different sets - 1, 2 and 3. In this video, it explains how the sounds are pronounced and which are the bouncy or stretchy sounds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkXcabDUg7Q

Please see the document below for strategies to support your child when reading at home:

Our parent phonics sessions are a great way to share what we do with parents and carers.

Additional resources

Take a read of our Reading Newsletters and listen to the stories read by our lovely members of staff. Can you visit your local Library and find any of the books recommended? Do you have any books you would like to recommend?

Below are some activity packs to support your child to read and write using their phonics. These are the resources they are familiar with and use at school.

The table below outlines the terminology used in school to support your child's reading: