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Reading

At Spaldwick it is our intent that children receive a high-quality reading curriculum by promoting high standards of language and literacy, equipping pupils with a strong command of the spoken and written language and developing their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment. We aim to foster an ethos which develops enthusiastic, confident and fluent readers. We aim to develop a culture where children love to read, choosing to read often, both for pleasure and information. We aim for children to articulate their ideas and emotions in relation to texts and into the wider world.

We aim for children to read fluently, showing a good understanding of what they have read by drawing on context, background knowledge and asking questions to clarify their understanding. We expose children to a range of literature, so they can appreciate our varied literary heritage. We use discussion and ‘talk’ to learn, encouraging children to elaborate and explain their understanding and ideas clearly, developing their competency in the arts of speaking, listening and debate​.

Our reading scheme is structured around the Read Write Inc Bookbag books and supplemented with Bug Club and Big Cat.

When children have completed the Read Write Inc programme we introduce 'Reading for All' our whole class approach to teaching reading. These sessions take place a minimum of four times per week for at least 30 minutes. During these sessions, our pupils are exposed to a diverse range of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry texts, engaging in both read-aloud and independent reading activities.

Through careful modelling and regular practise, our teachers guide pupils in developing essential reading comprehension skills, such as:

· Summarising key information

· Retrieving specific details

· Making inferences

· Exploring vocabulary

· Explaining their understanding

· Predicting what might happen next

By emphasising these core question types, we ensure our pupils can deeply engage with the texts they encounter and build a strong foundation for success throughout their educational journey. You can find an overview of the books covered during our 'Reading for All' sessions below.

Reading for Pleasure

To promote a love of reading all children complete the following activities:

Thursday morning is whole school ERIC time (Everybody Reading in Class)
Every class has a library slot each week – at least 15 minutes – manned by librarians
Classes have a class book (chosen to ink to interests, current events or class topic)
A poem is read each day by the teacher
Weekly DEAR time (Drop Everything And Read)