In English, we practise our decoding, fluency and comprehension reading skills through whole-class Talk for Reading sessions, small group reading sessions as part of a carousel, and by reading 1:1 with an adult weekly.
Due to MyBookBlog’s collapse in 2024, starting in September 2024, we now use Accelerated Reader for our home reading scheme. Similar to MyBookBlog, this means the children have a dedicated home reading book which they have chosen from our collection in school. The books the children can access are based upon their optimal Zone of Proximal Development, as assessed by their progress on Accelerated Reader. This ensures that the books they choose are accessible to their reading level, but also promote challenge! Once they have read the book, they are to complete an Accelerated Reader quiz online, based on the events they have read. To support this, the children also have a reading ‘scrapbook’, in which they can take notes and draw images in to help aid their retention of the book. The children are free to change their book as soon as they have read and ‘quizzed’ it. Please ensure that your child continues to bring in their home reading book on their allocated day so that we can assess their progress regularly. Please also ensure that the children take care of these books at home; we politely ask for a like for like replacement to be purchased for any lost or damaged books.
Children are expected to read at home for at least 10 minutes every day and the more often they read the better! This includes reading to an adult. We no longer use home-school reading diaries, and instead the children each have a vocabulary bookmark, upon which they are to write any unfamiliar words upon. We then look up the meaning of these words during our guided reading sessions in class. Please encourage your child to use these as a learning tool!
Children have been also given a bookmark on which they are to write down any words that they are unfamiliar with or have struggled to pronounce.
Your child will also now have their own ‘Reading Journal’, in which they can make notes and drawings about what they have read to help assist them when taking their end of book quiz. This is for both home and school use, so please ensure that it is returned to their school bag once used.
Your child is expected to bring their home-reading book into school once a week, on a set day (which the children are aware of). This is so that teachers and teaching assistants can listen to them read and track their progress. If your child fails to bring their book two weeks in a row, you will receive a letter making you aware of this.