The Teaching of Reading at Hatchlands Primary School
At Hatchlands Primary School, we aim to inspire our children to become enthusiastic about reading with a passion for books and storytelling. We hope that they will become independent and reflective readers who read confidently, fluently and with secure understanding. We aim to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information.
We believe that children should:
Teachers nurture a love of books by placing reading at the centre of the curriculum. High quality texts are used to capture children’s imaginations and challenge their thinking. Through engagement with resources from the Power of Reading, children are exposed to a wide range of quality children’s literature. These texts are used as motivating and engaging hooks to launch new learning and topics, leading to a culmination of cross-curricular activities based around the book.
Early reading skills are consistently and rigorously taught across the school. Alongside effective use of phonics, children are encouraged to develop fluency and expression when reading as well as demonstrating appropriate comprehension. The children receive regular individual and shared reading sessions as well as the opportunity to listen to a rich diet of quality children’s literature during whole class storytimes. In KS1, children participate in guided reading sessions, with challenging questions and activities to develop their language and comprehension within a focused group.
Reading at Home
For reading at home, children have access to a variety of books to share to help develop their phonics and general reading skills, with texts from Big Cat Collins, Oxford Reading Tree and other high-quality reading schemes. Each child currently takes home a weekly reader and a library book. The weekly reader is selected by the class teacher to support the child with their own individual reading targets and next steps. The library book is chosen by the child and is to be enjoyed together at home with the child’s family, to promote a love of reading and sharing stories. Children’s individual reading diaries are an important source of communication between home and school. This is sent home each evening so that parents can record their comments. Parent volunteers are welcomed into the school to read with children.