At Granby, we aim to ensure that all children can read fluently with confidence and that they are able to understand what they have read. We recognise that reading is the key to unlocking the wider curriculum, as well as an essential skill for later life. In addition to this, we also support and encourage children to read for pleasure with the aim of fostering a lifelong love of reading.

Reading Schemes

In the Early Years and Key Stage 1, we use Pearson's Bug Club reading resources. These are a range of engaging and imaginative fiction and non-fiction texts that are perfectly aligned to the different stages of our synthetic phonics scheme of work and matched to children's current learning.

As children move into Lower Key Stage 2, they progress through a series of banded reading books, mainly from Collins Big Cat. This widens their exposure to different text types and supports them with increasing stamina and developing comprehension skills.

In Upper Key Stage 2, children move onto the Accelerated Reader system, which gives them access to unlimited free reading texts. Children take online quizzes at the end of each book to check their understanding and compete to win prizes for most improved reader and high word count.

Reading in School

Children in Nursery and Reception read daily stories and rhymes, as well as having access to familiar books during freeflow activities. From Reception upwards, children take part in at least one guided reading session a week and read 1:1 with adults such as teachers, assistant teachers and reading volunteers.

Shared and guided reading sessions continue throughout Key Stage 1, supporting children in developing a range of strategies to decode and answer questions about a text. Children also continue to read 1:1 with an adult in order to receive individual feedback and encouragement about their reading.

As children become more confident and fluent at Key Stage 2, they are exposed to a wide variety of different text types and supported to develop the higher order skills of inference and deduction. Teaching increasingly focuses on comprehension skills and helping children to express their views about what they have read.  

Reading at Home

It is vital that children read regularly at home to help them foster a love of reading and achieve their full potential. Depending on the age of the child, this may be listening to an adult read, reading aloud to a member of their family or, as children become more confident, reading independently.

At Granby, it is an expectation that all children read at home at least three times a week. Parents and carers are asked to sign a Home Reading Agreement to indicate their support with this. We also ask that children in Reception to Year 4 have their reading records completed and signed by an adult at home.

Reading records will be monitored in school: praise will be given to those who read regularly and support offered to any who are struggling to do so. When your child is heard reading by a member of staff or volunteer in school, their reading record will be stamped to indicate this.

Reading Interventions

For some children at Granby, extra support with reading may be required. We have a number of interventions that take place throughout the school to support the development of reading. These include:

• Beat Dyslexia
• BRWP
• Dyslexia Gold
• Precision Teach
• Reading Explorers
• Reciprocal Reading
• Small group phonics sessions
• Extra reading with volunteer readers

Whatever it Takes [WiT]

We are lucky enough to be a part of the Whatever it Takes [WiT] initiative to get every child in Leicester reading. This allows us to take part in:

• Author Week on Tour
• Our Best Picture Book [Year 2]
• Our Best Book [Year 5]

• Our Brilliant Book Club [Years 1, 3, 4 & 6]

Whatever it Takes have also produced a number of really useful videos aimed at providing families with ideas of how they can support their children reading at home. These are included for your reference below.

Useful Reading Websites

• Epic: www.getepic.com
• National Literacy Trust: literacytrust.org.uk/early-years
• Whatever it Takes: www.whatever-it-takes.org.uk