Barnsbury Primary School and Nursery Barnsbury Primary School and Nursery
Believe Persevere Succeed

Teaching Reading

 

At Barnsbury we aim to provide children with reading experiences which stimulate the children’s enthusiasm and develop their powers of imagination, understanding and critical awareness by providing: 

• rich and varied reading materials which meet the needs and interests of all children, providing high quality and variety including  IT based texts, 

• a consistent approach to teaching reading throughout the school (e.g. phonics, key word recognition, questioning for understanding), 

• opportunities to critically compare and contrast texts, 

• opportunities to widen the children’s experiences and vocabulary e.g. via drama, debate, school trips and visits, 

• the teaching of research skills e.g. skimming and scanning, 

• a literate environment, 

• extra support where necessary,   

As a result children will be able to: 

• use a range of strategies to read for meaning, 

• understand, describe, select and retrieve information or ideas from the text, 

• deduce, infer and interpret information, events or ideas from the text, 

• identify and comment on the structure, presentation and organisation of the text, 

• explain and comment on the writer’s purposes and viewpoints and the effect on the reader, 

• relate texts to their social, cultural and historical contexts and literacy traditions, 

Read Write Inc.

In Early Years and Key Stage One phonics is taught through the Read Write Inc. programme. Read Write Inc. Phonics is a comprehensive literacy programme designed to get all infants reading and writing quickly. This involves fun and active ways of learning letter sounds through pictures, rhymes and actions, which help children recognise and begin to read words.  Importantly, phonics is not taught in isolation. By using initial and on-going assessment every child’s progress is tracked. Children are grouped by ability so they learn rapidly at the right level and partner work means every child participates in the whole lesson. Daily reading is based around texts that match the sounds which have been taught. The ‘three reads’ approach ensures every child gains accuracy, fluency and a good understanding of the text. 

Green Words Set 1
Green Words Set 2
Green Words Set 3
Red Words PP

 

Read, Write, Inc Set 1, 2 and 3
Set 1 Flash Cards
Set 2 & 3 Flash Cards

 

Reading

Guided reading is undertaken weekly with children. The children will have a specific focus to their reading session and explore the text in detail. Teachers keep reading record notes of children’s reading to ensure progression and as a form of assessment. 

Reading scheme

A variety of reading schemes (which are colour banded in KS1) are used throughout the school ensuring that the needs of the individual child are met. We currently use RWINc, Oxford Reading tree, Pearson's Ginn Reading 360 and Oxford's Project X. Many of these books have questions and suggested activities in them to enhance the child’s learning and understanding, and to support the parents at home. 

Parental / community involvement

We value the contribution to literacy learning made by parents and provide information, guidance and workshops on the best ways they can support their children’s learning. Parents and DBS checked community volunteers are welcomed into the school to support children in literacy. Children are expected to read at home at least five times a week, and parents and carers are actively encouraged to read with their children and discuss their books with them at home. They are also encouraged to comment on their child’s reading in a Home-School reading diary. There is recognition that the nature of the school’s catchment is such that the school will need to reach out to some parents and offer support to them in carrying out this role. 

Supporting Developing Reading and Comprehension