Reading is an essential life skill that children need to master. Reading takes place in all areas of life from reading menus, bus timetables, ingredients and directions. Without reading we would be lost. Reading is a necessary skill in all areas of the curriculum; it unlocks the door to lifelong learning.  

Reading enables children to visit new places and experience new things. It can help children to develop language and listening skills. It develops vocabulary and word meaning. It can improve well-being and concentration.   

How we achieve excellent reading 

• A reading spine has been created across our school. This enables children to have access to a range of different texts through our reading lessons in our writing and when reading for pleasure. 

• The children have weekly access to our school library that is filled to the brim with picture books, biographies, chapter books, books with no words and so many more. 

• We have excellent evidence-based interventions in place for children who may need extra support with their literacy skills. The Better Reading Partnership and The Specialist Reading Partnership (BRP and SRP) are delivered by highly trained teaching assistants who have a love for reading. 

• Through regular monitoring of classroom practice, we continue to develop as a staff on how to best teach reading through practitioner led CPD. 

• We follow a synthetic phonics programme (see below): 

Phonics at Swingate: 

The teaching of phonics at Swingate Primary School is good, and it uses the All Aboard Phonics scheme: 

• Uses a similar approach to Letters and Sounds which our teachers and children are all currently familiar with. 

• This scheme has a list of decodable books which we are going to embed as part of our daily phonics teaching and will be included in the ‘apply’ stage. 

• All decodable books are available on an app which our parents will be able to access from home. Any family unable to access this app at home will be able to work with us to access the text in another way. 

• All Aboard phonics provides online bitesize training which our teachers and TAs will be able to access. Middle and Senior leaders will be able to monitor and support teachers to support their own CPD with this. 

• All Aboard phonics provides support to parents to help them at home with phonics. 

• All Aboard phonics provides visual 

• This phonics scheme also provides an intervention programme which we will be using with our current year 2 children as they move into year 3. These interventions will be tailor-made for each individual and support with teaching these is also available through the scheme. 

• We want to provide continuity for our children across Key Stage 1 and 2 to support any child who needs further support in phonics as they get into key stage 2. 

• All Aboard provides resources for each phase. These resources will be purchased for each year group, used during teaching as well as displayed in the class to provide the children with continuity. 

• There is also access to games on the online app which will encourage our children to practise their phonic knowledge at home. 

Reading Scheme: 

In Year R, we use the scheme PM Reader. The children have an opportunity to bring home the text that they have been reading all week to share with their adults at home.  

In Year 1 and 2 we use Oxford Reading Tree and in KS2 we use Oxford Treetops. When the children are able to comprehend what they have read whilst reading with fluency and intonation, they have the opportunity to read any book they wish. This can be a book from our school library or we welcome children to bring in a book from home. 

Expectations at Swingate: 

We believe that reading should be an important part of children’s daily routine at home and at school.   

At Swingate, we expect children to read a minimum of 4 times per week. This needs to be recorded in the children’s Reading Record Book and signed by an adult at home. Children in Key Stage 2 are welcome to record their own reading at home in their Reading Record Book. 

We understand that family life can be incredibly busy and that unforeseen circumstances cannot be helped. However, if a child continually does not read 4 times per week at home, they will read with an adult during Friday breaktime where this sticker will be added to their Reading Record Book.