All children are taught to read at St. Wilfrid’s using a variety of resources including the Read Write Inc Programme when they first come to St. Wilfrid’s. The programme links phonic reading, spelling and writing in a lively and engaging way, helping children to become confident in all areas of literacy. Children are grouped and assessed often to help them make the best progress possible. Some children who need extra support are quickly identified and receive one-one or small group tutoring for 10 minutes in the afternoons, ensuring they also progress well. Further details on our approach is shared with parents at open days and information sessions.
Key Stage 1
As children move into Key stage 1 (Year 1), they continue to learn to read and spell, using phonics. Children enjoy a wide range of activities. This takes place in small teaching groups each morning for 20 minutes, before the main English session.
They then work with their own class teachers and assistants during a sessions, where they enjoy sharing a range of texts, and using these to inform and improve their own writing.
Our English curriculum focusses heavily on using quality texts to enhance learning. Using them as models of writing, stimulus for reading and inspiration for the children’s work.
Key Stage 2
At St. Wilfrid’s our aim is to provide a rich English curriculum across Key Stage 2, where children encounter a range of whole texts, reading these with confidence, engaging and responding to narrative and using their knowledge of these to influence and inform their skills as writers. Children who need further support with phonics benefit from carefully planned interventions, delivered one to one or within smaller groups, at their level, to help to narrow any gaps in their learning. At St. Wilfrid’s our aim is to encourage a love of reading in all of our pupils, and to provide opportunities for children to read for pleasure and purpose. These include:
- Guided reading sessions
- Class stories
- Visits to the local library
- Reading for pleasure at playtimes
- Cross curricular reading
- Reading for research
- Home reading
- Big reading as a whole school.
Encouraging a Love of Reading
We also use the Accelerated Reader programme to encourage children to read for pleasure independently. This programme includes a wide range of children’s fiction and non-fiction books, which are levelled to ensure the children will be able to read and understand the books they choose. Children’s reading achievements are recognised in whole school assemblies every half term, when we celebrate and reward their successes together.
You can see information about your child’s progress by logging into Renaissance Home Connect with the user name and password they use at school. Click the links below for more information.
Useful Links and Downloads
Visit the AR Book Find site, to find books at your child’s level.
The Words for Life website has lots of information about activities and ideas to develop your child’s literacy skills, from birth to age 11.
Parents Information on Accelerated Reader
Parents Information on Home Connect
Parents Guide to helping your child to become a successful reader
You may need a product like Adobe Reader (free download) to view our PDF documents on our website.