St Anne's Infants' School & Nursery Reach for the Stars
Being a reader
Why we teach reading
At St. Anne’s Infant School, reading is at the heart of everything we do. It is the key that unlocks learning across the curriculum, giving children access to new knowledge, ideas and experiences.
Reading allows children to escape into different worlds, develop their imaginations and explore perspectives beyond their own. Through a rich and diverse range of literature, children develop their spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness and build a deeper understanding of the world around them.
Our principal aim is for every child to develop a genuine love of reading and to have their enthusiasm for books ignited. We want our children to become successful, confident and capable lifelong readers who read not only because they can, but because they choose to.
The knowledge, skills and understanding children develop
Children learn to read through a Systematic Synthetic Phonics (SSP) approach that is carefully sequenced to develop word reading skills, comprehension and prosody. From the Early Years Foundation Stage, children are supported to communicate confidently, listen attentively and develop their understanding of language. They build a rich vocabulary and develop their knowledge of phonics, giving them the foundations they need to access and understand a wide range of texts.
We recognise that reading fluency and comprehension go hand in hand. From the earliest stages of reading, we explicitly model and teach children to read accurately, fluently and with increasing expression. These skills are developed and built upon throughout Key Stage 1, enabling children to become increasingly independent and successful readers. Alongside developing the skills to read, we nurture a genuine love of books and reading, ensuring that fluency, confidence and the joy of reading develop side by side.
Children develop their comprehension and critical thinking skills through purposeful discussions, questioning, comparison and exploration of texts. They are encouraged to think deeply about what they read, make connections and share their ideas and responses to different authors and texts.
Through access to a broad and diverse range of high-quality stories, non-fiction and poetry from around the world, children develop their language, knowledge and understanding of the wider world. We want our children to become adventurous readers who are curious about books, willing to explore different genres and authors, and excited to discover new reading experiences.
The learning experience
From their first day at St Anne’s, children are surrounded by a print-rich environment that creates a positive and purposeful culture of reading throughout the school. Books, stories and opportunities to read are woven into everyday school life.
Children are immersed in engaging reading experiences where they learn to gain meaning from texts, develop their understanding and discover the joy of books. Their imaginations are stimulated through being read aloud to every day, sharing stories together and exploring texts with their peers. We want children to develop positive reading habits and see themselves as readers, both in school and at home. Our bedtime story bags provide an additional opportunity for children to share some of their favourite stories with their families.
Our well-resourced and inviting library offers a wide range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, including books that reflect and celebrate our diverse world. Children are encouraged to explore different authors, genres and subjects, developing their interests and becoming adventurous in their reading choices. Children and their families are encouraged to visit the library together to share, discover and borrow books.
Alongside their reading for pleasure, children are provided with a shared reader book that matches the phonics GPCs taught that week. This book is explored and taught during their shared reader lessons in school, giving children the opportunity to revisit and practise what they have learned when reading at home. It also provides an opportunity to revisit key red words and develop confidence and fluency with familiar text.
Children will also bring home an additional decodable book, carefully matched to their individual phonics knowledge through our ongoing assessments. This gives children the opportunity to apply their phonics skills independently, practise reading fluently and experience the success and confidence that comes from being able to read a book for themselves.
We work closely with parents and carers, celebrating children’s reading successes and sharing practical advice to support their reading journey at home.
Through collaborative, whole-class and small-group reading experiences, children are explicitly taught the strategies and skills they need to become increasingly independent readers. They are encouraged to discuss, question, make connections and respond to what they read. Through these experiences, children develop the confidence and resilience to tackle unfamiliar words, texts and ideas, while continuing to develop a genuine love of reading.
Reading Books
Your child will bring home carefully selected books to support their individual reading journey. As children develop their phonics knowledge, fluency and confidence, the types of books they bring home will develop too.
Shared Reader
From Term 2 in Reception, children will bring home a shared reader each week. This book matches the GPCs taught in their phonics sessions and is explored and taught in their Shared Reader lessons in school. This means children are familiar with the text and can practise reading it with confidence at home.
Phonics and Shared Reader lessons continue throughout Year 1. Some children may continue to receive daily phonics and shared reading support into Year 2, depending on their individual reading journey.
Decodable Reading Book
Children will also bring home an additional decodable reading book, carefully matched to their individual phonics knowledge through our ongoing assessments. This gives children the opportunity to apply the GPCs and red words they have been taught, developing their fluency and independence.
Library Books
All children will also choose a library book during their weekly class library session. These books allow children to explore their own interests, share stories with their families and develop a love of reading beyond their phonics learning.
Your child's class teacher will let you know when their library slot is so that books can be returned and changed.
If you have any questions about your child's reading books or how we support their reading, please speak to their class teacher, who will be happy to help.
How you can help at home
Building confidence and fluency in reading takes lots of practice. At St Anne’s, we support your child’s reading through whole-class, group and one-to-one reading experiences whenever possible. We ask that parents echo this support at home by listening to their child read at least three times a week.
Choose a time when your child is relaxed and ready to read. This might be in the morning or at the weekend when they are less tired. Please record a short comment in your child’s reading record after they have read, as this helps us to share information about their progress and celebrate their successes together.
Our Reading Strategy Checklist poster can be found below. It provides helpful prompts and strategies to support you when listening to your child read, with the aim of developing their confidence and independence.
If you have any concerns about your child’s reading or would like support with developing reading habits at home, please speak to your child’s class teacher.
Reading at Home