Learning to Read

Reading, quite literally, changes children's lives. There is nothing more important in education than helping learners of all ages to develop as readers. At Bradway Primary school, we share the unwavering belief that all our children will become fluent and confident readers as early as possible. Our aim for all pupils, irrespective of their background, strating points or additional needs, is to leave our school as inquisitive learners who recognise themselves as readers, know how to read with purpose and choose to read for pleasure. 

As educators, we harness the power of a rich reading curriculum in each and every clasroom and do so through the following approach:

Phonics

Following evidence based guidance, we prioritise phonics in the early stages of reading through our government validated scheme, Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised. This is a systematic and synthetic phonics programme. We start teaching phonics in Foundation stage, with fidelity to the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised progression. This ensures our children build on their growing knowledge of the alphabetic code and quickly start to master phonics so they can decode and encode words. As a result, our children are able to tackle any unfamiliar words as they read. We also model the application of the alphabetic code through phonics in shared reading and writing, both inside and outside of the phonics lesson and across the curriculum. We have a strong focus on language development for our children because we know that speaking and listening are crucial skills for reading and writing in all subjects. 

Leadership of Reading

Leaders prioritise reading across the school and throughout the curriculum. A team of expert practitioners regularly meet to review progress, audit book choice, listen to pupils, update our knowledge, communicate with parents, plan trips and set ever higher targets for our children. The reading team includes:

Helen Roberts: Strategic reading overview across school

Kirsty Campbell/Rachael Whittaker: Phonics Lead / Early Reading Lead

Linda Ives-Owen: Accelerated Reader Lead

Sarah Rehman: Pastoral Manager

16 pupils from KS2: Reading Ambassadors 

Teresa Heathcote: Primary Literacy Consultant 

Home Partnership

We continually promote a love of reading through our learning platforms, newsletters and reading records. Each week, parents in EYFS, Year 1 and Year 2 recieve a picture book that their child has chosen from a carefully curated reading spine. This includes classic children's literature as well as recently published titles and allows all parent the opportunity to read aloud to their child and share in the wonderful experience of children's literature.