Reading at Westleigh

Reading at Westleigh

At Westleigh, we recognise that competence in reading is essential for independent learning and has a significant impact on children’s progress at school and beyond. Reading provides children with access to knowledge and is central to our ability to understand, interpret and communicate with one another and the world around us. We strive to nurture enthusiastic, independent and reflective readers who develop a genuine love of reading and an understanding of its importance as a vital tool for lifelong learning and future success in the world of work.

Our Commitment to Reading

• To foster a lifelong love of books and reading.
• To create a strong and embedded reading culture through a rich language environment in classrooms and throughout the wider school.
• To teach new and advanced subject vocabulary systematically so that pupils can apply and transfer it across the curriculum.
• To develop confident and competent readers through shared strategies and skills, including fluency, accuracy, comprehension and prediction, by engaging with a wide range of literary genres and text types.
• To develop digital literacy skills that enable pupils to navigate information online effectively.
• To help pupils understand and respond to literature drawn from a range of cultures and literary traditions in English lessons.
• To recognise the value of parents and carers as essential partners in supporting and developing children’s reading skills and love of reading.
• To monitor and assess children’s progress in reading, identify those who require additional support, and intervene at an early stage.

We are a Reading School

Reading is taught throughout the school as an integral part of the school day. Learning across the curriculum contributes to pupils’ language development, as speaking, listening, writing and reading are integral to all lessons to varying degrees. During English lessons and across other curriculum areas, children have opportunities to experience a wide range of high-quality texts, both fiction and non-fiction, and are encouraged to respond to and reflect on them. Pupils are encouraged and rewarded through our ‘Get Caught Reading’ strategy. All staff reward pupils with stickers and loyalty cards, which can be used to win free books and other prizes in the library.

During form time, children read on Sparx Reader once a week, enabling them to access reading material suited to their reading ability. Some pupils also take part in paired reading during form time. Year 7 pupils are partnered with Year 10 students to read together and discuss writers’ word choices, plot events and characterisation in order to develop their reading skills. Our developing readers strengthen their phonics skills through the use of the ‘SoundsWrite’ intervention. Providing a phonics-first approach to the teaching of reading, writing and spelling ensures purposeful learning for developing readers. The use of Key Stage 2 and 3 reading strategies, with a focus on developing mastery in comprehension skills, is of prime importance and a key focus of staff CPD, particularly in supporting pupils with SEND.

Other reading interventions we offer include Lexonik, which is used to close literacy gaps quickly and equip pupils with the skills they need to succeed across all subjects, and guided reading, where pupils read in small groups to develop fluency and deepen their understanding of texts.