At St James Church of England Academy we see reading as an integral part of the school curriculum that impacts on all learning. We value the importance of being a fluent reader and work hard to develop children’s reading skills. We want children to enjoy reading a wide range of different books and be able to talk confidently about books and authors.

We teach reading in every year group from Year 3 to Year 6. This can be in the form of one-to-one reading with an adult, shared reading, whole class reading sessions and independent reading. We know that children must be able to read fluently in order to understand what they are reading. For those children who need a little extra support in developing the skills for effective decoding, we teach synthetic phonics and use the Little Wandle Rapid Catch UP scheme to support this. We also use a range of other reading materials to broaden children’s understanding, interest and enjoyment of reading. In Key Stage 2, as their reading fluency develops, children are encouraged to read from a wide range of fiction and non-fiction books. The teaching focus then shifts towards teaching children the skills of comprehension, following themes and making comparisons within and between texts. We achieve this through meaningful book discussions.  In addition we regularly set aside a quiet time at the end of the academic day where an adult reads a shared book to the class for enjoyment.  

We are fortunate to have a well-stocked library in our school; therefore all children are able to take books home to read with an adult.  Every week, each class has  dedicated class time to visit the library. There they are shown how to use a library, and are encouraged to choose books from a wide range of authors. Children are also encouraged to recommend books that they have read and thoroughly enjoyed.  We encourage parents as partners in the development of reading skills, and encourage all parents to set aside quality time to regularly read with their children. We provide parents with Recommended Reads for their child at each age and stage. 

We Know that regular reading sessions provide opportunities for encouraging and embedding reading for pleasure. Our children and staff love reading