Reading

Our Approach

"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go." – Dr. Seuss

At Twyford C of E School we value reading as a crucial life skill and so promote a culture where books, vocabulary and reading are highly valued. We recognise that being able to read opens the door for wider learning and life experiences. Therefore, it is our intention that all children become confident, independent readers who are fully equipped to read with fluency and understanding, to become life-long readers.

We believe that all our children can become fluent readers. This is why we teach early reading skills through Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, which is a systematic and synthetic phonics programme. Daily, direct phonics teaching begins with our Reception pupils and follows the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised progression, which ensures children build on their growing knowledge of the alphabetic code, mastering phonics to read as they move through school. As a result, all our children are equipped to tackle any unfamiliar words as they read.

Throughout their time at Twyford School, all children will be reading a text that is from our chosen reading scheme, Collins Big Cat. Children are assessed periodically throughout the year to ensure that they are developing the correct reading skills through the depth and breadth of books they read.

At Twyford School children from Years 2-6 are taught to develop the skills required to read easily, fluently and with good understanding in weekly explicit reading lessons using an approach taken from the ideas and notions of Christopher Such, author of ‘Art and Science of Teaching Primary Reading’ and ‘’Primary Reading Simplified’.

Our teaching of reading beyond phonics and spoken language development has three key aims:

  1. Develop reading fluency through modelled practice
  2. Exposure to a variety of thoughtfully chosen texts selected for specific purpose
  3. Discuss texts in depth, nurturing pupil’s own ideas and interpretations

To achieve this, we will teach reading through three core structures:

  • Fluency reading:   Pupil’s will be provided with opportunities to reach fluency through regular modelled practice.
  • Extended reading:   Pupil’s will be provided with opportunities to develop prolonged engagement with a text to enhance fluency, word knowledge and comprehension. This approach includes methods such as guided reading, silent reading, and discussions about the text to deepen understanding.
  • Close reading:   Pupil’s will explore detailed analysis of the text through deep discussion focussing specifically on the development of component vocabulary knowledge, text knowledge, author intent, comparisons with other texts.

All children at Twyford School have access to our school library where they are more than welcome to choose books to supplement their reading. We have a weekly and well-established Library Lunch Club, which is efficiently run by our very own Twyford librarians from Year 5 and 6.

We ensure our children are exposed to quality texts as they journey through the school, and our 100 Books to Read before leaving Twyford School identifies a carefully selected range of fiction and non-fiction books which we feel will build cultural capital, foster a love of reading and enhance the curriculum.

Above all, supporting our children to develop their love and passion for reading is undoubtedly our ultimate goal.