Reading at St Paul's:

Books may not change our suffering, books may not protect us from evil, books may not tell us what is good or what is beautiful, and they will certainly not shield us from the common fate of the grave. But books grant us myriad possibilities: the possibility of change, the possibility of illumination.

Alberto Manguel

At St Paul’s, we believe that reading is the beating heart of the school and is therefore at the heart of everything we do. Reading is an essential life skill that provides access to a wealth of opportunities and opens the door to a rich and broad curriculum. It is vital that children acquire good reading skills in order to access the information that will support their learning in all areas. We achieve this through the high-quality teaching of reading to secure fluency and a good level of comprehension. This, underpinned by a culture that promotes a love of reading, ensures that our children become articulate and literate individuals who have a positive attitude towards reading. At St Paul’s, we aim to weave together the key strands of language comprehension (background knowledge; vocabulary; language structures; verbal reasoning and literacy knowledge) and word recognition (automatic word recognition; decoding and phonological awareness) to develop competent readers.

Here at St Paul’s,

 we are deeply aware of the importance of children reading with an adult at home. Reading at home is invaluable – it is one of the best gifts that you can give your child!

Research has shown that one to one reading time and access to books lead to future literacy skills and inevitably future educational outcomes and better job prospects.

Here are some ways that you can help children become successful readers:

Build Reading into your child’s daily routine.

Find a regular time to read each day. Just after dinner or in the morning after breakfast can be a good time as they have more energy. Make it fun by reading to your pet a cuddly toy their baby brother or sister.

Read every day

Remember, “the more children read, the better they read, “and the same hold true for the opposite effect, “the less children read, the poorer they will read.”

Make a special reading spot.

Choose a place to read that is free from distractions where children can concentrate. Putting some pillows and making it a comfy cuddly place is a great way to do this.

Be a great reading partner

It’s no fun to read when you’re forced to or feel embarrassed to read. Building trust and supporting a child reader is crucial as a reading partner. Here are some tips for becoming a great reading partner:

• Be patient and encouraging.
• Allow your child to hold the book
• Ask your child to read aloud and track the words with their finger as they are    reading.
• Gently correct mistakes and re-read the entire sentence.
• Give positive feedback and tell the reader he or she is doing a great job.

Encourage your child to follow their interests

Let children choose the books that they read for pleasure and let them read the same book over and over again.

Bring Books everywhere

Place books everywhere- in the car, around the house, even in the garden (in the summer!).

Set a good example; be caught in the act

If your child sees you reading, then they will emulate the same behaviour.

Use technology together

Technology can help children to get into reading. You could use your devices to listen to stories and build vocabulary.

Our Reading Environment

“Reading can take you places you have never been before.” – Dr. Seuss

All library areas in school support our aim to develop a school reading community and are welcoming, attractive and well curated spaces.

They aim to:

•  Provide a rich reading environment.

• Allow space and time to read.

• Give opportunities to choose books.

 • Provide a variety of reading resources.

• Contain books reflective of a diverse community.

• Reflect the choices of reading role models.

• Allow for individual class reading initiatives.

• Support teaching and learning.

• Allow social interactions.

Reading Materials

Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him. Maya Angelou

Reading has a high status at St Paul’s and as such, the school seeks to provide high quality, up-to-date resources for all children to enjoy as well as to support the teaching of reading and other subjects. We recognise that:

 “pupils who read regularly report heightened levels of social and emotional wellbeing. For many, reading is a form of relaxation, a place to escape everyday challenges, a source of entertainment. Reading allows readers to adopt new perspectives, develop empathy and become more socially conscious.”

 (The Reading Framework July 2023 p13.)

We have therefore taken great care in selecting all the texts that are on offer to the children in school. We are also aware of the diverse nature of our school community and that:

 “Books create belonging. They help us to see each other and understand one another. They shine a light on the world.”

(Lit in colour report 2020 Penguin and Runnymede Trust)

All children in school should be able to see themselves in what they read.

In selecting the reading materials in school we have chosen books that allow:

• The Immersive pleasure of play: getting lost in a book and the immersive pleasure of play.
• Intellectual pleasure: finding out about issues of interest in the world and solving problems in narratives.
• Social pleasure: belonging to a community of readers and connecting to others through reading as well as identifying as a reader.
• The pleasure of functional work: using reading to learn, think and act indifferent ways and using reading to shape ones writing.
• The pleasure of inner work: using reading to find out about oneself to imagine oneself in different situations and consider options.