Reading at Stead Lane
Our Reading provision aims to equip pupils with the skills and knowledge necessary to read fluently and confidently while developing a love of reading that allows pupils to draw on knowledge of the world around them.
Stead Lane Primary School uses Little Wandle to deliver the teaching and learning of phonics.  A systematic approach to targeted Phonic Phase teaching supports the children’s acquisition of core words and vocabulary and teaches them to blend and segment to read and spell words. Once children have completed the Little Wandle programme, they use Accelerated Reader, which develops comprehension skills.
In daily whole-class reading lessons – as well as 1:1 reading sessions – children work to develop fluency in reading. A range of strategies are used by class teachers, including teacher-led modelled fluent reading, choral reading, echo reading, deep reading and performance reading. We teach comprehension skills through the use of VIPERS (vocabulary, inference, prediction, explanation, retrieval, sequencing and summarising). These lessons are planned using our reading spine which links to our project learning; it contains a range of different text types including picture books, non-fiction, graphic novels, song lyrics, poetry, classics and fiction.
Our school library
We are very grateful and proud to have a wonderful dedicated library space in school. This is well-stocked with a range of high-quality texts including fiction, non-fiction and poetry. These have been carefully selected to be engaging and diverse for the children. The library is open at break time 3 days per week so that children can spend time reading for pleasure – independently, with friends or to an adult. Small groups from across school also visit the library regularly. We have a weekly Reading Club after school who also enjoy using this space. Every Thursday afternoon, Mr Anderson enjoys afternoon tea with that week’s reading superstars.
Supporting reading at home
Please ensure your child reads at least 4 times per week and record their reading in their Reading Diary. Talk about what books they are currently reading. Ask questions when listening to your child read aloud. Reading books to your child and reading books together is also a vital part of a child’s reading journey; children can hear how reading with expression can bring a story to life!
All children from Reception to Year 6 have a reading book at the appropriate level for them that should be read at home to an adult. Children in EYFS and KS1 also have a ‘share with me’ book for an adult to read aloud with them.
Visit local libraries and bookshops. This is a link to the Northumberland Libraries Service to find out about your nearest library, how to sign up and the services they offer.
https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/Libraries-and-archives.aspx
Stuck for what to read?
If your child is finding it difficult to know what they want to read, here are some ideas:
‘School reading list’ is an excellent source of recommendations for new and classic books. You can search by Key Stage and Year Group and titles are updated regularly. There is also a newsletter you can sign up for.  https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/
Register on the CLPE’s Core Books website for free to view regularly updated booklists sorted by age-range, genre, author or publisher https://clpe.org.uk/books/corebooks
Visit Accelerated Reader http://www.arbookfind.co.uk/ which is an easy to use, free online tool which allows you or your child to search for books by author, subject or theme and topic. You can also find collections lists of the most popular books that children are reading at the moment.
Please read the following information to learn more about Little Wandle
We greatly appreciate all the support you give in supporting and encouraging your children to read at home and we are looking forward to an exciting year full of reading ahead!