Reading With Your Child

A love of reading is the biggest indicator of future academic success so at St Mary's we are passionate about children reading at both home and school. This not only allows them plenty of practise but more importantly develops their enjoyment of reading. 

We know that parents and carers can sometimes worry about how they should be reading with their child and following the way that reading is taught in school. To help parents and carers feel confident in sharing books and listening to their children read, we have constructed some guidance. There are also lots of other helpful resources further down this page.

EYFS and KS1

If your child is in Reception, Year 1 or Year 2, then they will be using the Little Wandle Programme to learn to read. Little Wandle has produced lots of handy guidance and you can watch a video with tips about how to read with your child here.

KS2 (Year 2)

If your child has completed the Little Wandle Programme, they will use the Accelerated Reader Programme to select books within their reading range. A guide for how to read with your child and structure discussions is in the link below. Remember reading comes in lots of forms: if your child doesn't often engage in reading at home, try putting the subtitles on films and tv programs or challenge them to read road signs with new place names on.

AWESOME ANNOUNCEMENT: Amazon Wish Lists

This year we are using World Book Day to launch our Amazon Wish List donation scheme. Each year group has set up their own Amazon wish list where you can see the books they would like for their book corners. If you are able to, we would be grateful for any donations – simply click the link below, select a book to purchase and it will be delivered to your child’s year group.

Alternatively, if you have copies of the books listed at home, which your children no longer want, we would be grateful for second hand donations too! Thank you for the amazing support you show our school and we hope you will enjoy this new way to get involved with school life!

Wish List links: Year 6 Year 5 Year 4 Year 3 Year 2 Year 1 EYFS

At St Mary's School, we know the key to unlocking learning is by teaching children to read and that is why we use the Little Wandle DfE-approved phonics scheme to teach early reading. You can see an overview of The Little Wandle Scheme below and at the start of each year, we provide a workshop for parents so you can support your child's reading at home.

In class we teach Reading in several ways.  Our English curriculum is designed to be focused on exciting books which use a wonderful breadth of vocabulary and promote diversity and inclusion. 

Accelerated Reader

As the children become more confident readers, they move onto Accelerated Reader.  AR is part of the Renaissance Reading software package recently adopted by the school to encourage and improve reading, measure growth of the individual reader and to provide quality reading for all.  It allows for personalised learning targets to be set up and for progress to be easily monitored. This short guide will help you to understand the system better so that you can support your child with their reading.

Your child will choose a book at their own level and read it at their own pace.  When finished, they will take a short quiz on the computer.  Passing the quiz is an indication that your child has understood the book. 

AR gives both children and teachers feedback based on the quiz results, which the teacher then uses to help your child set goals and direct ongoing reading practice. 

AR is used as part of a comprehensive reading programme in place at St Mary's Catholic Primary School for children in Key Stage 2.  While we continue to teach the skills of reading in class through guided reading texts and whole-class texts.  The AR books chosen by your child will provide them with the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they have developed. 

For more information, please read the parent's guide here.