At Blaydon West we teach reading using an accessible range of activities for all children to promote an understanding of inference, retrieval, prediction, explanation of texts, new vocabulary and summarising. Every year group in school has a bespoke book shelf that includes fiction, non-fiction, diversity, culture, poetry, classical texts and popular children’s novels. In EYFS and key stage one, classes enjoy regular story time daily and in key stage two children engage with longer texts through their literacy units.

From nursery and up to year 2, children take books home regularly appealing to their interests, engaging them in reading from an early age alongside their phonics readers from the RWI scheme. Children also take home their ‘home reading record book’ which is a written communication tool between home and school and is vital for any key messages based around the acquisition of reading skills and phonics.

In key stage two the children follow Accelerated Reader which is a scheme requiring them to read for 30 minutes per day in school, choosing books at their reading level and aimed at their interest level too. These books are also taken home and parents/ carers and children themselves are encouraged to make comments through our google classroom platform. We encourage parents and carers to support their child’s reading as it is crucial to their development to becoming a fluent reader.

If you would like to find an Accelerated Reader book for your child to read at home use this link: Accelerated Reader

When your child is ready to complete a test on a book at home they can log in here with their login: Login

Phonics

Read Write Inc.

At Blaydon West Primary we use Read Write Inc Phonics (RWI) to give your child the best possible start with their Literacy development. Mrs. Bell is our Read Write Inc lead teacher, so if you have questions about RWI contact the school office who can refer you to her.

Read Write Inc (RWI) is a phonics complete literacy programme that helps all children learn to read fluently so they can focus on developing their skills in comprehension, vocabulary, and spelling. The programme is designed for children aged 4-7 but at Blaydon West we begin the programme in Nursery and will continue teaching RWI to children beyond the age of 7, as we use a stage, not age approach. We have also invested in the ‘Fresh Start’ approach for our Year 4 – 6 children who continue to need a phonics approach to their learning. RWI and Fresh Start were both developed by Ruth Miskin and more information on this can be found at https://ruthmiskin.com/en/find-out-more/parents/.

The Teaching of RWI

All children are assessed regularly by our RWI lead teacher (Mrs Bell.) From these assessments, children are organised into small groups, where they work with peers on the same stage.

Nursery & Reception

When appropriate, children will be introduced to the initial sounds in short five minutes sessions.

In Reception all children will learn how to ‘read’ the sounds in words and how those sounds can be written down.

Reading

The children:

• Learn 44 sounds and the corresponding letters/letter groups using simple picture prompts
• Learn to read words using Fred talk and sound blending
• Read from a range of storybooks matched to their phonic knowledge
• Work well with partners
• Develop comprehension skills in stories by answering ‘Find It’ and ‘Prove It’ discussion questions

Writing

The children:

• Learn to write and form the letters/letter groups which represent the 44 sounds with the help of fun phrases
• Learn to write words by using Fred Talk
• Learn to build sentences by practising sentences out loud before they write

Talking

The children work in pairs so that they:

• Answer every question
• Practise every activity with their partner
• Take turns in talking and reading to each other
• Develop ambitious vocabulary

Visit the Ruth Miskin website to discover more - Ruth Miskin