We aim for all our pupils to leave Whitewater with high standards of language and literacy. We achieve this by developing their grasp of the spoken and written word, and nurturing their love of literature through widespread reading for enjoyment.

Teaching of reading

Reading is a fundamental skill for children to acquire and we are keen to equip children with the skills to be independent readers as soon as they are able. Reading is taught to every child in some form every day, through both phonics and reading sessions and we aim to foster a love of reading.

In Key Stage One we use a systematic scheme to teach phonics daily following the ‘Little Wandle’ programme from Foundation Stage onwards. During these sessions children are introduced to new sounds in order to de-code new words and recognise the more common words for both reading and writing. More information on this can be found on our Phonics and Early Reading page.

Later on, when reading is more fluent, daily reading sessions are used to provide children with key reading strategies to ensure a greater understanding of the text. Reading also enables pupils both to acquire knowledge and to build on what they already know. The comprehension levels become progressively more complex and the children spend time in a group discussing the structure and language used by the author.

In our school library, as well as in every classroom, we have a large collection of books which are varied in type and level. Children are also given the opportunity each week to borrow books from our school library to share at home with their family, promoting reading for pleasure.

We ask that children read at home as often as possible with a parent or carer, either listening to stories being read to them or reading to adults will support their reading in school.