For this new approach to reading to be successful, one of the key factors is teachers and parents/carers working together to support the children in developing this skill.

How can parents support their child with reading at home?

One of the biggest indicators of successful reading comprehension is the ability to draw on background knowledge. By sharing a range of texts with your child and discussing the contents with them, knowledge is being built. We encourage you to use a wide variety of books and other stimuli, including such items as picture books, books with illustrations and no words and age-appropriate documentaries. The focus is on authentic texts and not those where the text is predictable and where clues are sought from pictures or a repetitious pattern of words.

Our focus at school is around decodable texts which are those which relate to the sounds that have been taught within the classroom and where learners break down (segment) words by their sounds before blending the sounds together again to form the word.

We also encourage you to talk about vocabulary with your child. This will not only assist their reading and comprehension, but there will also be an impact on the quality of their writing as they begin to utilise a more varied and sophisticated range of words.