1. How do children learn to read and what can you do to help?
Reading
How do children learn to read and what can you do to help?

2. Why is reading so important?
It teaches children about the world around them.
It improves children’s vocabulary and language skills.
Reading develops a child’s imagination.
Children who read do better at school.

3. What opportunities do children have to read at school?
Individually
Paired Reading
Guided Reading
Phonic Sessions
Opportunities across the curriculum
Reading Buddies

4. How do children learn to read?
Speaking and listening
Picture books
Letter recognition and association with a sound
Using phonic cues to blend sounds together
Use of picture cues to support understanding
Recognition of sight words

5. Progress from key words through to a complete sentence.
More complex sentences including tricky words.
Transfer from learning to read to reading to learn.

6. Things to remember
Pace and rate varies from child to child no specific outcome.
Some more reliant on one skill than others we try to give a range of experiences and cover all aspects to ensure every child has the opportunity to learn.

7. Guided Reading What is guided reading?
What does a guided reading session look like?

8. Reading at home
Talk about the book before you read it, introducing any new words.
If they are finding a book difficult, read it to them, asking them to join in with words they will know or can sound out.
Sometimes read with your child or take it in turns to read a page.
Draw your child’s attention to repeated words, encouraging them to read them by sight, instead of sounding out.

9. Talk about the book as you read it, not just at the end
Talk about the book as you read it, not just at the end. Make a note of what your child says in the reading diary.
Keep reading session short and enjoyable but frequent, e.g. four times a week. In the Reading Diary write the title of the book, date and any comments about how your child read.

10. Phonics
In Reception children learn sounds and letter recognition by following the government programme of Letters and Sounds.
From year 1 children’s phonic knowledge of sounds is assessed and they are then grouped and taught according to their need. This is taught through Phonics Bug.

11. Questions?
Please feel free to help yourself to leaflets