Reading

We are Readers!

Reading is an integral part of daily life at St Paul's. During their time here we want our children not only learn to read but to also develop a love of reading. Daily story times, with carefully selected books expose the children to a wide range of genres and themes. All classrooms have a cosy and inviting book corner from which the children can borrow books to take home or read at quieter times of the day. 

 Reception and Key Stage One                                                

We believe learning to read early is an essential step for our children to be able to access the rest of our exciting curriculum. Our aim is for all children to read accurately and fluently. In Reception and Key Stage 1 children read  books linked to our 'Rocket Phonics' programme. This means that the books that they are reading tie into the sounds that they are learning in class. In our daily story times we share a range of books including those that link to our topics to help fully immerse the children in their learning.

As parents you will play a key role in your child's journey to become a reader. Colour banded books are brought home by the children and we ask that you hear you child read at least 3 times per week. Please write in your child's reading diary when they have read as these are check regularly by class teachers. 

Key Stage Two                                                                  

In Key Stage 2 we teach reading through whole class sessions enabling all children to access and be exposed to texts that they may not otherwise come across. To support the teaching of reading we use the acronym 'VIPERS'  to aid the recall of the 6 reading domains as part of the UK’s reading curriculum.  They are the key areas which we feel children need to know and understand in order to improve their comprehension of texts.

VIPERS stands for

Vocabulary

Inference

Prediction

Explanation

Retrieval

Sequence or Summarise

The 6 domains focus on the comprehension aspect of reading and not the mechanics: decoding, fluency, prosody.  As such, VIPERS is not a reading scheme but rather a method of ensuring that teachers ask, and students are familiar with, a range of questions.  They allow the teacher to track the type of questions asked and the children’s responses to these which allows for targeted questioning afterwards.