Reading
At Mary Exton Primary School, we believe that reading is the foundation for learning, opening doors to new knowledge, experiences and imagination. Through reading, children can explore different cultures, discover new ideas and become immersed in a wide range of worlds and perspectives. We aim to develop confident, fluent and enthusiastic readers who enjoy and value books, while ensuring that every child develops the skills needed to access the wider curriculum and succeed in future learning.
Our reading curriculum is carefully sequenced from Reception to Year 6 and is aligned with the National Curriculum, supported by Herts for Learning guidance and evidence-informed approaches. In the early stages of reading, pupils follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme, developing secure phonics knowledge, decoding skills and early fluency through daily lessons and carefully matched decodable texts. As children progress, they develop deeper comprehension skills through rich and varied literature, building vocabulary, background knowledge and the ability to analyse and respond thoughtfully to a range of texts. Reading and writing are closely connected, with high-quality books providing models of language and supporting children’s development as communicators.
Reading is taught through a combination of structured phonics teaching, guided reading and whole-class reading sessions. In Key Stage 1 and lower Key Stage 2, pupils develop fluency, comprehension and confidence through regular guided reading, while pupils in upper Key Stage 2 engage with more complex texts through whole-class reading sessions using Jane Considine’s Reading Unit Plans. Lessons explicitly teach key reading strategies, including retrieval, inference, summarising and understanding authorial choices, while encouraging discussion and independent thinking. Teachers use ongoing assessment, pupil responses and targeted interventions, including precision teaching where needed, to ensure all pupils make progress. Through regular opportunities to read for pleasure and information, exposure to ambitious vocabulary and access to high-quality literature, children leave Mary Exton as confident, capable readers who are prepared for secondary education and equipped with a lifelong love of reading.
Useful Documents
Below you will find a range of documents that provide an overview of the readng curriculum at Mary Exton Primary School. These include information about what children will be learning in each year group and how reading skills progress as children move through the school, and the expectations for spelling, grammar and handwriting. You will also find guidance on how you can support and encourage a love of reading at home, helping to build confidence, fluency and enjoyment.
