English incl. Reading and Phonics

Reading & Phonics

The ability to read is fundamental to pupils’ learning across the curriculum, their ability to be independent and their future life choices. Reading development is closely related to that of phonics, speaking and listening and of writing. By reflecting upon and talking about the stories and texts they encounter, pupils are better able to make sense of their own experiences of the world and their place in it; by considering the effects of language and structures used by writers, pupils are able to make deliberate stylistic choices in their own writing.

As a school we follow Read Write Inc. This is a  highly successful literacy programmes for 4-13 year-olds created by Ruth Miskin and published by Oxford University Press. The training and support from Ruth Miskin Training, rated Outstanding by the Department for Education and is one of their approved phonics schemes.

The Read Write Inc. phonics programme is carefully matched to the National Curriculum, giving your children the best chance of success. They show teachers, teaching assistants and parents step-by-step how to teach all children to become fluent readers, confident speakers and willing writers.

Read Write Inc. Phonics is used by over a quarter of the UK’s primary schools. It is a comprehensive literacy programme, weaving decoding, comprehension, writing and spelling together seamlessly. Ruth Miskin developed the programme during her time as a headteacher in Tower Hamlets. She believes that in order for a school to be successful, every headteacher needs to adopt a consistent whole-school approach to teaching reading, writing and spelling. Fidelity to the teaching programme, rigorous assessment, tracking and one-to-one tutoring ensure that schools guarantee progress for every child.

At Huxley C.E. Primary, we use Read Write Inc. Phonics for our children in Foundation Stage to Year 2 and for our children in Key Stage 2 who need further support. We group the children depending on the stage they are currently working at, and each group is supported by a teacher or teaching assistant. Children are assessed half termly and the groupings are flexible to allow for fluidity between them.

The children start the RWI programme in the Early Years Unit and begin by learning speed sounds set one. Once children are confident with set one, they progress onto sets two and three. As part of their learning they practise reading and spelling green words (which are words that are decodable using the sounds they have been taught). They also learn red words (which are words that aren’t easily phonically decodable). Children will work through the RWI programme at different rates but they will generally be working on the RWI programme in the Early Years Unit and Key Stage One. 

Using RWI, the children learn to read effortlessly so that they can put all their energy into comprehending what they read. It also allows them to spell effortlessly so that they can put all their energy into composing what they write.

When using RWI to read the children will:

• learn 44 sounds and the corresponding letter/letter groups using simple picture prompts
• learn to read words using Fred Talk
• read lively stories featuring words they have learned to sound out
• show that they comprehend the stories by answering questions.

When using RWI to write the children will:

• learn to write the letters/letter groups which represent 44 sounds.
• learn to write words by saying the sounds in Fred Talk
• write simple sentences
• compose stories based on picture strips
• compose a range of stories based on writing frames.

For information and tutorials on how to support your child learning to read go to: https://home.oxfordowl.co.uk/reading/reading-schemes-oxford-levels/read-write-inc-phonics-guide/ 

This link has free books, videos, resources and guides for parents to follow at home should you wish

For KS2 reading, we use Literacy Tree Literary Leaves alongside VIPERS-style questioning to develop fluent, thoughtful and reflective readers. Reading is integral to every aspect of our literacy lessons and wider curriculum.

Literary Leaves enables pupils to study whole high-quality texts rather than extracts, building reading fluency, comprehension, literary understanding and cultural capital. Children engage in rich book talk, discussion, vocabulary exploration and critical thinking. VIPERS questioning is woven throughout lessons to develop Vocabulary, Inference, Prediction, Explanation, Retrieval and Sequencing skills.

Through carefully sequenced texts, pupils encounter increasingly challenging literature, diverse authors and meaningful themes which help them make connections across their reading journey.

Literacy Tree Principles

Drawing on Literacy Tree practice, Huxley promotes:

• High-quality whole-class texts selected for literary merit.

• Deliberate sequencing of literature across year groups.

• Rich discussion and quality book talk.

• Explicit vocabulary instruction.

• Opportunities to read aloud and be read to.

• Development of reading fluency through repeated reading and modelling.

• Reading that supports writing, speaking and wider curriculum knowledge.

The approach aligns strongly with Ofsted's 2024 English Subject Report which emphasises whole texts, reading fluency, vocabulary development, literary knowledge and discussion-based comprehension.

Reading for Pleasure

Reading for pleasure is central to our culture. Children experience daily class novels, teacher read-aloud sessions, library opportunities, reading spaces and carefully chosen books that broaden horizons and reflect diverse experiences. Staff actively model reading and promote books through recommendations and discussion. We aim to develop lifelong readers who choose to read beyond school.

To increase the love of reading even further we have reading events such as Extreme Reading competitions, Masked Reader, Book day events, Author visits and Story Tent events. Our Reading Retreat caravan is open throughout the day so children can sit and read a range of books throughout play times and dinner breaks as well as in reading groups 

Vocabulary and Oracy

Vocabulary is explicitly taught through high-quality texts. Children are encouraged to explore ambitious language, discuss meanings, make connections and apply vocabulary in speech and writing. Structured discussion, partner talk and book talk ensure pupils can articulate their ideas confidently. Active ‘build a sentence’ talk and story telling is taught from EYFS and above. Our EYFS children also take part in an Intergenerational Oracy project to help build confidence in speaking and listening. 

READING VIPERS- 

Reading for Pleasure

At Huxley, we want to inspire a love of reading in our school and wider community. As such, we promote reading for pleasure through our reading areas, such as our reading caravan and book nook and by talking about books throughout the school day.Our English is book based and we have daily 15minutes shared class book time

If you are struggling to support your child with what texts to try next, you can access lots of great inspiration for their next great read here Our book recommendations | BookTrust

English Writing

For our English Writing we use Literary Curriculum from the Literacy Tree. 

The award-winning Literary Curriculum is a complete, book-based approach designed to help teachers access high quality resources and network through training. The Teach Through a Text approach was created so that there was a consistent, cohesive pedagogy used across a school.

Developed by The Literacy Tree, a group of English specialists who have all been teachers, school leaders and moderators, the Literary Curriculum immerses children in a literary world, creating strong levels of engagement to provide meaningful and authentic contexts for learning.

Children become critical readers and acquire an authorial style as they encounter a wide-range of significant authors and a variety of fiction, non-fiction and poetry.

Please see curriculum maps for units and cross refernece with the below as we have made some changes to support some years groups - mainly Years 5/6. Our curriculum maps on the main curriculum page and showbie, outline the book topics