Reading

Reading Intent, Implementation & Impact

Intent

The intent of our Reading curriculum is to foster a deep love of reading and to inspire a lifelong appreciation of literature. We aim to provide a rich, inclusive, and engaging reading programme that enables children to:

• Become fluent, confident readers with strong comprehension skills.
• Develop a love for books by exploring a wide range of genres, authors, and cultures.
• Build critical thinking through discussion, questioning, and responding to texts thoughtfully.
• Apply reading skills across the curriculum, using texts to gather information, make connections, and develop understanding of the wider world.

We believe that reading is the key to unlocking learning in all subjects and to promoting well-rounded, empathetic individuals. Our approach combines high-quality texts, systematic phonics, and meaningful reading experiences to ensure every child becomes a capable and motivated reader.

In Early Years, our intent is to nurture a passion for stories and language from the very beginning. Children explore books through storytelling, songs, and role-play, developing early language, listening, and comprehension skills. Phonics is taught systematically, while reading is embedded into daily routines, laying the essential foundations for fluent, confident reading in later years.

Implementation

To achieve our intent, we implement a structured and engaging Reading curriculum that builds progressively across the key stages. The curriculum is inclusive, high-quality, and designed to develop confident, fluent readers who enjoy reading for both pleasure and purpose.

Curriculum Design

We have developed a clear progression framework that systematically builds reading skills from Early Years to Year 6. It includes daily phonics teaching, comprehension development, vocabulary enrichment, and exposure to diverse, high-quality texts, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and traditional tales. In Early Years, children begin reading through phonics, storytelling, and shared reading. They enjoy rhyme, rhythm, and repetition, laying the foundation for confident decoding and comprehension later.

Teaching Strategies

Reading is taught using whole-class, group, and one-to-one sessions. Teachers model fluent, expressive reading, helping pupils develop their own fluency and understanding. We select texts to reflect diversity and promote inclusion, enabling pupils to see themselves and others in what they read. Teaching includes explicit instruction in comprehension strategies, vocabulary, and opportunities for discussion and critical thinking.

Experiential Learning

We enrich the curriculum with events such as World Book Day, author visits, book fairs, and competitions.

Book corners, libraries, and reading displays promote a strong reading culture. In Early Years, reading is embedded in daily routines and role-play, helping children engage with language in playful contexts.

Adaptive Teaching

We use adaptive strategies to meet all learners’ needs. Lessons are differentiated by text choice, questioning, grouping, and support. Our inclusive approach ensures pupils with SEND, EAL, or other needs are supported to access and succeed in reading.

Assessment and Feedback

Formative assessments regularly monitor progress and inform teaching. Feedback is constructive and timely, helping pupils reflect and improve. Progress is tracked against national expectations, with interventions where needed.

Impact

The impact of our Reading curriculum is measured through various outcomes and indicators:

• Pupil Engagement and Enthusiasm

Observations show high levels of engagement and enthusiasm among pupils during reading lessons. Many pupils express enjoyment in exploring a range of texts and confidently discussing their favourite stories and authors.

• Reading Fluency and Comprehension

Assessment data indicates that pupils consistently achieve age-related expectations in reading. They demonstrate strong decoding skills and comprehension, able to understand and discuss texts clearly, often making connections to their own experiences and prior learning.

• Skills Development

Pupils leave St Thomas’ with well-developed reading skills, including decoding, inference, retrieval, and critical thinking. These skills prepare them well for future learning across all subjects.

In Early Years, children exhibit emerging reading abilities through their participation in storytelling, phonics activities, and shared book sessions.

• Cultural Awareness and Identity

Through their reading, pupils develop a broader understanding of diverse cultures and perspectives. This encourages empathy, respect, and a positive appreciation of difference, supporting British Values such as mutual respect and tolerance of those with different backgrounds and beliefs.

• Community Involvement

The curriculum fosters strong links with families and the local community through reading events, library visits, and author workshops. These connections enrich pupils’ reading experiences and strengthen the role of reading both at school and at home.

In summary, our intent, implementation, and impact statements demonstrate our commitment to delivering an outstanding Reading curriculum that not only meets national standards but also inspires confident, enthusiastic readers who are prepared to succeed and engage thoughtfully with the world around them.

Overview of Reading

Progression of Skills in Reading

Reading in the Early Years

In the Early Years Foundation Stage, reading is a key part of the Literacy area of learning. It is closely linked to children’s communication, language, and early writing skills. Reading in the EYFS is about developing a love of stories, books, and rhymes, as well as building the foundations for decoding and understanding text.

Children learn that print carries meaning by exploring books, signs, labels, and environmental print in meaningful contexts. They enjoy sharing stories and rhymes with adults, joining in with repeated phrases and predicting what might happen next. Through these shared experiences, children begin to understand how stories are structured and to talk about characters, settings, and events.

As children’s language and listening skills develop, they engage in conversations about what they have read or heard, expressing preferences and making connections to their own experiences. Practitioners encourage this by reading expressively, asking open-ended questions, and modelling a genuine enjoyment of books.

Early reading also involves developing phonological awareness - listening for rhymes, rhythms, and sounds in words. As children progress, they are introduced to systematic phonics to help them link sounds (phonemes) to letters (graphemes) and begin to decode simple words.

Through daily story time, rhymes, and phonics sessions, children learn to:

• Listen to and join in with familiar stories and poems
• Recognise that print conveys meaning and is read from left to right, top to bottom
• Identify and talk about favourite characters and events
• Hear and identify sounds in words
• Begin to blend sounds to read simple words
• Use new vocabulary from stories in their own speech and play

Practitioners create a language-rich environment with inviting book areas, story props, and opportunities for children to explore books independently and with others. Families are encouraged to share books at home, fostering positive attitudes to reading from the earliest age.

Through these experiences, children develop not only the skills needed to become fluent readers but also the joy, curiosity, and imagination that come from a lifelong love of reading.

Achievements & Celebrations in Reading