The KAR Reading Pledge
We aspire for every pupil to be able to read at chronological age or above.
We aim to achieve this by ensuring that all staff have the skills to teach reading within their subject and every opportunity is taken to expose pupils to rich and diverse texts, both within subjects and across the school’s wider curriculum.
Young people who are confident, fluent readers are able to access, interpret and navigate the world in ways struggling readers cannot. King’s Academy Ringmer is committed to ensuring that every pupil who attends our school has access to a broad, inclusive curriculum. Within our school curriculums, reading is prioritised. Reading data is used to make sure that pupils receive timely and specific interventions to enable them to fully access the curriculum.
The King’s Canon
The King’s Canon is our reading curriculum: a collection of texts chosen specifically to develop students’ knowledge and understanding of the world and expose them to a rich and diverse vocabulary. In his book ‘Reading Reconsidered’, Doug Lemov states that there are five types of texts that children should have access to in order to successfully navigate reading with confidence. These are complex beyond a lexical level and demand more from the reader than other types of books. The King’s Canon is made up of texts that expose students to the following -
- Unfamiliar and challenging vocabulary and syntax, including different periods of time
- Non-linear time sequences
- Narratively complex
- Figurative and symbolic texts
- Complex texts which students have to develop interpretations of
Ultimately, the King’s Canon aims to introduce students to a rich collection of texts which will develop a love of literature and challenge thinking.
Year 7
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Tutor Reading |
English Curriculum |
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Year 8
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Tutor Reading |
English Curriculum |
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Year 9
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Tutor Reading |
English Curriculum |
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Year 10
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Tutor Reading |
English Curriculum |
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Year 11
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Tutor Reading |
English Curriculum |
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In-class Reading Strategies
The strategies listed below are used as part of our approach to providing quality first teaching. By employing the appropriate strategies, we ensure that all students can access the inclusive curriculum regardless of their reading age and ability.
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Strategy |
Explanation |
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Direct instruction of tier 2 and tier 3 vocabulary |
Define the words |
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Pre-teaching vocabulary |
Identifying words, both tier 2 and tier 3, that might inhibit the understanding of a text and ensuring students know what they mean before they encounter them in a text. This might be the first time students have encountered such words or a reminder of meanings. |
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Find the morphemes |
Every word has a meaning behind it. Each part is a root word with a link to either Latin or Greek. Knowledge of this will allow you to find out more about words you are unfamiliar with and build schema. |
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Modelling fluent reading |
The teacher reads texts aloud to the students. Reading aloud enables students to access, understand and enjoy texts beyond their ability. Teachers provide a role model of expressive reading. It widens students’ vocabularies and supports comprehension and improves background knowledge. It creates ‘texts in common’ to build a reading community and most importantly it ensures that students who struggle with reading have access to quality texts and the full curriculum. |
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Strategic reading strategies |
Before reading:
During reading:
After reading:
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Choral reading |
Reading a section of a text aloud together in unison. Or reading as a pair or small group together aloud. |
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Echo reading |
Where a text is read out and students repeat it back, this could be in unison or in a small group again. |
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Reciprocal reading |
Using the following key elements: prediction, clarifying, questioning and summarising, will give students a great opportunity to interrogate and actively engage in a text and discussion of its meaning. If students can successfully do this they will have a strong understanding of what the text is asking of them. |
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Reading data |
Data on our students to support our understanding of their reading ability and specific reading needs |
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Readability of texts |
An awareness of the reading age of the text and the complexities readers will face when approaching it. Students will often be exposed to texts above their reading abilities but our reading strategies will ensure they can access the content and meaning. |
Readers are Leaders
Readers are Leaders is King’s Academy Ringmers’ drive to increase the number of our students reading for pleasure. We know that pupils who lack the skills to read, or choose not to practise reading, will fall behind their peers across all academic areas. Research suggests that regular reading improves teenagers’ vocabulary by 26% regardless of background (Centre of Longitudinal Studies 2017) and reading independently is a more important indicator of success than socio-economic factors or the educational status of parents (OECD/PISA 2009) and it is therefore a priority for the school to encourage students to read for pleasure.
When students read a text at home, they receive achievement points and recognition for the additional effort they are putting into regular reading practice. Our library lessons aim to introduce students to a range of genres and text types to inspire lifelong readers