Reading

Reading is at the heart of the Franklin curriculum. It is a priority from the earliest years starting with the development of phonemic awareness in the nursery and the explicit teaching of the 44 phonemes of the English language throughout reception and beyond via our rigorous, sequential Read Write Inc phonics programme, enabling all to decode words confidently, the first step to becoming lifelong readers (and writers). Once children have mastered phonics in KS1, we have developed a whole class approach to reading to ensure that children become incisive readers who develop a lifelong love of reading. This approach places class texts at its core and ensures that children grapple with new vocabulary, read aloud for and with their classmates and learn comprehension techniques to enable each of them to understand the deeper meanings of that which they read. At the end of each week children answer a ‘Big Question’ about the text study that week. 

“Reading is much more than the decoding of black marks upon a page; it is a quest for meaning and one which requires the reader to be an active participant.”  

Brian Cox – 1991 

Our well-resourced libraries and prioritisation of class books further supports children to learn to read at Franklin. We have taken care to choose books a range of diverse texts for children to experience at Franklin which will open new worlds to them and support each of them to see themselves in a book. 

Pupils are expertly taught to ensure that all, regardless of background, know more, remember more and can do more within the reading domain. Children are empowered with the skills and knowledge needed to access and master the subject in the world beyond Franklin This intent is rooted in Ark Franklin’s values, mission and approach to teaching and learning.  

Through the foundation years of their reading journey, children will gain the fundamental skills that are needed to read. These skills include segmenting, blending and reading comprehension. With repetition of these skills daily, the focus of reading shifts from reading for accuracy to reading for fluency and children will learn to use expression whilst reading. The use of effective stories time from Reception through to Year 2 will enhance children’s love for reading as well as an in-depth understanding of reading comprehension. By the time children are leave KS1 children will have the confidence to read age related stories and texts independently with fluency and expression. Word recognition will become more automatic with practice and language comprehension moves towards becoming strategic overtime, with emphasis shifting from learning to read to reading to learn.