At Cabot we believe that active encouragement of reading for pleasure is a core part of every child’s educational entitlement, because we know that extensive reading and exposure to a wide range of texts make a huge contribution to students’ educational achievement.
We believe that children deserve a rich curriculum that encourages extensive reading of whole books and other kinds of texts. Cabot Primary School is an “Every Child a Reader” school which means that we aspire to the highest levels of literacy for all children.
Reading with your child is really important. We ask parents to put aside a little time for reading every day. Books should be fun! If you’re both enjoying a book, then take as long as you like; books aren’t just about reading the words on the page, they can also present new ideas and topics for you and your child to discuss.
Reading: Statement of Intent
‘Books enable children to discover new worlds, meet new people and learn about the past; they also have the power to transform lives. By sparking growing imaginations, stimulating critical thinking and helping to develop empathy, reading gives children the very skills they need to succeed at school, at work and in life.’ Cressida Cowell
At Cabot we believe that every child has the ability to read and we know that ‘the best primary schools in England teach virtually every child to read’.
We aim to ensure that all pupils:
- read easily, fluently and with good understanding
- develop reading strategies and skills: accurate and confident decoding, fluency, self-monitoring, understanding and response to texts.
- develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information
- read a variety of texts through the use of libraries, ICT and other media and have the research skills to make the best use of the information available
- experience diverse range of high quality texts that reflect and broaden their perspectives and challenge stereotypes
- recognise and value their own tastes/preferences and literary experiences and are confident and inquisitive enough to explore within and beyond these
- are knowledgeable of a wide range of stories and text types
- increase their vocabulary and gain an understanding of how language works by looking at its patterns, structures and origins
- work in partnership to use discussion in order to learn and express themselves; clearly explaining and elaborating on their understanding and ideas
- are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, participating in debate and drama activities, working inclusively with others
- are attentive listeners and have the resilience and motivation to be independent and reflective readers
- grow a lifelong love of reading and an appreciation and enjoyment of literature
We aspire for excellence for all. It is our goal that Every Child is a Reader by the age of 7 and that, by the end of their primary education, all pupils at Cabot Primary School are able to read fluently, and with confidence, in any subject.
Cabot Collection
The Cabot Collection is a selection of the ‘best, most amazing books ever’ and we are very proud of it! The whole school community contributed and Miss Davies read a lot of books to make the final selection. The books chosen are a diverse range of some of the best children’s literature, old and new, which will act as a springboard for discovering new authors, illustrators and interests. We aim for every child to read or listen to all the books.
Phonics
At Cabot Primary School, phonics is taught in phases following the Bug Club Phonics programme alongside other relevant objectives from the National Curriculum. Pupils are systematically taught the phonemes (sounds), how to blend the sounds all through the word for reading, and how to segment the sounds in order to write words.
In Reception and Year 1, children take home books from a sequence that shows a cumulative progression in phonic knowledge and matches our phonics programme. This is to support children to learn that the route to decoding unfamiliar words comes from blending the sounds, and that the children become systematic and fluent at doing this.
From Year 2, children continue to use their phonic skills and knowledge to develop their word reading. This is combined with an emphasis on morphology and etymology so that they can become fluent readers and increasingly accurate spellers. To ensure that everyone makes connections between all these areas of learning, we call our phonics, spelling and grammar lessons ‘Language Skills’.
