Intent
At Stratford upon Avon Primary School, we aim to foster a life-long love of reading by ensuring all children become fluent, confident readers who enjoy a wide range of texts. We place a strong emphasis on early reading and phonics, alongside rich reading experiences that nurture comprehension and a love for books across all key stages.
Our intent is to:
- Provide a rigorous and consistent phonics programme from the start of Reception, ensuring children build secure foundations in early reading.
- Ensure all children, including those with SEND and those needing additional support, are given targeted opportunities to become fluent, confident readers.
- Develop comprehension skills progressively through reading lessons that explore vocabulary, inference, retrieval, sequencing, explanation, prediction and summarising.
- Promote reading for pleasure across the school, ensuring children have access to a broad and rich variety of texts that encourage empathy, imagination and curiosity.
Implementation
Early Years and Key Stage 1
- We follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme, a DfE validated systematic synthetic phonics (SSP) scheme based on the latest research in cognitive science and reading development.
- Children are taught phonics daily and assessed half-termly through the Little Wandle assessment checkpoints.
- Daily Keep-Up sessions are delivered to address gaps and ensure all children make progress towards fluency.
- Reading books are carefully matched to children's secure phonics knowledge using a matching grid, with Big Cat for Little Wandle decodable books used in guided reading sessions.
- Weekly group reading sessions focus on decoding, prosody, and comprehension.
- Every child is heard reading regularly on a one-to-one basis with an adult.
- Children take home two books: a phonics-matched reading book and a book to read for pleasure.
- Reception children are immersed in books and storytelling to encourage early enjoyment before formal decoding begins.
Key Stage 2
- Children who have not passed the Year 1 Phonics Screening continue the phonics programme with targeted support and daily reading practice to build fluency.
- Children who have secured phonics move onto a colour-banded reading scheme to build fluency and confidence, progressing to free reading once they are secure.
- Whole class reading lessons from Year 2–6 teach key reading strategies and comprehension skills, including:
- Reading aloud, tracking and tracing text
- Making predictions, vocabulary exploration and analysis
- Inference, explanation, retrieval, summarising, and sequencing
These sessions help children develop higher-level comprehension skills and prepare them for end-of-key-stage assessments, including Year 6 SATs.
SEND Provision
- When children are identified as having SEND and are struggling with phonics, we use the Little Wandle SEND Programme, which is specifically designed to support individual learning needs.
- In some cases, we may need to adapt the pace and delivery of the programme, slowing it down and individualising it further to meet the specific needs of the child.
- Reading provision is tailored through targeted interventions, adaptive teaching and small group or 1:1 support, ensuring access to both decoding and comprehension activities.
- Children with SEND continue phonics instruction where appropriate and participate in structured reading activities designed to build fluency and deepen understanding of texts.
Impact
- Nearly all children leave EYFS with a secure foundation in phonics and a growing love of books.
- Children make strong progress in phonics, with most meeting or exceeding age-related expectations in the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check.
- By the end of Key Stage 2, children are confident, fluent readers who can engage with a wide range of texts and genres.
- Children develop a strong understanding of how to analyse and respond to texts, preparing them well for secondary education and life beyond school.
- SEND children and those at risk of falling behind are supported effectively to close gaps and access age-appropriate texts.
- Across the school, children demonstrate positive attitudes to reading, choose to read for pleasure, and talk enthusiastically about books and authors they enjoy.
Reading for Pleasure
At our school, we are passionate about developing a lifelong love of reading in all our children. We know that reading for pleasure is one of the most effective ways to build confidence, vocabulary, comprehension and, importantly, reading fluency.
Fluency is the ability to read smoothly, accurately and with expression – and it’s vital for understanding texts and enjoying them. The more children read, the more fluent they become. That’s why we offer a wide range of exciting opportunities to make reading a joyful, everyday habit:
Summer Reading Challenge
We encourage children to take part in the local library’s summer reading challenge – helping children to continue reading regularly over the holidays and maintain their fluency outside of school.
EP Reading Services
We have worked with our local Educational Psychology services to support children who need extra help with reading, ensuring that they can build their fluency at the right pace and with the right strategies.
Chatterbox at Stratford Library
Access to a wide range of books through the library helps children find stories they truly enjoy – the key to sustained, independent reading and improved fluency.
World Book Day
By celebrating World Book Day, we create excitement around books and promote daily reading, which in turn supports children in practising reading aloud with expression.
Visits to Stratford Grammar School Library
During visits, our children take part in shared reading activities with older students – modelling fluent reading and giving younger children an opportunity to practise and listen to fluent readers.
Headteacher’s Award – Book Vending Machine
Children selected for this award receive a golden token to choose a book from our book vending machine – giving them ownership over their reading choices, which motivates them to read more often and build fluency through repetition and enjoyment.
Book Swap Station
Our book swap area allows children to try different types of texts. This variety is important in developing fluency, as it encourages children to explore both familiar and new vocabulary in context.
Reading Competitions
Activities such as bookmark design and storytelling encourage repeated reading and performance, which strengthen both fluency and confidence.
Get Caught Reading
This fun initiative invites children to take photos of themselves reading in unusual or creative places. By normalising and celebrating reading everywhere, children are encouraged to read more frequently – a key factor in developing fluency.
Book Fair
We host a yearly book fair where children can explore and purchase a range of exciting new books. It’s also a chance to discover new authors and genres, further inspiring children to engage with reading.
Author Visits
Meeting real-life authors brings books to life. Children become more motivated to read and re-read their favourite stories – an effective way to improve fluency naturally.
Literacy Week in the Community
Children attend events across Stratford where they take part in shared reading and storytelling activities. These experiences allow for repeated exposure to language and reading models that support fluency.
Weekly Reading Assemblies
Each week, children take part in a reading assembly where a teacher shares a book with the whole group. These sessions model fluent, expressive reading and expose pupils to a wide range of vocabulary and storytelling styles.
Phonics and Reading Workshops for Parents
We also run workshops to support parents in helping their children read at home. These sessions give families practical tools and strategies to build confidence, reinforce phonics skills, and develop fluency through regular home reading routines.
Through all of these activities, we aim to nurture confident, fluent readers who not only decode texts accurately but also read with understanding, rhythm and enjoyment.
