English

The English curriculum (2014) states the skills that children need to be able to read and write successfully. As it states the different genre the children should read, we have linked these to the written genre the children will use to develop their skills.   To ensure the children are given opportunities to read and write across the curriculum, the subject leaders have worked together to link foundation subject units of work to the English curriculum for each year group.

Phonics is taught at St Thomas' through the  Read, Write Inc. scheme introduced across the school in September 2016.  The Fresh Start element of the scheme is used as an intervention in Year 5 and 6.

Children are given many planned opportunities to read, including whole class reading, silent reading, one-to-one reading, guided reading, reciprocal reading and paired reading.  They all also have the opportunity to visit the school libraries, giving them access to a wide range of books, both fiction and non-fiction, a range of comics, e-readers and audio books. 

Both home/school readers and guided reading sets, are colour banded to ensure progression both within each year group and across keystages.  The children read books from a range a publishers to give them breadth and a greater choice of reading materials to promote enjoyment.  Our children also take part in regular guided reading sessions to develop reading and comprehension skills.