Literacy & Reading
Our academy ethos is firmly based in our mantra, “Opening Doors to the Future”, which requires students to be confident in their reading and literacy skills. As defined by the National Literacy Trust, we understand that literacy is the ability to read, write, speak and listen in a way which allows us to communicate effectively and make sense of the world.
As a result, at Bishop Barrington Academy, we have a relentless focus on driving improvements in literacy to raise attainment at every level, understanding that communication skills, including reading, writing, speaking and listening, allow students to access all curriculum areas and succeed in life after secondary school.
Literacy and Reading skills are the fundamental skills which make all other learning possible, and therefore it is the responsibility of all of our teachers at Bishop Barrington, in all curriculum areas, to ensure that the teaching of literacy is confidently integrated into the curriculum.
We acknowledge that literacy is crucial for a students’ academic success but also their success as an individual. We believe that there are no limits on what students at Bishop Barrington Academy can achieve and understand that literacy skills are key to ensure that any ceilings are removed for our students.
Additional literacy interventions, which are routed in theory, are being implemented to remove any barriers for our students and address any areas for development in reading, writing or communication skills to allow students to make rapid progress from their starting points.
Our Literacy and Reading strategies have been heavily influenced by the following research, but are not limited to:
- Education Endowment Foundation
- National Literacy Trust
- The Department for Education: The Reading Framework
- Doug Lemov, Teach like a Champion
- Doug Lemov: Reading Reconsidered
We are driven and passionate about improving students’ communication skills, including students’ ability to read, because we understand that in order to read for pleasure, students need to be able to read confidently and fluently, and the more students read, the bigger impact this will have on all of their communication skills.
Students are given several opportunities to develop and improve their literacy skills through our broad curriculum as well as through bespoke interventions, to ensure that every student has the skills needed to “Open Doors to Their Future”.
Everything we do for reading and literacy is linked to one of the three core areas:
- Support for Struggling Readers
- Reading within the Curriculum
- Reading for Pleasure
Early Identification
Students complete a baseline assessment at the beginning of the academic year, which is called a STAR reader test which is part of our reading programme, Accelerated Reader. The STAR reader assessment then assigns students into tiers based on their current reading age and their chronological age.
The Reading Tiers are also shared with all subject teachers to ensure that all students are receiving the required support or stretch and challenge linked to their reading ability. The four tiers are:
- Urgent Intervention
- Intervention
- On Watch
- On or Above Benchmark
Students who require urgent intervention or intervention are screened for phonics to see if they require additional phonics’ lessons to support them with their reading.
Reading at Key Stage 4
At Key Stage 4, we aim to further develop students into confident, independent readers. Our strategies include:
- Developing reading fluency and comprehension through the use of Accountable Independent Reading and FASE Reading techniques.
- Encouraging students to read challenging and ambitious texts.
- Providing Key Stage 4 students with a Bishop Barrington Reading Passport with recommended books linked to each curriculum area, supporting enrichment outside of the classroom and insight into the wider world.
