How We Teach Reading at Broadway Junior School

At Broadway Junior School, we believe that reading is the key to unlocking learning, developing imagination and opening up a world of opportunities. Our aim is for every child to become a confident, fluent and enthusiastic reader who enjoys reading for pleasure and can use their reading skills successfully across the curriculum and throughout life.

Developing Confident, Skilled Readers

Reading is at the heart of our curriculum. We provide children with regular opportunities to read a wide range of high-quality texts, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry and texts linked to their learning across different subjects. Through carefully planned teaching, children develop their fluency, vocabulary, comprehension and ability to think critically about what they read.

Teachers explicitly model and teach the skills needed to become successful readers. Children learn to retrieve information, make inferences, explain their ideas using evidence from the text, explore vocabulary choices and summarise what they have read. They are encouraged to discuss their interpretations, ask questions and develop their own responses to texts.

Daily Reading Sessions

At Broadway, we prioritise reading every day. Daily shared and guided reading sessions form an important part of our approach to teaching reading. During shared reading, teachers model fluent, expressive reading and demonstrate the strategies skilled readers use to understand and respond to texts. Children are encouraged to think deeply, ask questions, explore unfamiliar vocabulary and share their ideas.

Guided reading provides opportunities for teachers to work with children, focusing on specific reading skills and addressing individual learning needs. Through carefully selected texts and targeted questioning, pupils develop their comprehension, inference, retrieval and vocabulary skills.

These sessions are complemented by opportunities for independent reading, reading aloud and discussing books with adults and peers. Regular practice helps children to develop reading stamina, confidence and a deeper understanding of what they read.

Each afternoon, following lunchtime, children take part in a dedicated reading session. This protected time provides valuable opportunities for pupils to develop their reading skills, build fluency and immerse themselves in books.

Phonics and Early Reading Support

We recognise that secure phonics knowledge is essential for developing confident, independent readers. Where children need additional support to develop their phonics skills, we provide targeted interventions using Read Write Inc. (RWI). These sessions focus on strengthening children's knowledge of sounds and corresponding letters, blending sounds to read words and developing accurate, fluent reading.

Through regular, focused practice and carefully targeted support, we aim to address gaps in phonics knowledge, build confidence and enable children to access increasingly challenging texts independently. Interventions are informed by ongoing assessment so that support is matched to each child's individual needs and progress.

Reading Across the Curriculum

Reading is not taught in isolation. We recognise its importance in every subject and provide opportunities for children to apply and develop their reading skills throughout the curriculum. Carefully chosen texts help children to broaden their knowledge, encounter new ideas and develop an increasingly rich vocabulary.

Reading for Pleasure

We want every child at Broadway to develop a genuine love of reading. Our school library provides an inviting space where children can explore books, discover new authors and choose texts that interest them. Teachers share stories, recommend books and promote a culture in which reading is valued and celebrated.

We encourage children to read regularly at home as well as at school. Our school reading books provide opportunities for children to practise their skills, develop fluency and build confidence. We also work with Schoolreaders volunteers, who give their time to listen to children read individually. These valuable sessions provide additional opportunities for pupils to practise reading aloud, discuss texts and develop their confidence and enjoyment.

Supporting Every Reader

We recognise that children develop as readers at different rates. Through ongoing assessment, teachers identify pupils' strengths and areas for development so that teaching and support can be tailored to individual needs. Alongside RWI phonics interventions, additional opportunities to practise key reading skills help children to address gaps in their learning, strengthen their fluency and develop greater independence.

At Broadway Junior School, we are committed to ensuring that every child develops the reading skills, knowledge and confidence they need to succeed. Most importantly, we want our children to leave us as capable, curious readers who understand the power of books and carry a love of reading with them into the future.

Accelerated Reader
Accelerated Reader (AR) is a computer-based management system that helps teachers manage and monitor our children’s independent reading practice and progress.
Your child picks a book at their own level and reads it at their own pace. When finished, your child takes a short book-based quiz within the AR system. Passing the quiz (with a score of 85% or more) is an indication that your child understood what was read. The children receive certificates and prizes to celebrate their achievements in our celebration Assembly. AR gives children and teachers feedback based on the quiz results which the teacher then uses to help set your child targets and goals and to direct ongoing reading practice and book choice.

Star Assessment
The children take a STAR Assessment to establish their book level. Their STAR level is tested every term to see how they have progressed.