Reading

Reading at Lapage

Opening doors to discover new worlds, building knowledge through the joy of reading

At Lapage, we want every child to develop a love of reading and become a confident, enthusiastic reader who enjoys exploring books and discovering new ideas.

Reading opens the door to imagination, knowledge and understanding. Through a rich and varied range of texts, children develop their fluency, comprehension and vocabulary, while exploring different worlds, perspectives and experiences. Our curriculum builds reading skills progressively from Nursery to Year 6, helping children develop the confidence and independence to read for pleasure, deepen their understanding and make connections with the world around them.

We want our children to leave Lapage as fluent, thoughtful and passionate readers who read with confidence, curiosity and enjoyment, recognising that reading is a lifelong skill that inspires learning and opens endless possibilities.

Our Vision for Reading

Our reading curriculum brings together fluency, comprehension, vocabulary and a love of reading. Children explore a rich and varied range of texts, developing their reading skills and understanding progressively over time. They are encouraged to read widely, ask questions, explore ideas and use evidence from texts to explain their thinking.

We aim for children to:

• Become fluent, accurate and confident readers
• Build a rich vocabulary and understand the meaning of new words
• Develop strong comprehension skills and deepen their understanding of texts
• Retrieve information, make predictions and draw inferences
• Use evidence from texts to explain and justify their ideas
• Explore a wide range of authors, genres and text types
• Make connections between texts, their own experiences and the wider world
• Develop empathy by exploring different characters, cultures and perspectives
• Communicate their thoughts and opinions about what they read
• Develop a love of reading and enjoyment of books

What Will Children Learn?

Early Years – Nursery and Reception

In the Early Years, children begin to develop their reading skills through stories, rhymes, songs, picture books and meaningful conversations. They build a love of 

books while developing the early language and phonics skills that will support them in becoming confident, independent readers.

Children explore:

• A wide range of stories, picture books, traditional tales and nursery rhymes
• How to handle books carefully and understand how they work
• New words and language through stories, conversations and shared reading
• Sounds in words, including rhyme, alliteration and initial sounds
• Letter sounds and the early stages of phonics
• How to recognise letters and begin to blend sounds to read words
• How to talk about characters, settings and events in stories
• How to retell familiar stories and make predictions about what might happen next
• How pictures and illustrations help them understand a story
• How to express their thoughts, feelings and ideas about what they have read

These experiences help children develop early reading skills, build vocabulary and imagination, and establish a strong foundation for future reading success.

Key Stage 1 – Years 1 and 2

Children continue to develop their reading fluency, accuracy and comprehension, building confidence and independence as readers. They explore a wider range of stories, poems, traditional tales and non-fiction texts, developing their vocabulary and understanding while learning to discuss what they have read.

Children explore:

• Phonics and spelling patterns to help them read unfamiliar words
• Reading words accurately and developing fluency and expression
• Stories by familiar and new authors, exploring characters and settings
• How to sequence events and retell stories in their own words
• How to predict what might happen next and explain their ideas
• How to retrieve information and answer questions about texts
• How to make simple inferences about characters' feelings and actions
• New vocabulary and how word choices contribute to meaning
• Reading aloud with growing confidence and expression
• Sharing opinions about books and developing a positive attitude towards reading 

Enrichment and Wider Opportunities

We aim to inspire a lifelong love of reading by connecting children with a rich variety of books, authors and reading experiences. We want children to discover the joy of stories, explore new ideas and recognise that reading opens doors to imagination, knowledge and understanding.

Where opportunities arise, learning can be enriched through:

• Children participating in online tutoring-Chapter One Programme
• Children developing reading for pleasure, reading with Coram Beanstalk readers
• Visits to school libraries, local library and opportunities to explore a wide range of books
• Author visits, workshops
• World Book Day celebrations
• Reading buddies and opportunities to share books with other children
• Celebrating children's favourite books, authors and reading achievements

• Recommending favourite books and sharing their enjoyment of reading with others.

• Exploring stories and texts that reflect different cultures, experiences and perspectives

These experiences help children see reading as an enjoyable, shared and lifelong experience, encouraging them to explore new worlds, develop their imagination and discover the many possibilities that reading offers.

Supporting Reading at Home

Families play an important role in helping children develop a love of reading. Sharing books, talking about stories and making time to read together can build confidence, strengthen reading skills and make reading an enjoyable part of everyday life.

Encourage your child to:

• Read together regularly and make reading a positive part of your daily routine
• Share favourite stories, picture books, poems and non-fiction books
• Listen to your child read aloud and celebrate their progress
• Talk about the characters, settings and events in stories 
• Ask questions such as “What do you think will happen next?” and “Why do you think the character did that?”
• Encourage your child to explain their answers and find clues in the text
• Explore new words together and talk about their meanings
• Visit the local library and discover books by different authors
• Read for different purposes, including enjoyment, finding information and exploring new interests
• Let your child see you reading and share your own favourite books and stories
• Talk about books, recommend stories and celebrate the joy of discovering something new

• Most importantly, make reading enjoyable, encourage curiosity and help your child discover that books can inspire imagination, build knowledge and open a world of possibilities.

Reading-Progression-of-Skills

Useful Websites

• Oxford Owl – Reading:https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/

• Free advice, eBooks and reading activities to support children's reading development at home.

• BBC Bitesize – English: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/z3kw2hv

• Activities and resources to help children develop their reading, comprehension, spelling and vocabulary skills.

• BookTrust: https://www.booktrust.org.uk/

• Book recommendations, reading activities and advice to help children discover a love of books.

• World Book Day: https://www.worldbookday.com/

• Reading ideas, book recommendations and fun activities to encourage children to read for pleasure.

• The Reading Agency: https://readingagency.org.uk/

• Reading challenges, book recommendations and resources to inspire children and families to enjoy reading.

• National Literacy Trust: https://literacytrust.org.uk/

• Family-friendly resources, reading activities and practical ideas to support children's literacy development.

• LoveReading4Kids: https://www.lovereading4kids.co.uk/

Book recommendations and age-appropriate reading suggestions to help children discover their next favourite book.