Our vision for reading moving forward is to build and nurture a love of reading, enlightening the passion for curiosity and creativity within our students, from Pre-Nursery upwards. We want our students to be able to experience the wider world and open them up to new possibilities, whilst sharing a love of reading.
Why is this important?
“The shared community that is created and that sense of belongingness is magical.” – Sally Betteridge.
Reading allows children to create a shared community which gives a sense of belongingness from a young age. Through reading, children are able to develop critical thinking skills and become more receptive to creativity. The more they read, the more imaginative they can become.
By reading, even as adults, we open ourselves up to new vocabulary and phrases; the more we read, the more familiar these new phrases become. Reading also boosts confidence; studies suggest that children who read more will further push themselves to try new ideas and challenges.
At BISS, we have started to talk more openly about books and enjoy reading. We have our Book Swap currently located in the Chatterbox Café, as well as the reintroduction of our Library Newsletter.
What can parents do to help our students?
Throughout the different year groups, we share reading resources with our students and parents, including the use of our Reading Record book. Students are asked to read for 10-20 minutes a day to promote knowledge and engagement with books. This can be undertaken through reading books, listening to audiobooks, or even viewing a picture book and talking about it. We hope that our parents can engage with our young readers at home as well as in school to further embed the love of reading.
Amy Barr
Year 6 Teacher
Primary School English Lead
