Reading at Penketh High
Studies show that reading for pleasure makes a big difference to children’s educational performance.
Evidence suggests that children who read for enjoyment every day not only perform better in reading tests than those who don’t, but also develop a broader vocabulary, increased general knowledge and a better understanding of other cultures.
Reading for pleasure is more likely to determine whether a child does well at school than their social or economic background.
Our reading Curriculum supports our pupils to improve their reading skills as well as exposing them to a wider range of reading materials to foster a love of reading.
Reading for Pleasure
Throughout Y7 – Y10, all pupils have a reading session once a week. The novels and poetry collections have been chosen to allow pupils to experience a range of topics, styles and genres to support their own wider reading.
These sessions are supported by discussions and activities that allow pupils to develop their own opinions and gain confidence in a range of reading strategies.
| Autumn | Spring | Summer | |
| Y7 | I am David – Anne Holm | Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Ayre – A retelling by Tanya Landman | Twelfth day of July – Joan Lingard |
| Y8 | Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights – A retelling by Tanya Landman
|
The Curious incident of the dog in the night-time – Mark Haddon |
The Curious incident of the dog in the night-time – Mark Haddon |
| Y9 | Animal Farm – George Orwell | To Kill A Mockingbird – Harper Lee | To Kill A Mockingbird – Harper Lee |
| Y10 | The Diving Bell and the Butterfly – Jean-Dominique Bauby | A diary of a young girl – Ann Frank |
To support reading at home, take a look at these reading lists:
KS4 14-16yrs Reluctant Readers
Reading Curriculum
Pupils follow a structured reading curriculum, one hour a week in Y7 and Y8 and one hour a fortnight in Y9.
| Effective reader strategies: | |
| Predict | Make informed guesses about the text |
| Skim | Read quickly through the text to get the gist of understanding |
| Scan | Quickly search through a text searching for a specific word/phrase/number |
| Read closely | Pay close attention to sentences, taking time to understand meaning |
| Question | Ask questions about a text to clarify ideas |
| Read backwards and forwards | The confidence to move through a text, including re-reading, to make connections or clarify ideas |
| Empathise | Put yourself in someone else’s shoes and feel what they feel |
| Visualise | See a picture in your mind to gain a better impression or understanding of a text |
| Infer | Read between the lines to find the writer’s intended meaning |
Extracts are taken from novels as well as non-fiction texts. You might want to carry on reading them so here is a list, be aware that some of the novels have some mature content in other parts of the novel.
| Reading | Autumn Term | Spring term | Summer term |
| Year 7 | High School
Hogwarts School Uniform Mallory Towers Victorian Schools The fun we had Cider with Rosie World’s most dangerous school run Middle school – the worst days of my life Matilda Night School
|
Love & Family
The Hideaway Artichoke hearts Silent Stars Little Women Know my place What’s a normal family? Things that will not change Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha! Pride and Prejudice Hamnet Boys don’t cry And the mountains echoed
|
Friendship & conflict
No one here is lonely The history of Northern Ireland Troofriend The teenage guide to friendship Private Peaceful The Hunger games
|
| Year 8 | Passion & Revenge
Dracula Miss Havisham Healthy Relationships Madame Doubtfire The Princess Bride Letters Home Heathcliff Emily Bronte To all the boys I’ve loved before Wuthering Heights Twilight
|
Diversity
Kids like us A different sort of normal The unforgotten coat Nelson Mandela Mark Haddon Oranges are not the only fruit The Curious Incident… A study in scarlet Red Dust Road What is gender? Stay a little longer |
Diversity
Non-verbal communication When we were Vikings The life of a banana The house on Mango street The curious incident of the dog in the night-time (stage adaptation) Emily Davidson
|
| Year 9 | Power & Equality
The mouse and the Lion I know why the caged bird sings Workers of the world – Unite! The Devil Wears Prada George Orwell Old Major’s speech Russian Revolution Harrison Bergeron Lord of the Flies Boxer 1984
|
Good Vs Evil
The boy behind the wall The Pendle Witches Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Evil Thing The Hobbit Real life Spiderman Chinese Cinderella The Krays Throne of glass Jaws The Witches Atticus Finch |
Good Vs Evil
Stay a little longer Harper Lee Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s stone The Klu Klux Klan Artemis Fowl To Kill a Mockingbird Anne Frank
|
Enrichment
Holistic development provides enrichment experiences to support wider engagement and develop key learning characteristics important for future study and employment. These experiences can help develop passions for life and facilitate successful lifelong learners. Within the Reading Curriculum we offer a number of enrichment opportunities within our Enrichment sessions as well as Author visits and workshops and links with colleges and universities.
Assessment and Support
Pupils across KS3 will complete a reading assessment called NGRT each term, Y10 will complete this in the Summer Term. This provides us with a standardised score and reading age which allows us to see how best we can support your child. This may mean that your child is offered interventions during school time to support their reading skills or phonics knowledge.
