Tetsworth Primary School Reading Framework
Intent
At Tetsworth Primary School, we believe that reading is the foundation of all learning. Our intent is to ensure every child becomes a fluent, confident, and enthusiastic reader who develops a lifelong love of books.
We recognise that strong reading skills begin with secure knowledge of phonics. In our mixed-age classes, we provide high-quality phonics teaching through Bug Club Phonics, ensuring all pupils build firm foundations in decoding and word recognition. Once these fundamentals are secure, pupils are supported to develop fluency, understanding, and enjoyment in their reading.
We aim for every child to:
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Master the fundamentals of phonics and early reading.
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Become a fluent and expressive reader.
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Develop deep comprehension skills and the ability to discuss and reflect on what they read.
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Foster a genuine love of reading both in school and at home.
Implementation
Reading is taught through a systematic and structured approach beginning with daily Bug Club Phonics sessions. This ensures consistency, progression, and clear expectations across our mixed-age setting.
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Phonics: All pupils in EYFS and KS1 (and those who need extra support in KS2) take part in daily Bug Club Phonics lessons. Teaching follows the sequence of the programme, with clear progression in sounds and tricky words. Pupils practise reading fully decodable books that match their phonics stage, allowing them to apply new learning with confidence.
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Fluency: Once pupils are secure in decoding, we focus on developing reading fluency through guided reading, repeated reading, and exposure to a range of texts. Pupils are encouraged to read aloud with expression and understanding.
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Comprehension: Comprehension is explicitly taught through group and whole-class reading sessions. Pupils discuss vocabulary, make predictions, infer meaning, and explore author choices. Older pupils in mixed-age classes model high-quality responses and discussion, supporting younger readers to develop their understanding.
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Reading for Pleasure: We promote a strong reading culture through daily story time, library use, author studies, and links with home reading. Staff act as reading role models, sharing a wide range of high-quality texts.
Impact
As a result of our structured and consistent approach to reading:
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Pupils develop strong phonics knowledge and can apply it confidently when reading new words.
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Children become fluent, expressive readers who can read with pace and accuracy.
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Pupils demonstrate a growing ability to understand, interpret, and discuss a range of texts, both fiction and non-fiction.
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Reading is valued and enjoyed throughout the school, with pupils showing enthusiasm and pride in their progress.
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Assessments and pupil outcomes show clear progression in reading ability across all age groups, including mixed-age classes.
Ultimately, children at Tetsworth Primary School leave us as confident, independent readers who read for both pleasure and purpose — fully prepared for the next stage of their education.