Guest blog by Pete Town, Head of English

English teachers read aloud to their students all the time – not just because we love reading but because hearing adults read is incredibly important. It is just one of the things we do to try and ensure that all students develop not just the knowledge needed to read effectively, but to enjoy it and to build a reading habit. Fiction, non-fiction, short, longer, modern, classic – all reading is supportive in developing this and increasing word awareness. The educational and personal benefits are incalculable. Here are a few ways you can support this at home.

Read together

Reading is not, and should not be a chore – even if it might seem like it at first. The more your child reads, the more likely they are to improve and to find that book that hooks them in and helps them realise the joy of a good story. Talking about some books you enjoyed at school, and even sharing the reading of them is a great way to start. Similarly, books that have been made into films or TV shows can often be appealing – although I always tend to prefer the book! Don’t worry about your own reading ability too much either – we all stumble over the odd word or have to look something up occasionally and it is good for children to see this modelled.

Talk books

Reading doesn’t have to be sitting silently in a quiet room with your head buried in a book. We have students read to us in the library, and reading with your child – either them to you or you to them – is a
fantastic shared experience, allowing you to talk together about the story and the characters. If there are other children in the house, they can read to each other. If you’re short for time, a quick chat about what they are reading will do! Even if you’ve not read it yourself, asking about the character or the main story will help with understanding.

Be supportive

If students are reluctant or struggle, building up a habit slowly is really helpful. Encourage your child to start with shorter books. Following along with a finger or a ruler is to be encouraged to help keep place. Break up unfamiliar words into their sounds. Use post-it notes or a piece of paper as bookmark to keep a note of what has happened. Audiobooks are also a fantastic way to engage those who might struggle or get distracted when reading alone. If it is quizzed, ask your child to take the Accelerated Reader quiz as soon as possible after finishing (although a book not being quizzed shouldn’t be a reason not to read it). Quiz scores are a really helpful indicator for us, you and your child: we can slowly increase the level of difficulty, support students who may not be reading carefully enough and reward those who are making progress.

Anything you can do to habituate and normalise reading and its benefits is helpful to us – even if it just a quick check-in with your child on how they are enjoying their book each day. Keep it positive and enjoyable. Have them read to you if you can. If you’d like to help us by volunteering to read with students in the library during the school day, we’d love to hear from you.

Happy reading!