Literacy Across the Curriculum
At Horsforth School we firmly believe in “Opportunity and achievement for all.” This vision epitomises everything we are committed to offer in our provision for literacy across the curriculum and we have prioritised implementing high-quality reading strategies.
“Literacy is the ability to read, write, speak and listen in a way that lets us communicate effectively and make sense of the world,” (National Literacy Trust, 2022) and at Horsforth School we are committed to providing a comprehensive literacy provision:
- To engage in early and systematic assessment of reading and develop effective interventions for students below age-related expectations
- To collaborate with teachers on how they can support students to improve accessibility and understanding
- To increase student resilience to overcome barriers to approaching more challenging texts and create a consistent climate of everyday excellence
- To develop a positive reading culture, for both purpose and pleasure
Our literacy strategy is inclusive and aims to equip all students with confidence that enable them to succeed in a rapidly changing society. Our aims and intent centre on everyday excellence expectations for literacy across the curriculum, ensuring that it is evident in what teachers do that they have a secure and common understanding of the school’s literacy vision.
We aim for all students to achieve excellent outcomes and reading is prioritised to allow pupils to access the full curriculum scope, offering all students exposure to high-quality texts to read, supporting all children to become confident, fluent readers.
Horsforth School has invested in building staff expertise to equip teachers with the skills to teach, model and scaffold students’ so they become strategic and knowledgeable readers: our aspiration is truly to provide “Opportunity and achievement for all.”
Horsforth School Reading Strategy
• Reading age testing
• Bespoke support pathways
• Whole school support initiatives
Timely testing of students’ reading age, shared with staff. Staff receive regular literacy CPD. Identified students are placed on reading support pathways.
• Strategic approaches to reading
• Academic texts
• Subject specific everyday
• Excellent expectations
Staff and students will engage with whole-school and subject-specific strategies when reading to promote an effective whole school approach to accessing academic texts on the curriculum.
• Explicit vocabulary teaching
• Developing cultural capital
• Subject specific literary experiences
All staff will receive access to a range of CPD to support students to understand and apply vocabulary, create links between core and hinterland knowledge and promote exposure to a range of subject specific literary opportunities.
• DEAR/Reading Curriculum
• Subject Super Curriculum
• Whole school events
All staff are responsible for promoting reading engagement through varied text exposure. Students are provided with regular reading for pleasure opportunities and are able to access a range of literary materials, events and experiences.
Reciprocal Reading
Vision
To immerse staff and students in a collaborative motivation to build a positive reading community and culture.
Strategy
From September 2022 to July 2025, we will establish a comprehensive, diverse and enriching reading curriculum that exposes students to a range of texts, vocabulary and experiences to develop their reading, oracy and writing. The reading curriculum has been piloted in tutor time with Y8 through an implementation and review process before being expanded across Y7-10.
Aims
- Increase accessibility
- Stimulate curiosity
- Activate prior knowledge
- Encourage engagement in related texts
- Remove barriers
- Increase exposure to vocabulary
- Model accuracy, automaticity and prosody to develop fluency
Why is Reading Important?
Reading is closely linked to academic success; research shows that students who read for pleasure have 26% more vocabulary. (Centre for Longitudinal Studies, November 2017). The more you read the more language you acquire, the more language you acquire, the more defined you can be; you need 40,000 words in secondary school to thrive. A student who reads for 20 minutes a day will be exposed to 1.8 million words per year – Scores in the 90th percentile in standardised tests. A student who reads for 5 minutes a day will be exposed to 282,000 words per year – Scores in the 50th percentile in standardised tests.
Reading attitudes are mostly emotional and positive reading attitudes result from positive reading experiences. Building an environment with easy access to books at school or at home along with time/space to concentrate on reading is a powerful way to shift attitudes and motivation. Shared reading communities and school/home reading environments can shift perceptions. Students need to experience reading success to see themselves as readers.
The reading curriculum will be implemented using reciprocal reading techniques (Palinscar and Brown, 1985). Lessons will follow the format of predict, clarify, question and summarise. This structure has been shown to improve reading by teaching children strategies that they can use to help them to understand what they are reading and how to break down the content for understanding. It is a strategy that was developed as a technique to help teachers bridge the gap for students who have discrepancies between their levels of decoding and comprehension skills. The structure encourages children to think about their thought process, it helps children to be actively involved and boost confidence for readers of all levels. This can foster a real interest for reading and enable them to become lifelong readers.
- Scaffolded talk between a teacher and group members or group members with each other to develop and support comprehension.
- Students who participate in this practice are encouraged to read, talk and think their way through the text.
- Scaffolded talk about a text is guided by four comprehension strategies: predicting, clarifying, questioning and summarising (Palinscowar and Brown, 1985; Palinscar, 2003).
- Meaning of the text is jointly constructed through discussion between all group members.
Reading Curriculum
Year 7
Millions by Frank Cottrell-Boyce
After their Mum dies, Damien and Anthony move to a new house and a new school. Damien is doing his best to be good by emulating the lives of the saints, so when a sack full of money seems to fall out of the sky, he tries to give it to charity. His big brother, Anthony, is far more interested in finance. He has different ideas.
Not only is the clock ticking, the bank robbers want their money back…
Year Group: 7
Term: 1
Reading Time: 5 hours (12 weeks)
PSHE
- Economic and personal finance issues
- Male interpersonal relationships
- Identity
- Loss
- Integrity
- Mental Health and Wellbeing (HT1)
English Curriculum Links
- The Breadwinner
- My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece
- Welcome to Nowhere
A Glasshouse of Stars by Shirley Marr
Meixing Lim and her family have arrived in the New Land to begin a New Life. Everything is scary and different. Their ever-changing house is confusing and she finds it hard to understand the other children at school. Yet in her magical glasshouse, with a strange black and white cat, Meixing finds a place to dream.
But then Meixing’s life comes crashing down in unimaginable ways. Only her two new and unexpected friends can help. By being brave together, they will learn how to make the stars shine brighter.
Year Group: 7
Term: 2
Reading Time: 6 hours (14 weeks)
PSHE
- Resilience
- Courage
- Bullying
- Fear
- Families and Respectful Relationships (HT2 and HT3)
English Curriculum Links
- Imagination and Creativity
- Mythology
- Coraline
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes
In Chicago, a white police officer shoots and kills black 12-year-old Jerome, mistaking a toy gun the child is playing with for a real one. As a ghost, young Jerome witnesses the aftermath of his death, including scenes with his family, the police and the media.
Year Group: 7
Term: 3
Reading Time: 4 hours (10 weeks)
PSHE
- Prejudice
- Inequality
- Community
- Forgiveness
- Fundamental British Values (HT6)
English Curriculum Links
- Wonder
- My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece
- A Christmas Carol
Reading Curriculum
Year 8
The Boy Who Lied by Kim Slater
Ed Clayton is a liar. It started when his dad went to prison and now he can’t seem to stop. When his younger brother, Sam, goes missing one day, nobody believes Ed when he says he can’t remember what happened. He’s used to going without, but living without his brother is impossible.
Year Group: 8
Term: 1
Reading Time: 7 hours (16 weeks)
PSHE
- Economic and personal finance issues
- Male interpersonal relationships
- Identity
- Loss
- Integrity
- Mental Health and Wellbeing/Being Safe: Bullying (HT1/HT2)
English Curriculum Links
- My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece
- An Inspector Calls
A Strange Kind of Brave by Sarah Moore Fitzgerald
Jake McCormack is the villain of Clanfedden. He’s just killed a boy – deliberately run him over with his truck, in front of everyone. And he knows he’ll get away with it.
Luca Spinelli, 14, is the new boy in town. He’s looking for a fresh start after what happened at his old school. Allie Redmond has lived in Clanfedden all her life. Luca’s friendship is the bright spark she needs.
But more than anyone, Allie knows the danger of Jake McCormack. She needs to warn Luca. She needs to prevent disaster. At least, she needs to try
Year Group: 8
Term: 2
Reading Time: 7 hours (16 weeks)
PSHE
- Resilience
- Courage
- Bullying
- Fear
- Families and Respectful Relationships (HT2 and HT3)
English Curriculum Links
- My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece
- Journey’s End
- The Breadwinner
When the Sky Falls by Phil Earle
1941. War is raging. And one angry boy has been sent to the city, where bombers rule the skies. There, Joseph will live with Mrs F, a gruff woman with no fondness for children. Her only loves are the rundown zoo she owns and its mighty silverback gorilla, Adonis. As the weeks pass, bonds deepen and secrets are revealed, but if the bombers set Adonis rampaging free, will either of them be able to end the life of the one thing they truly love?
Year Group: 8
Term: 3
Reading Time: 8 hours (18 weeks)
PSHE
- Vulnerability
- Grief
- Conflict
- Trust
- Families and Respectful Relationships (Y7 HT2 and Y8 HT3)
English Curriculum Links
- The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
- Journey’s End
- Power and Conflict Poetry
- Bayonet Charge
- Exposure
Reading Curriculum
Year 9
Lark by Anthony McGowan
Things are tense at home for Nicky and Kenny. Their mum’s coming to visit and it will be the first time they’ve seen her in years. Nicky’s not so sure he’s ready to see her again.
When they head for a trek across the moors to take their minds off everything, a series of unforeseen circumstances leaves the brothers in a vulnerable and very dangerous position.
Year Group: 9
Term: 3
Reading Time: 3 hours (8 weeks)
PSHE
- Economic and personal finance issues
- Male interpersonal relationships
- Identity
- Loss
- Maturity
- Mental Health and Wellbeing/Respectful Relationships/Health (HT1/2/5)
English Curriculum Links
- A Monster Calls
- My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece
- Lord of the Flies
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
A remarkable autobiographical account of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls’ education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons.
Year Group: 9
Term: 1 & 2
Reading Time: 10 hours (20 weeks)
PSHE
- Resilience
- Courage
- Diversity
- Loss
- Hope
- Mental Health and Wellbeing/Respectful Relationships/Fundamental British Values (HT1/2/6)
English Curriculum Links
- The Breadwinner
- The Emigree
- Tissue
A House Without Walls by Elizabeth Laird
Thirteen-year-old Safiya and her family have been driven out of Syria by civil war. Safiya knows how lucky she is – lucky not to be living in a refugee camp, lucky to be alive. But it’s hard to feel grateful when she feels lonelier than ever.
As they struggle to rebuild their lives, Safiya realizes that her family has always been incomplete and with her own future in the balance, it’s time to uncover the secrets that war has kept buried.
Year Group: 9
Term: 2 & 3
Reading Time: 8 hours (18 weeks)
PSHE
- Resilience
- Courage
- Diversity
- Loss
- Hope
- Mental Health and Wellbeing/Respectful Relationships/Fundamental British Values (HT1/2/6)
English Curriculum Links
- The Breadwinner
- Welcome to Nowhere
- The Emigree
- Tissue
Reading Curriculum
Year 10
Guard Your Heart by Sue Divin
Derry. Summer 2016. Aidan and Iona, now eighteen, were both born on the day of the Northern Ireland peace deal.
Aidan is Catholic, Irish, and Republican. With his ex-political prisoner father gone and his mother dead, Aidan’s hope is pinned on exam results earning him a one-way ticket out of Derry. To anywhere.
When Iona and Aidan meet and their relationship blossoms, it seems like everything is keeping them apart…when all they want is to be together.
Year Group: 10
Reading Time: 13 hours (20 weeks)
PSHE
- Economic and personal finance issues
- Drugs/alcoholism
- Identity
- Loss
- Maturity
- Mental Health and Wellbeing/Respectful Relationships/Domestic Violence (HT1/2/4)
English Curriculum Links
- Romeo and Juliet
- Storm on the Island
- Journey’s End
Run, Riot by Nikesh Shukia
Aspiring MC Taran and her twin brother Hari never wanted to move to Firestone House. But when the rent was doubled overnight and Dad’s chemo meant he couldn’t work, they had to make this tower block their home. It’s good now though; they feel part of something here.
When they start noticing boarded-up flats and glossy flyers for expensive apartments, they don’t think much of it – until Hari is caught up in a tragedy, and they are forced to go on the run.
It’s up to these teenagers to uncover the sinister truth behind what’s going on in the block, before it blows their world apart.
Year Group: 10
Reading Time: 7 hours (14 weeks)
PSHE
- Prejudice
- Inequality
- Corruption
- Community
- Forgiveness
- Coercive Relationships/Domestic Violence/Being Safe/Fundamental British Values (HT2/3/6)
English Curriculum Links
- The Breadwinner
- Lord of the Flies
- Macbeth
- An Inspector Calls
- A Christmas Carol
- Checking Out Me History
- Remains
References
Stanovich (1986): Matthew effects in reading:
https://blog.allaboutlearningpress.com/matthew-effect-in-reading/
Mol & Bus (2011): To Read or Not to Read:
https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fa0021890
Ofsted Curriculum Webinar – for secondary, start at 49:10
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dRfu-rcQys
Research review on reading for pleasure in secondary schools: