The study of English is central to the development of all young Australians. It contributes to the creation of confident communicators, imaginative thinkers, and informed citizens. It is through the study of English that individuals learn to analyse, understand, communicate and interact with others and with the world around them. (Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority)
During literacy sessions, students develop their understanding and skills through a variety of whole group, small group and individual instruction, designed to cater for specific learning needs, while encouraging each student to become independent readers and writers. Strong links are made between reading and writing, and all students develop skills in a wide variety of genre.
Active and effective participation in society depends on the ability to communicate, listen, read, view and write with confidence, purpose and enjoyment in a wide range of contexts. Through language use, students convey and discover information, work through ideas, and express feelings. Knowledge about how language functions and how it both reflects and shapes social attitudes, assists students to extend their understanding of themselves, other cultures and the world.
Each student has their own personalised learning goal in reading and writing which is their ‘next step’ in learning.
Home Reading
At school, students read from a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts, which are targeted at the individual needs of each child. Children should also read at home each night for a minimum of fifteen minutes. Reading at home is about developing children’s ability to read independently, consolidating what they’re learning at school and fostering a passion for reading.
Parents and carers are asked to read with their child for at least fifteen minutes each weeknight, especially during the early years sof primary school.
Ways to help your child with reading at home
Good readers know how to…
– Look at the picture
– Look at the starting letter
– Get their mouth ready with that sound, look at the rest of the word
– Reread and make their best guess
– Stretch the word
– Read on
Preparing for and throughout the reading experience
– Remember that getting meaning from print is what reading is all about
– Talk about the book before you read it
– Look at the pictures, the cover and the title
– Ask “What do you think it is about?”
– Go through the book page by page
– Talk about the picture and the words or ideas that might be in the book
Correcting mistakes your child makes
– Always give children time to help figure out a word before telling them
– Don’t jump in and correct your child if a mistake is made
– Give them at least five seconds to see if they self-correct
– If the mistake makes sense as in a misreading of ‘house’ for ‘home’, let your child continue to the end of the sentence. – Then go back and ask ‘What word is that?’
– If the mistake does not make sense, lead your child to correct the mistake by allowing time to self-correct
– Reread what your child has said and ask ‘Does that make sense?’
– Finally, if the meaning is still not clear, look at the word and find familiar sounds such as ‘s’ at the beginning and ‘ing’ at the end
Questioning at the end of reading
– Children could be asked any of the following questions when they have finished reading a book
– Did you enjoy the book? Why?
– How did you choose it?
– Who were the characters in this book?
– Who was the character you liked the most?
– How could you describe the character?
– Was there anything about it you did not like?
– Could you read the part of the book you enjoyed the most?
– Could you think of another ending?
– Did you come across any unusual words? Can you find them?
– Are there any words you did not know the meaning of?
– Can you retell what happened in the story?
– Can you make a connection between this book, and another book, or this book and yourself?