From the Principal

From the Principal Team

In the spirit of Book Week, I thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to focus on the importance of reading both at home and at school. As part of our school’s Annual Implementation Plan and Strategic Plan, building Literacy capacity in students takes a high priority. Primary teaching staff have been part of a two year Professional Development journey on unpacking the depths of reading with this year focusing heavily on comprehension strategies and the refinement of ongoing formative assessment. This has been a collective and collaborative process that has certainly shown positive gains in student learning growth and reading outcomes.

• So why should students read ? 
• How are you supporting and encouraging reading at home ?

Research has identified that children make the most growth and improvement in their reading when they are in fact reading lots of self-selected, just right books.  Children need time to read, need to choose what they would like to read and be able to engage in a variety of text types. No doubt your child has access to many books at home but do these books also allow for independent reading ? It is important that children have access to many book types and be given the opportunity to talk about what they have read. This is an amazing time to share ideas and pose questions about things such as characters' motivation, various settings or even the author’s purpose. Did you know that having access to a variety of books and allocating time each day supports your child’s reading stamina and builds their capacity and confidence as readers ?

Skilled readers at any age are active and thoughtful about the books they read. They find reading satisfying, productive and they are often strategic about the books they choose. A skilled reader often hears a voice in their head speaking to them and after a parent / family conversation are able to talk about their comprehension and understanding of the book. Keep in mind that the time allowed for reading varies amongst children.

Imagine training for a marathon, everyone starts from a different point of fitness and this is exactly the same with reading. Some children need more time than others to build their capacity and stamina. Access to just right books at school and at home helps them build their skill and confidence.

A key supporter of building reading capacity is also in the development of vocabulary. A child’s vocabulary and ability to access and use words relates closely to their reading and comprehension ability. The broader the vocab, the greater the chance your child has at building their range of words to access when they read. Don’t be afraid to use more complex words with your children, teach them a new word of the week or explain the various meanings of a word. Studies show that multiple exposures to new words, at least six to twelve times, builds and encourages reading experiences.

Unpacking the world of reading is very exciting and the deeper we dig, the more we realise the impact we as teachers and parents have on building each child’s reading stamina. I encourage you to get involved. Join a library, borrow books from school, check out our mobile library and consider a new word of the week. Your encouragement and support can only add to the joyful experience of home reading.

I wish you the most wonderful week and I leave you with some fabulous pictures from our Primary Dress Up Day that closed Book Week.

Cheers,

Chris