Being able to read well is a core skill that our students need, to have positive outcomes in their GCSEs and live successful and happy lives. Students arrive at secondary school with varying degrees of reading ability and here at Ingleby Manor we want to support each and every student to access the texts we put in front of them.

Reading Interventions

All of our Year 7 and Year 8 students are assessed each September, using an online assessment program. In addition to that, we also assess Year 9 students who have met a set criteria. This assessment indicates the reading age of the students and a Standardised Assessment Score. This information is then used to identify which students would benefit from more bespoke literacy intervention pathways; we ensure that there is specific intervention.

We have 3 intervention pathways, depending on the individual needs of the student. They are as follows:

Pathway 1 – Phonics for decoding and word reading

Pathway 2 – Comprehension – understanding and building background knowledge

Pathway 3 – Reading Plus – for fluency and stamina

The aim is for students to move through the pathways, and to come off the intervention programme altogether when they can access the curriculum fully. We do a further assessment in the Spring Term to monitor pupil’s literacy levels, and this continues throughout Year 7 and Year 8.

The LRC

Our Learning Resource Centre was officially opened in September 2022. It is a fantastic space which contains around 4,000 books, computers for research, and plenty of seating for both studying and curling up to enjoy a good book.

The LRC is open before school Tuesday – Friday and each year group has a day of the week when they can access the LRC at break and lunch. Our LRC Manager runs a monthly book club for our higher achieving readers in Year 7 and Year 8 and we are hoping to run more clubs going forward.

Our Year 7 and Year 8 students also have an LRC lesson once a fortnight. During this time students are able to borrow, return and renew books, complete tasks for their reading journals and enjoy some time reading quietly.

If you would like to take a look at the books in our current catalogue, you can visit our dedicated website which is: https://uk.accessit.online/ing01 Students can log in to this website using their school login details if they wish to see personal information about the books they have lent. If you wish to view the books as a parent/carer, you can log on as a guest to see what we have available for students to borrow. Students can borrow books for two weeks, after then they are expected to renew them or return them for other students to borrow.

We get new books as often as we can to ensure there is something for everyone to enjoy reading. Our current stock includes plenty of non-fiction, some of which is subject based. Other non-fiction areas covered include mental health, ‘Hot Topics’ and books just for fun! Our fiction section is organised by genre to help students select books which appeal to them and to also make it easier for them to read a broad range of texts. We have everything from Sci-Fi and Fantasy to Family and Relationships, Quick Reads and Graphic Novels and lots more in between.

We also have a selection of Young Adult books which are available to Year 9, Year 10 and Year 11. Some of these books contain topics relating to mental health, race, gender, religion and bullying. Some titles contain swearing. If you have a child in Year 7 or Year 8 and you would like to allow them to borrow Young Adult books, please send an email confirming this to:

parents@inglebymanorschool.org.uk

When a student chooses a book from our LRC we do our best to advise them on the suitability of their choices. We endeavour to highlight any controversial content by means of a conversation at checkout; however, as we aim to cultivate a love of reading ultimately the choice of book remains with the student. If you have concerns relating to your child’s book choice, we would be grateful if you could please begin with a conversation with your child about choosing a different genre and pointing them in the direction of the LRC at school for further help with their selection.

Reading for Pleasure

Through the LRC we want to promote a LOVE of reading. As part of this we follow Delta’s ‘Reading Routes’ initiative which encourages our pupils to read for pleasure. Students will be encouraged to choose a book from their route and be rewarded for completing not just one book, but whole routes. Rewards come in the shape of Manor Marks, prize draws and certificates. They will also have the chance to earn a book, stationery, or a voucher of their choice from our fabulous book vending machine.

In addition to this, students are read to by their form tutor each week. Each tutor group votes for the book they would like to enjoy each term. In KS3 they read a book from their year’s Reading Route for that term. In KS4 they have free choice from all Reading Routes. This means our KS3 pupils are being exposed to nine different genres by the time they finish Year 9. The books are read aloud by their form tutor who models skilled reading behaviours.

Whilst we encourage the Reading Routes, it isn’t compulsory as we know reading is very personal. Our LRC Manager is available during LRC lessons and at social times to assist students who are looking for a reading recommendation.

Word of the Week (WOTW)

Each week in form time our students are given the Word of the Week. They are taught the correct pronunciation, how to use it in a sentence to give the word context, and they are provided with synonyms and antonyms of the word. Students can then earn Manor Marks throughout the week for using the word correctly in a sentence. At the end of each term, pupils complete a short test to assess their understanding of the words they have learnt throughout the term.

Seven Deadly Sins

The Seven Deadly Literacy Sins are commonly made errors which we focus on throughout the school year. The correct rules are taught through English lessons, but they are focused on through marking in all subjects throughout school. The Seven Deadly Literacy Sins are:

  • Capital letters
  • Your/you’re
  • Was/were
  • There/their/they’re
  • Possessive apostrophes
  • Contraction apostrophes
  • Its/it’s