‘Reading is a priority at Handale. There is a clear love for reading across the school.
Visitors are greeted by a tree made from books when they enter. The reading curriculum
is then prominent throughout the school.’ Ofsted 2025

Reading is at the heart of Handale Primary School. Learning to read is the most important thing your child will learn at school. Everything else depends on it so we put as much energy as we possibly can into making sure that every single child learns to read as quickly as possible.


We want every child to love reading and to want to read for themselves. Therefore, we put our efforts into making sure they develop a love of books as well as simply learning to read.

Our Intent for Reading

At the heart of our strategy is our drive to foster a love of reading, enriching children’s learning through carefully designed teaching activities that utilise imaginative stories and thought-provoking texts. From the important foundations in our systematic and structured phonics program to our range of class novels, school library, regular visits to our local library, interaction with authors, celebrated book days, awards and class reading corners, we make sure our school illustrates the importance of reading at every turn. Reading is a skill that enables children to develop their learning across the wider curriculum and lays the foundations for success in future lines of study and employment. We recognise the importance of taking a consistent whole federation approach to the teaching of reading in order to close any gaps and to target the highest possible number of children attaining the expected standard or higher.

We aim to provide children with a literacy-rich environment, high quality texts and inspiring learning opportunities, which will help them to:

  • Gain a life-long enjoyment of reading a range of engaging and challenging texts from a range of genres (fiction, non-fiction and poetry).
  • Become fluent and age appropriate readers across Early Years and Key Stage 1 through our fully embedded and progressive phonic scheme Little Wandle as well as exposing children to appropriate texts to build further reading skills.
  • Reach the expected standard in Year 1 phonics with word reading fluency being the most important focus on the curriculum. This will then allow our children to build on their understanding of what they have read, exposure to an increasing range of vocabulary and developed comprehension skills ready for Key Stage Two.
  • Access and explore class novels and weekly extracts with coverage of fiction, non-fiction and poetry.
  • Children accessing Little Wandle weekly take home a book suitably matched to their phonic knowledge and all children select a book from the school library and classroom reading area following our ‘Read for the Stars’ home school reading initiative.
  • Develop a good linguistic knowledge of vocabulary and grammar and develop a deeper level of emotional intelligence and empathy.

“At Handale, read a range of books to further our knowledge. Reading is a priority and we get to select books we would like to read.” Year 5 pupil, 2025

“Reading lots of books makes me happy and helps me with my writing.” Year 2 pupil, 2025

Phonics and Early Reading at Handale Primary School


At Handale, we follow the Little Wandle Phonic Scheme which is a complete systematic synthetic phonics programme developed for schools, by schools. Teaching young children to read is achieved by expert teaching of phonics. Phonics is a method of teaching children to read by linking sounds (phonemes) and the symbols that represent them (graphemes or letter groups). Little Wandle provides an extensive teaching programme meeting all of the expectations of the National Curriculum to ensure children become fluent readers whilst preparing your children to go beyond the expectations of the Phonics Screening Check.

Alongside the daily phonics session, children participate in a reading session and practise their reading with a book matched to their phonic ability.  We have ensured that our reading books are fully matched to the phonic scheme and pupils read books matched accurately to their phonic knowledge.

Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Resources for Parents

Whole Class Reading

When the children have completed the Little Wandle Revised Letters and Sounds Programme, they then move on to a whole class reading approach. We teach reading through two different approaches: whole class texts and through access of a daily novel. The daily novel is read for at least 15 minutes to the class by the class teacher at the end of the school day to model good reading though fluency and expression. At Handale Primary, we recognise that reading extends beyond decoding and fluency. In order for children to become successful readers in the longer term, children must develop language, comprehension, dispositions and linguistic skills that phonics alone cannot deliver. We value reading as a crucial life skill. By the time children leave us, they read confidently for meaning and enjoy reading for pleasure. We encourage our children to see themselves as readers for both pleasure and purpose. Reading ‘real’ books is at the heart of our curriculum and within our school timetable we ensure that children across the school have access to authentic texts. Across all age ranges, children are able to enjoy the experience of reading together and sharing the joy and emotions of a shared text. Staff read to children of all ages daily, sharing their passion for and skill in reading aloud; this time is protected and prioritised within our curriculum. Modelling prosody, through pace, flow, rhythm, language patterns and rhyme, is essential so that all children are hearing quality oration of texts.

To view our whole class novels, click here.

Reading Environment

‘We are a reading school.’

At Handale Primary School, reading is at the heart of our learning culture. We are proud to offer a rich and inspiring reading environment that encourages every child to develop a lifelong love of books.

Every classroom features a bright, stimulating and inviting book corner, regularly updated with high-quality texts. These spaces are designed for children to sit, relax and enjoy reading for pleasure. Within these corners, you’ll find teacher and pupil recommendations, book reviews and selections that include previously read texts, year group reading list titles, and books chosen to reflect the interests of each class. We also ensure a diverse range of genres and formats, including non-fiction, graphic novels and Picture News to cater to different reading preferences.

Our commitment to reading extends beyond the classroom. The whole school is a reading-rich environment, with books beautifully displayed in corridors, the hall and our entrance area, where our fabulous, well-constructed reading tree stands as a proud symbol of our love for literature. This unique feature welcomes visitors and pupils alike, showcasing our dedication to making reading visible and valued throughout the school.

We’ve recently enhanced our outdoor reading spaces, including our Reading Shed and Outdoor Reading Area, which are updated weekly with exciting books, author spotlights and engaging reading tasks. These areas provide opportunities for children to enjoy reading during break and lunchtime in a relaxed and enjoyable setting.

Our Reading Leaders and Ambassadors play a key role in maintaining and promoting these spaces, ensuring a wide variety of novels and texts are available to suit the interests and needs of children across the school.

At Handale, we believe that creating a vibrant and inclusive reading environment helps children build not only their literacy skills but also their confidence, empathy, and imagination. Reading is more than a subject – it’s a gateway to endless possibilities.

To view our Reading Strategy Document, please click here.