WE ARE READING Spring Newsletter 2018 Welcome! Welcome to the first We Are Reading Newsletter. We hope that these pages will be filled to the brim with the ideas and endeavours of schools engaged with We Are Read- ing, but we will also have regular updates from key partners in Lancashire. These are set to include contributions by the English Consultancy Team, the Ethnic Minority Achievement team, the Library Service, the Early Years Team and the Virtual School. The theme of this issue is Getting Everyone Reading. In our Teaching & Learning section, we have a set of articles aimed at doing just that. In our Reading Projects section, we look at what schools have already been doing to bring out everyone's inner reader. Over 300 schools across all Lancashire districts have signed up to the We Are Reading Pledge. If you have not yet signed up, you can do so by contacting us at WeAreRead- [email protected]. If you have any suggestions for our Mind Map, please What Is It? e-mail us. We Are Reading is a Lanca- Happy Reading! shire-wide campaign aimed at promoting and encouraging reading for purpose and pleas- ure for all our young people. The campaign will run from Contact & Social Media March 2018 – March 2019. E-mail: [email protected] In that time we want to encour- age schools to share the inno- Facebook: @LancashireWeAreReading vative and exciting ap- Twitter: #LancashireWeAreReading proaches they are taking to support reading. This newsletter Mind Map: mm.tt/1041391553?t=ZtymprHwlH will be published half-termly. 2 Lancashire We Are Reading Launch Conference The official launch of Lancashire's Year of Reading was held on Monday 12th March at Preston Marriott Hotel. Proceedings were introduced by Senior Adviser Paul Duckworth and opened by County Councillor Susie Charles, Cabinet Member for Children, Young People & Schools. This was a fabulous afternoon where headteachers, teachers and pupils from across Lancashire schools joined together to celebrate their love of reading. "Reading is fun- it takes "Loved the workshop you to a new world. with Martin Griffin- You learn as you read" gave me lots of ideas to use back in school" "I love to read because it makes you a wiser "Loved the author ses- person; more aware of sion with Jon Mayhew. the world around you It was really fun" allowing your imagina- tion to blossom" "A very inspirational and motivating day. "We loved listening to Input from the English the authors speaking so team gave us lots of passionately about ideas to take our chil- reading. It's been a dren's reading further wonderful day and we forward" are proud to have been involved" Authors Jon Mayhew (author of the Monster Odyssey series) and Martin Griffin (writer of the best-selling Lifers) began with lively and motivational presentations. They trans- ported the audience, teachers and pupils alike, to other worlds as they shared inspira- tions for their stories. This was followed by a number of workshops led by these authors along with Steve Smallman (illustrator and author), professional story tellers, the Library Service and Lan- cashire consultants. The marketplace was a vibrant and exciting area where schools could browse among the stalls and also meet "Miss Spellbound". It was a wonderful afternoon which left everyone feeling inspired and excited about reading. WE ARE READING | ISSUE 1 | Spring 2018 3 Co-ordinating Schools District Primary School The list of co-ordinating schools is now fi- 1 Bowerham Community Primary nalised and you can find contact de- 2 Northfold Community Primary tails on the last page of this newsletter. 4 Heyhouses Endowed CE Primary 6 Alston Lane Catholic Primary The co-ordinating school will now con- 7 St Catherine's Catholic, Leyland tact all the schools in your district to host 8 Ormskirk Asmall 9 Lancaster Lane Community a meeting where you will need to de- 11 Balderstone St Leonard's cide how you would like to spend the 12 Rosewood Primary money. 13 Coates Lane Primary 14 St James-the-Less Catholic Primary Once your project is decided upon, the co-ordinator will complete a short proforma to let us know how the grant District Secondary School will be spent. If you haven't heard from 1 Central Lancaster High School your co-ordinating school yet, please let 2 awaiting confirmation them know you are interested. We 4 Lytham St Anne's College 6 St Cecilia's RC College need the project proformas back by 7 awaiting confirmation th 25 May, but you may choose to run the 8 Our Lady Queen of Peace project at any point throughout the 9 Parklands High School year. 11 St Augustine's RC High School 12 Sir John Thursby Community We would love to share any of your 13 Pendle Vale College ideas to inspire other schools too. 14 Fearns Community Sports College Submit an Article If you have any good practice to share, then please contact WeAreReading@lanca- shire.gov.uk. Please include the desired Term in the e-mail, as well as captions if you wish to give context to any images* you supply. If you provide a Twitter account name for your school, it will appear with your article. Please note: articles should be limited to 200 words and can include only one image. Term Theme Deadline Summer 1 Becoming a Reading School 30 April 2018 Summer 2 Summer/Holiday Reads 22 June 2018 Autumn 1 Cross-Curricular Reading 28 September 2018 Autumn 2 Christmas/Winter 23 November 2018 Spring 1 Nature/Eco 31 January 2019 Spring 2 Celebrations 22 March 2019 *by submitting an article with an image, you confirm that you own or have the right to use the image you included, and that you give permission for Lancashire County Council to use this image for the purpose of publishing this newsletter. Spring 2018 | ISSUE 1 | WE ARE READING 4 Teaching & Learning Dear Secondary Schools their ideas and enthusiasm. The regular By Anne Kenworthy We Are Reading update on our newslet- ter will provide information and links to E-mail: [email protected] support and challenge existing ideas Thank you to all the secondary schools and creativity, including links to outside who have "taken the pledge". We all agencies for parents. There will be a know that we cannot over-emphasise dedicated "reading zone" at the Early the value of reading not only for aca- Years Professional Development centre demic progress but for fostering empa- with the latest news, ideas and re- thy and good mental health. I attended sources. Our summer term open even- a Schools Library Network meeting last ing will celebrate reading with ideas to week and had a taste of just some of encourage children to love books and the exciting things already going on in share stories. schools. This newsletter is a vehicle for LPDS Early Years Teaching and Learning sharing those ideas so don't be shy— Consultants are committed to support- what may seem just a daily routine to ing the We Are Reading initiative. We you will be a gem of an idea to some- will be dedicating part of our website to one else. We are all role models for the project which will be updated half reading so I hope that this project will termly with exciting ideas, activities, spur us on to involve all teachers in wider photographs, new texts to support reading—don't just leave it to English schools in their commitment to getting and the library! our youngest children interested in If I can support you in any way either as books, stories, story-telling and much a district cluster or individual school, do more. To get you started on this journey, get in touch. take time to reflect on your environment to identify where you currently provide Getting Everyone Reading The EYFS Team Web: lancsngfl.ac.uk/curriculum/earlyyears Twitter: @lancsearlyyears EYFS consultants recognise the im- portant role that early years has to play in setting the foundations for life long reading. We are raising the profile of reading, enabling practitioners to share WE ARE READING | ISSUE 1 | Spring 2018 5 opportunities for your children to en- Choose vocabulary carefully gage with books. Look at how your which will be encountered early books are organised and presented for on during reading to build confi- dence and excitement for chil- easy access to the children, the range dren. of books you offer and how adults them- selves share their love of books with the Provide the words and/or children. If you have any photographs phrases on cards for children to you want to share with others send them read with a partner and discuss. to us and we will add them to our web- Encourage word reading using site. Let’s get excited about reading! phonic strategies or use of root words, prefixes and suffixes Vocabulary Before Reading Blend words or emphasise sylla- Primary English and Literacy Team bles using clapping or stamping feet. The Primary English and Literacy team have continued their focus on vocabu- Explore using connections as to where the children have en- lary for reading this year. At the English countered words or phrases be- Subject Leader Network meetings in the fore e.g. other books, films, real autumn term, training was focused on life experiences. developing vocabulary approaches in KS1. Look at synonyms to aid deeper understanding. Placing an emphasis on vocabulary is Encourage children to spot the essential to aid children’s understanding vocabulary as an adult models of texts, prior to examining literal and in- reading or when children are ferential questioning.