Our Commitment to Reading

‘Project L’ is a Trust-wide reading project which encourages students to read for pleasure. The more students read, the better they will be at reading. We are targeting students who don’t enjoy reading by choosing engaging and thought-provoking texts, to show them that there is a book for all interests.

We have incorporated reading time into every school day, which demonstrates our commitment. Students read with their form tutor, and all students in each year group will read the same book at the same time, creating a shared reading experience and opening up opportunities for discussion, debate and enjoyment.

READING FOR PLASURE AND FUTURE SUCCESS

As well as increasing enjoyment, reading aloud improves information processing skills, vocabulary, and comprehension. Reading for pleasure is the single biggest indicator of a child’s future success – more than their family circumstances, their parents’ educational background or their income. Key outcomes are listed below:

  • Improvement in vocabulary in comparison to non-readers (Millenium Cohort Study)
  • Correlation between regularity of reading for pleasure and ability in reading each reinforcing the other as students get older (Cremin 2019, Torppa 2020)
  • Better performance in subjects other than English (Millenium Cohort Study)
  • Reading for pleasure is one of the most important predictors of test scores at age 16, regardless of background (OECD)
  • There is a strong correlation between regular reading for Pleasure and Mental Wellbeing which is separate from other predictors (NLT 2018)
  • Reading improves a child’s empathy skills (Oatly 2016)
  • Interventions developing Reading for Pleasure attitudes (offering book choice and time to read rather than instruction) have a greater influence on reading ability than reading lessons for older children/adults (Greenberg 2014)
  • The Department for Education’s recent Reading Framework – Teaching the Foundations of Literacy published in July 2021 also includes a summary of the evidence on Reading for Pleasure and highlights how it might be put in practice in the curriculum.

LITERARY CANON

Literary Canon is a collection of Literature that represents a particular culture, place or tradition. We have chosen Lydiate Learning Trust’s canon to represent the values, beliefs and stories that we believe are central to our students’ development, and their understanding and enjoyment of the world that they live in. The canon is ever-evolving, taking in to consideration the cultural capital that our students need to navigate and understand the world that they are growing up in.

The Trust launched ‘Project L’ in September 2020 (click here to watch our video) and it’s success despite the challenge of lockdown is evident students’ work, vocabulary and conversations about the cultural issues they have read about.

STUDENT VOICE

“Project L has had a positive impact on my reading by encouraging me to read and enjoy reading more and help me find where I can get more books to read and enjoy.” Tymoteusz, Year 7, Childwall Sports and Science Academy

“Project L has given me the confidence to speak out loud and learn new vocabulary.” Zac, Year 10, Deyes High School

Whenever I am in a bad mood , I read. It helps me because when I read, I focus on something which gives my mind a break.” Niesha, Year 8, Childwall Sports and Science Academy

“Readingaloud has boosted my confidence.” Ben, Year 8,Deyes High School

“Project L got me back into reading again. I hadn’t read a book in a good few months but it gave me a reason to.” Max, year 9, Deyes High School

TEACHER VOICE

Our teaching staff are also very positive about Project L:

“My class have really enjoy reading aloud as a form. They have grown in confidence with their speaking and listening skills. Reading out loud has really developed student confidence.” S. Ryder, Childwall Sports and Science Academy

“Project L has a calming and comforting effect as part of the daily routine of the students. Reluctant readers have shown a major improvement in my form, becoming much more confident as the year goes on. We take it in turns to read around the class so that everybody is involved, and at times when we need to pick up the pace I model teacher-led reading.” M. Pye, Deyes High School

To read our latest Lydiate Learning Trust publication to find out more about Project L and other Trust innovations, please click here