Find out how Reading Plus improved reading at Elmridge Primary School

Y6 Teacher, Joanne Brydon, shares with us how Reading Plus has been implemented in schools for pupil success.

Why Reading Plus?

“Originally, we went for Reading Plus because we had reading as one of the key actions on our school development plan, and it has definitely paid dividends. It’s a really engaging platform. The children are delighted with the range of reading materials they can choose from, and it gives the children a real breadth of knowledge. It also helps with their vocabulary skills. They’re fully engaged in their learning, and it’s great that we can celebrate successes when we see them flag up on the screen.”

How is Reading Plus timetabled in school?

We use Reading Plus at Elmridge Primary, and we’ve been delighted with the results. We use it predominantly in upper Key Stage 2, and it’s something that’s built into everyday life in Year 6.

The children come in, and first thing in the morning, they’ll bring their laptops to the classroom, ready to start the day. Their reading lesson runs from 9am till 9.30am, and we’ve been amazed with the impact on the children’s learning.

Did Reading Plus benefit learning in lockdown?

What’s really pleasing for us is that we didn’t see a massive drop in the children’s reading scores during the lockdowns because Reading Plus was still part of their everyday lives. They accessed it from home and used the programme to start their online learning each day.

What do you, as a teacher, like most about the programme?

It’s great for me as a teacher as I can log in at the same time the children are doing their reading and react to anything that I see happening. So, if a child is on hold, I can see exactly why they’re struggling and help them with that there and then. I can also look at their scores and see if there’s a particular key area that they might need some help with, such as inference skills that might mean we plan a class lesson on this skill area.