‘My Reading Plus Journey’ – By Elena, age 11.
Elena, age 11, from St Fidelis Catholic Primary School, Bexley, has completed Reading Plus twice, so we wanted to catch up with her to see what she thought of the programme.
Do you enjoy reading?
“I’ve always enjoyed reading and reading at home. Mystery books were my favourite to read because they’re interesting, and you can follow the story yourself and use the clues to work out who committed the crime.”
Did you discover anything new on Reading Plus?
“With Reading Plus, I started reading and liking new genres, especially stories of famous people. I didn’t usually read anything like that, but I started reading more non-fiction books on the programme.”
What is your favourite thing about the programme?
“I like lots of things. I like the variety of books and think the vocabulary section is very useful. It goes into depth to explain what the words mean and then puts the words into context, so you get a better understanding.”
Do you feel like your reading has improved?
“My reading and vocabulary have significantly improved, especially with the Guided Window, which helped me stay on track and focus on my reading. Reading Plus has helped me read more quickly and improved my words per minute. Now I can read books a lot faster.”
Has Reading Plus helped you in other school subjects?
“I learnt a lot about history and important events in different countries. I also learnt about famous people before they were famous and how they developed their skills over time.”
You’ve completed the programme twice now – congratulations! How did the second time around compare to the first?
“At first, it was a novelty, and I was trying to wrap my head around it. But as I used it more, I enjoyed it because of the variety of texts and the fact that it was a different way of reading. The second time I still enjoyed it even though I was more used to it, and because I still liked reading using the programme.”
Do you have any advice to share with other Reading Plus users?
“I would tell other students to set themselves challenges. For example, I would say to myself let’s see if I can beat my classmate or who can read 100,000 words quicker? Make it into a competition with yourself and others.
“I would also read to learn and try to recall what I had learnt, motivating me to use the programme more. I would say anyone struggling should pick genres they are interested in as they will learn and enjoy it more.”