Literacy is fundamental in every Learning Area at St Wilfrid’s. ‍In each subject, we promote the importance of being able to:
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- Communicate fluently, effectively and confidently in speech;
- Become attentive, discriminating and responsive listeners;
- Write with confidence, flair and precision; and
- Develop as discriminating and appreciative lifelong readers.

If your child is struggling with any of the areas listed above, they may be selected for small-group literacy intervention.

Literacy intervention takes place during LRC reading lessons each week. It is taught by Mr Kirkham and coordinated by Mrs Latchford Mattinson (the reading support team). They work with small groups of students to improve their skills in reading, writing, speaking and listening.

If you have any questions about the literacy provision at the Academy, please get in touch via wlatchford-mattinson@saintwilfrids.com

We are currently focussing on reading skills with Year 7 in their Learning for Life lessons. To this end, we are now using a reading programme on iPads called Accelerated Reader – an excellent tool used in schools around the globe to improve the reading habits of young people.

Here at St Wilfrid’s, we value the power of reading and how it can transform a student’s competence in terminal exams and in future life. In order to ensure that reading is given prominence in the curriculum, we have elected to use Accelerated Reader.

We are initially using this with Year 7 and are planning to roll it out to more year groups in the future.

The scheme accurately assesses the reading level of each pupil and gives them a ZPD. This is a reading range score which informs students as to which books they should be reading. These books will be accessible and challenging, they will maximise the reading progress made by your child.

After each book is read, students are asked to log into their Accelerated Reader APP on their iPad to take a quiz. This quiz will assess their comprehension. Students are required to correctly answer at least 85% of the quiz questions correctly; this allows them to progress onto a more challenging book.

Each book read accrues points for the student. These points build-up and students can receive certificates, gain a place on the leader-board in the LRC and even win prizes.

HOW CAN IT HELP ME IMPROVE MY CHILD’S READING PROGRESS?
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- You can view your child’s progress toward reading targets and reader certification, and view all books that your child has read and quizzes your child has taken.
- You can view all words your child has learned through Vocabulary Practice Quizzes. In addition, words the child missed are clearly marked so you can help your child learn those words.
- You can access an online search tool, AR BookFinder, to search for books using various criteria, including author, subject or reading level.
- You can receive emails that reveal results for Reading Practice Quizzes and Vocabulary Practice Quizzes. The emails also provide links to the website where you can check progress.

If you would like some further assistance with using HomeConnect, click here.