We have always been proud of our record of reading at Fittleworth, along with our consistent good results in this area. However, we believe that we can always do better! In particular, we wish to create a community of lifelong readers and book-lovers. It is our goal to foster, in every child, the desire to read and to experience the joy of a good book as part of their everyday routine.

Notwithstanding the obvious enjoyment factor of reading, it must be said that there is extensive and significant evidence for the benefits of reading over the course of a person’s lifetime. Such research evidence can be found in the government white paper of 2012: ‘Research evidence on reading for pleasure’.

There are a number of ways that we encourage reading for pleasure here at Fittleworth:

-Each child is given a Bingo sheet each year to challenge them to read a diverse and interesting selection of texts (with some additional bonuses for completed books!).

-Classes from Reception to Year 6 visit a local library and are issued with library cards.

-Every child is assigned to a buddy reading group (with children from other year groups) and meet regularly to read together. 

-In each class is a carefully curated box of high quality texts for the children to take home and share with their parents. 

-Regularly refreshed book displays are featured prominently in classrooms. 

Children are given ownership over their class libraries, with monitors elected at the beginning of the year.