Feb 21, 20228 min read

Inspiring a life-long love of Reading.

March the third 2021 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of World Book Day (https://www.worldbookday.com/) so this is a better time than ever to consider how we help children to develop a life-long love of reading. Research from the National Literacy Trust indicates that children’s enjoyment of reading is at an all-time high with three out of five children enjoy reading. We also know that reading and being read to has a significant impact of children’s achievements in school and beyond into adult life. Children's vocabulary skills are closely linked to their background and by the age of three research shows that there is a 30 million word ‘gap’ between children from language rich and language poor homes; the vocabulary gap is evident in children as young as toddlers. Before we consider independent reading for pleasure, we need to give children the opportunities to hear spoken words, have stories read to them and told, listen to poems and rhymes and hear a wealth of spoken language that they can use in storytelling and play.

What is a reluctant reader?

A reluctant reader is, quite simply, a person who does not show an interest in reading. This might be because they struggle with reading and mask this with reluctance or it may be as simple as they find other activities more interesting so are not engaged in reading. We often assume that it is boys who are less engaged in reading but a report by the National Literacy Trust in December 2021 (Forgotten girls: The reluctant girl readers) highlights that it’s equally likely that girls will become reluctant readers with 2 in 5 girls aged 8-18 indicating that they did not enjoy reading – evidence indicates that this group is sizeable and potentially growing.

We recently delivered training on ‘Reading for Life’ which made us look closely at how we support reluctant readers at every stage of their life. We began by asking the group about their reading habits. Take a moment to think about your own reading habits. As an adult do you read regularly? Do you read on a device or do you read a paper book? Do children in you setting (or your own children) see you reading for pleasure? This led us to think about how we can help children to see reading as a pleasurable experience rather than something that is purely related to school or learning.

The Early Careers Framework for teachers talks about how “Every teacher can improve pupils’ literacy, including explicitly teaching reading, writing and oral language skills specific to individual disciplines.” There is a huge focus on reading in schools and early reading in Early Years settings and we know that although reading is vital for children to be able to access the curriculum in later years; most importantly in their formative years it allows children to hear and explore vocabulary. You may have heard the James Britten quote “Writing floats on a sea of talk.” In Reality everything floats on a sea of talk and hearing stories, telling stories and reading are vital for this.

Research shows that the quality and quantity of language that young children hear can help them to become highly engaged readers and it has the potential to allow a child to overcome their background. Results from the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) showed that: “while the degree of engagement in reading varies considerably from country to country, 15-year-olds whose parents have the lowest occupational status but who are highly engaged in reading obtain higher average reading scores in PISA than students whose parents have high or medium occupational status but who report to be poorly engaged in reading. This suggests that finding ways to engage students in reading may be one of the most effective ways to leverage social change.”

Did you know that in 2019 (the last formal data drop in the UK due to the Covid-10 pandemic) 28% of pupils finished their Reception year without achieving the expected level of development (and it’s likely that with two years of living in a pandemic we will sadly see a marked increase in that figure this summer). In reality that means that over a quarter of children finish Reception without the necessary skills to move confidently into the National Curriculum. Children who have poor vocabulary at the age of five are twice as likely to be unemployed at the age of 34. So, it must be the responsibility of everyone – parents/ carers and educationalists to support Reading and Literacy – because children with poor literacy skills face significant challenges in their education and beyond.

So; What can we do to support reluctant readers and help them to develop a life-long love of reading?

In England, over the last few years, there has been a drive to support pupils to read for pleasure. This is because the research shows that there is a strong link between reading for pleasure and academic outcomes.

However, in addition to improving academic outcomes, research shows that reading for pleasure results in:

• Increased empathy

• Improved relationships

• Reductions in depression

• General knowledge and a wider breadth of vocabulary

• Better understanding of cultures and the world around them

• Improved wellbeing

• Reduction in likelihood of dementia in later life

At all stages of education it’s the responsibility of all adults; whether that’s the teacher, the office manager or the lunchtime assistant; to promote reading for pleasure, learning in the early years lays the foundation of a love of storytelling and reading. Getting excited about stories and books is an important aspect of engaging pupils in reading, especially at a young age.

In Primary schools it’s important to have consistent approaches to reading and that children are immersed in Literacy. But it’s essential that we think outside of the box when we are finding strategies to engage reluctant readers.

Stories should be read aloud to children throughout Primary (and in Secondary Schools) to allow them to hear vocabulary, listen to someone using expression and differentiating their voice, to listen to story language, develop their understanding of narrative and settings and develop joy in books. Children need good language, comprehension and word reading skills to become fluent readers. Encouraging children to visualise the story – maybe closing their eyes or drawing as the story is read helps reluctant readers to become more engaged in the plot and connect with the characters. Audio books are another way of helping children hear stories and relate to books whilst gaining their own thoughts and ideas about the story.

There are a never-ending range of strategies to promote reading for pleasure in school. Book corners are a brilliant place to start – whether it’s an actual corner, a nook, a reading shed, a book boat or a book bus; children who have a place to read that is exciting, engaging and has a range of books will be more enthusiastic about reading for pleasure. Alongside this it’s important that books are available everywhere – whether that is books about building near the construction area, books about internet safety near the laptops or magazines and catalogues in the home corner.

As children become more confident and independent readers schools can develop a cornucopia of strategies to engage readers. From free reading Fridays and early morning book cafes to extreme reads and DEAR time. We have seen in some school staff reading in different places around the school at the start or end of the day and during class transition times, as well as book recommendations on newsletters.

Giving children choices about books is also very important – not all children will like the same books, genres or authors. Giving children the opportunity to select the end of day story, for classes to vote on a story and for children to choose a story without seeing the cover are ways to support this. I love the little brown bag read and do this regularly with my class. We have 2 brown paper bags with books in – the children are not able to see the front cover, I add a couple post it notes with some key words but apart from that they choose a book without a visual based on the size, shape and thickness of the book. Its amazing how this creates opportunities for talk, for sharing of ideas and it allows children to make their own predictions about a story. With older children this could take the form of book tasting or book speed dating – a selection of books around the tables, children have a drink and a snack and can spend 5 minutes reading part of a book before moving on and sampling another.

In Key Stage One and Two having recommended read slips for children to complete when they finish a book to share with friends encourages children to choose a wider range of books, they can share what they like about the book and why they think their friend will like it. Having sticky notes where children can write a few words about the book and leave on the front cover helps other children can have a sneak preview into the book.

In all settings, whether its pre-schools or upper primary, it’s important that children see books and are constantly exposed to fiction and non-fiction texts. Leaving books in prominent places, taking time to talk about books at different points in the day – when lining up for lunch, during PE, at snack time as all important because every moment is a learning opportunity.

Engaging children with a particular author is another way to support all children and give them a change to explore a range of books. Authors are a great resource and many offer free book sessions for schools and then sell their books as part of their package. The use of digital technology has widened the opportunities for authors to ‘visit’ schools and read to children. This opens their mind to new authors and books they may never have read before. Most authors also have some sort of social media – why not write to them or tweet them – see if they reply and get some genuine interaction with a real author to raise the engagement in a book or a specific author.

As adults in a school or parents at home we can support older readers by sharing our own reading diet. Do children see us read – whether in school or at home? Is there a shelf or book case in your school library where staff can choose a book while their class are doing the same thing? Does your school have a little library, a library bus or a book swap where staff and parents can choose books alongside pupils? As a parent or teacher of older children do you tell your children about trips to a book shop or library, do you share new authors you have read books by?

We must also remember that it is paramount to work with families to support reading for pleasure at home. Not all children have access to books at home and since the pandemic this has got worse. Do we have ways to support parents with ideas for reading for pleasure? Running parent workshops and reading cafes are great ways of engaging family members in reading for pleasure. Inviting parents or grandparents in to read to the class or read with their children also supports

families. When thinking about reading for pleasure we must remember that not all the parents in our school community will have grown up reading for pleasure – how can we break down their barriers for them alongside their children?

As we draw to a close and the excitement of world book day is nearly upon us we must remember that Literacy is the responsibility of all adults. We must all do everything we can to help children to develop a love of reading and thus give them the best opportunities to access all areas of learning throughout their school life and beyond. And finally, always remember the words of Dr Seuss:

“The more that you read,

the more things you will know.

The more that you learn,

The more places you’ll go!”