Initial Teacher Education (ITE) Reading: For learners, for Wales

• Phonics is a key building block of learning to read. It works best when children are ready and when it is connected to meaning. Is phonics taught systematically and at the right stage for pupils?

Notice:

• clear teaching of sound-letter relationships
• pupils blending confidently
• adults checking for accuracy and understanding when pupils are reading

Ask yourself:

‘Does phonics teaching help pupils to develop word reading skills?’

• Across Wales, the biggest challenge for schools is often pupils’ understanding of what they read. How do adults support pupils to understand what they read?

Look for teaching that supports:

• vocabulary development
• pupils’ abilities to infer (‘reading between and beyond the lines’), evaluate and appreciate what they read
• linking texts to pupils’ knowledge and experience
• discussion of meaning, not just decoding words

Ask yourself:

‘Can this pupil explain, in their own words, what they have read?’

• The strongest schools in Wales treat reading as central to all learning. Is reading woven through pupils’ learning experiences, rather than being confined to one teaching session?

Look for:

• pupils accessing high-quality texts across the curriculum
• teachers modelling how to read diagrams, charts, images and other sources
• reading supporting pupils’ learning in science and technology, humanities and the expressive arts, for example
• pupils applying reading strategies and skills independently to support their work

Ask yourself:

‘Are pupils reading to learn and learning to read across the curriculum?’