Children age 5–6 will have a growing knowledge of phonics and will be building up a range of reading skills. Find out how you can support them at home.
Reading: Age 5–6 (Year 1)
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Blog posts for: Reading & phonics
Reading: Age 6–7 (Year 2)
Children age 6–7 will continue to build up a range of reading skills. Find out what you can do at home to support your child’s reading development.
Reading: Age 9–10 (Year 5)
In Year 5, your child will be encouraged to read widely. Find out how to encourage them at home as they discover different types of language and writing.
Reading: Age 7–8 (Year 3)
Children in Year 3 will hopefully be on the way to becoming a confident, independent readers. Find out how you can support their reading development at home.
Comprehension
Find out how reading comprehension is taught throughout primary school, and take a look at our books, advice, and free activities to help at home.
What are reading schemes and why do they matter?
Educational publishing expert Andrea Quincey explains why reading schemes are important, and what the different colours, bands and levels actually mean.
Learning to read in Reception
Find out what sort of books to expect to come home in your child’s book bag, and get top tips on how best to support your child.
Free eBook library: 100s of eBooks to practise reading
Help your young child learn to read, and love to read, with our eBook library, containing hundreds of free eBooks. Developed for children aged 3–11.
Your local library – a forgotten treasure trove
Guest blogger and primary school librarian Clare Turner gives her top five reasons why you should visit the library with your child.
A case for non-fiction:
five reasons to read non-fiction with your child
Education expert James Clements outlines five benefits of reading non-fiction, and gives us his top non-fiction reads for ages 5–11.
Using storytelling to develop reading and writing skills
Early reading specialist Emily Guille-Marrett talks about how oral storytelling can lay the foundations for literacy skills – as well as being great fun.
Read Write Inc. guide for parents
Find out what Read Write Inc. Phonics is and find eBooks, videos, and kits to help your child as they learn to read with Read Write Inc. Phonics at home.
Great books to get boys reading
John Dougherty shares his top picks for books to encourage and inspire your son to read.
Reading: Age 4–5 (Reception)
Find out how your child’s reading skills will develop in Reception. Discover fun activities, ideas, and books to support your 4–5-year-old at home.
Learn to read with phonics
What is phonics? Find out in our phonics guide for parents. Learn about Letters and Sounds, the phonics screening test, and how to practice phonics at home.
Why is animal fiction important?
Tom Moorhouse talks about the importance of animal fiction: in building empathy, introducing children to difficult topics, and much more.
Preparing for the phonics screening check
The phonics screening check is an informal way for schools to assess your child’s progress in reading. Sarah Loader shares tips for supporting your child’s development at home.
Supporting your child to develop their reading comprehension skills
Some tips to support your child as they begin to understand the concept of a story and start improving their reading comprehension.
Grammar and literacy glossary: J to Q
A guide to grammar and literacy terms used in schools, with definitions, how-to videos, and practice activities. From modal verbs to pure sounds.
Reluctant readers
From ‘thinking outside the bookbag’ to reading for a purpose, children’s author and mum of three Isabel Thomas shares some great advice on helping reluctant readers get excited about books.
Read with Oxford Stage 1
Read with Oxford is an exciting range of levelled books to build reading confidence at home. Use Stage 1 to start your child on their reading journey.
Grammar and literacy glossary: A to C
A guide to grammar and literacy terms used in schools, with definitions, how-to videos, and practice activities. From adverbials to conjunctions.
Struggling readers
Worried about your child’s reading? Help is at hand! Jean Gross CBE gives her expert advice on how to support children who struggle with reading.
Carry on reading aloud: the benefits of sharing books with older children
Few things are more important than reading aloud to our children. James Clements gives his advice on how to keep your child reading aloud, even after they are reading independently.
Four top tips for getting the most out of non-fiction
There are lots of great reasons to share factual books with your child. Here are our top four tips for getting the most out of reading non-fiction.
How can I support my child with phonics?
There are so many easy things you can do to help support your child’s phonics learning. Here are a few ideas from phonics expert Laura Sharp.
Book of the Month: Oxford Phonics Spelling Dictionary
The Oxford Phonics Spelling Dictionary is packed with words ordered by phonic sound to help young children learn how to spell. Enter our competition to win a free copy.
World Book Day – Read the world!
Children’s author Ali Sparkes gives her top 8 suggestions on how to encourage reluctant or struggling readers this World Book Day.
Developing empathy through reading
Children’s author Anne Booth, creator of the Lucy series, discusses how reading builds up emotional literacy, empathy, and relationship skills.
What is phonics?
Education expert Laura Sharp breaks down what phonics is, how phonics is taught in schools, and why phonics is important and useful.
Book of the Month: Super Happy Magic Forest and the Humongous Fungus
Five brave heroes, one epic quest… It’s time to head back into the Super Happy Magic Forest! Enter our competition to win your free copy.
Encouraging boys to read
Gary Wilson gives his expert advice on getting boys to read, including tips on motivating reading habits and encouraging independence.
Reading: Age 3–4 (Early years)
Find out how your child’s reading skills will develop in nursery. Discover fun activities, ideas, and books to support your 3–4-year-old at home.
Reading for pleasure
Not only does reading for pleasure improve children’s well-being, but it can be directly linked to children’s success at school and beyond. Get tips and book recommendations to encourage your child to read more.
How to pick books for struggling readers
If your child is a struggling reader, here are 11 practical things to look out for in books that will encourage your child to start reading.
How reading programmes can help junior readers
Once your child has mastered decoding, it can be liberating to choose whatever books they like – but there are still benefits to structured reading schemes.
Project X Alien Adventures
An award-winning reading series for children ages 4–11. Follow the action-packed adventures of Max, Cat, Ant, and Tiger as they journey through space!
Developing reading skills as your child gets older
Once your child has mastered phonics and word-reading, where do they go next? Here are our ideas to keep your 7–11-year-old’s reading skills developing.
Establishing a reading habit for the summer holidays and beyond
There are so many reasons to read with your children, this summer holiday and beyond. Read Mary Hamley’s tips on how to encourage a daily reading habit.
Learning at home: How to prioritise sharing a book
Education expert and writer James Clements talks about the importance of reading to your child to boost their educational success in all sorts of ways.
Building reading dens
Isabel Thomas explains how making reading dens with your child can turn reading a book into a special shared adventure with these simple ideas.
Speedy Green Words slideshow: Green Storybooks
Practise the Speedy Green Words for all the Read Write Inc. Phonics Green Storybooks.
Summer reading challenge
Take our summer reading challenge! Print out the grid and try to complete five across in any direction.
At Home with Phonics (age 5–7)
Read ‘Gran’s Van’ and ‘Tom the Tiger’.
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