Reading - beyond phonics
At Newlands Primary we ensure reading is a daily priority. In Reception and Year 1 we teach systematic phonics every day using Read Write Inc, so children learn to decode words quickly and accurately; as their decoding becomes secure, we move into focused English lessons across Years 2–6 that build fluency, inference and comprehension. Teachers follow a clear review, teach, practise and apply sequence so learning is small-step, well-paced and easy for pupils to remember.
Reading is practised widely across the school. Every class has classroom reading areas where new books are promoted for sharing and talk. Pupils visit our wonderful library each week to choose books. Teachers make deliberate links between reading and other subjects so children apply skills across the curriculum.
We also put reading for pleasure at the heart of each day. Each class finishes with a shared novel read by the teacher — a calm, enjoyable time for discussion about characters, plot and meaning that builds vocabulary, listening skills and a love of stories. These daily routines, together with well-planned phonics and lots of reading practice, help every pupil to become a fluent, confident reader.
VIPERS
At Newlands we use VIPERS to help pupils become confident, thoughtful readers. VIPERS is a simple, classroom-friendly framework of question types that teachers use to check and develop understanding — it is not a phonics scheme or a graded book system.
What VIPERS stands for:
VIPERS Letter | Reading Comprehension Skill | Corresponding Reading Dog Character |
V | Vocabulary | Victor Vocabulary - - understanding the meaning of words |
I | Inference | Iggy Inference - hunting for hidden clues or reading between the lines |
P | Prediction | Predicting Pip - guessing what might happen next |
E | Explanation | Arlo the Author / Cassie the Commentator (Used for KS2) explain the author's choices, give reasons for events or characters' actions, and express their thoughts, opinions, or preferences about a text |
R | Retrieval | Rex Retriever - finding and picking out facts directly from the text |
S | Sequencing / Summarising | Suki Sequencing (KS1) / Sheba Summarising (KS2) - putting the events of a story in the correct order |
How we use it:
Teachers plan targeted questions from VIPERS to build pupils’ comprehension skills across the curriculum.
Pupils practise the skills with whole-class reading, guided reading and independent texts.
VIPERS helps teachers spot exactly where a pupil needs support so that every child can access and enjoy richer, deeper reading.
VIPERS Displays
