Approach to Reading

Reading at Brook Sixth Form and Academy

At Brook Sixth Form and Academy, our mission is to help young people become lifelong readers.

We believe that the ability to read transforms lives and changes outcomes for children and society. We therefore want every young person at Brook Sixth Form and Academy to experience the joy and power of becoming a lifelong reader.

Reading allows us to be transported from our own world to another. It gives us a deeper understanding of the world around us and cultures that are different from our own. We can also build extensive vocabulary and acquire skills and knowledge that enable us to perform better academically.

Through reading we develop empathy as we experience the lives of other characters and can identify with how they are feeling.  We, therefore, use this understanding to empathise with other people we meet in our lives. Additionally, it helps us gain a greater understanding of emotions, which can help us understand our own emotions and those of others.

Accelerated Reader is a reading programme specifically designed to encourage and promote successful reading. It helps students to track their reading comprehension by providing them with the tools to measure their improvement. Accelerated Reader places the focus on the careful reading of books which in turn promotes critical thinking.

This programme ensures that every student has a reading book. English lessons have been adapted to make sure that time is given to improving reading skills and there is a structured targeted intervention for those that are struggling to make progress. In addition, students are expected to read during tutor periods.

The aim is to ensure that students improve their reading through independent reading and in turn this will foster reading for pleasure. We encourage parents to help and listed to their child reading.