Language Development
At Manningtree High School we strive to ensure that our students feel confident in their use of language in school as well as being able to shine outside in the community. We aim to help develop confident speakers and fluent readers. We are continuously working to develop this within our school. Language Development has been a key focus for the school over the last two years. This is in response to a concerning decrease in vocabulary acquisition and reading engagement across the country. We are determined to tackle this together.
We all need to play our part. Research tells us that children should be read to up to the age of 16 years, to become confident, effective readers and interpreters of knowledge. Reading at home regularly is an important component and a strategy we actively encourage. On our school website you can find useful tips for reading with your young people and some recommended reads.
As a staff, we guarantee an education and intervention plan that is tailored to your child’s needs. We use Accelerated Reader in Year 7 and Year 8 to establish and regularly assess student reading progress. Additionally, our Learning Support team implement additional tests and subsequent strategies for our weaker readers, including the Hertfordshire Literary Intervention Toolkit and Phonic books.
Other interventions may involve the Peer reading programme, where older students with more experience support students with their fluency. In addition, in KS3, students have allocated silent reading in form time, and they are issued with word books. These are books of key words that all students would benefit from knowing. We are grateful for any time that can be spent on this at home.
A weekly Word of the Week is published in the student bulletin and on our school website. We would love to see students engaging with this word and it being encouraged at home. Students will be rewarded for their use of this word in lessons using our E Praise system.
We also believe that those students who are at or above their chronological reading age need to be stretched and challenged by reading texts that they would not normally access. We would encourage students to access our recommended reading lists and challenge themselves accordingly. They are also able to observe staff reading recommendations from the classroom door posters. These are visible throughout the school.
It is essential that we work together as a school and parent community united in this aim to make Manningtree High School a place where children can flourish in school and become confident language users outside of school.
Word Books
Each term students in Years 7, 8 and 9 are issued with Word Books. These are books of key words that all students would benefit from knowing. We are grateful for any time that can be spent on this at home:
Reading Age Tests
Students in Years 7 & 8 complete a Reading Age test each term. The results of this are shared on Go4schools and used to direct interventions within the school.
Recommended Reading Lists