7th January 2016
Year 3 and 4 Parents and Carers
Dear Parents and Carers
Your children will soon be part of an assembly to help them understand what skills
are needed to help them progress from one book band level to another and that
information is included in this letter for you. We will also be talking about selecting
free reader books and how best to get a book that is right for them that they will
enjoy and that will help them make progress in their reading.
Your child needs to read every day at school and at home. They will have targets
on page 11 of their reading diary that should be reviewed in school and updated
when appropriate for you to work towards. You can comment on this or any other
area of your child’s reading in the Home/School Communication section on the
right hand side of each week. Below are the skills within each colour band.
Book
Band
Level
Pink
Red
Reading skills
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Locate title.
Understand left page before right.
Understand that print is read from left to right.
Match spoken word to written word.
Locate familiar words and use them to check own reading.
Predict storyline and some vocabulary, aided by the illustrations.
Locate and recall title
Use known words to check and control reading.
Solve simple CVC words by blending phonemes from left to
right and check that it makes sense and sounds right in the
sentence.
Repeat words, phrases or sentences to check, confirm or
modify own reading.
Yellow
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Blue
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Green
Orange
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Turquoise
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Purple
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Follow print with eyes, pointing only at points of difficulty.
Take more note of punctuation.
Cross check all sources of information more quickly while
reading.
Note familiar words and letter clusters and use to get to
unknown words.
Search for information in print to predict, confirm or attempt
new words.
Self-correct more rapidly on the run.
Solve new words using print information along with attention to
meaning.
Manage a greater variety of text types.
Discuss content of the text in a way which indicates precise
understanding.
Read fluently with attention to punctuation.
Discuss and interpret character and plot more fully.
Track the next line of print without difficulty.
Read longer phrases and more complex sentences.
Attend to a greater range of punctuation and text layout.
Search for and use familiar syllables within words to read
longer words.
Infer meaning from text.
Begin to use appropriate terminology when discussing different
types of text.
Extract meaning from the text while reading with less
dependence on illustrations.
Use punctuation and text layout to read with a greater range of
expression and control.
Sustain reading through longer sentence structures and
paragraphs.
Tackle a higher ratio of more complex words.
Look through a variety of texts with growing independence to
predict content, layout and story development.
Read silently or quietly at a more rapid pace, taking note of
punctuation and using it to keep track of longer sentences.
Solve unfamiliar words on the run.
Adapt to fiction, non-fiction or poetic language with growing
flexibility.
Gold
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White
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Lime
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Take more conscious account of literary effects used by
writers.
Make more conscious use of reading to extend speaking and
writing vocabulary and syntax.
Locate and interpret information in non-fiction.
Read silently most of the time.
Sustain interest in a longer text, returning to it easily after a
break.
Use texts more fully as a reference and as a model.
Search for and find information in texts more flexibly.
Notice the spelling of unfamiliar words and relate to known
words.
Show increased awareness of vocabulary and precise
meaning.
Express reasoned opinions about what is read and compare
texts.
Offer and discuss interpretations of text.
Use experience of reading a variety of material to recognize
text-type and predict layout and general content.
Read silently most of the time, adjusting speed of reading to
suit material and monitoring the precise meaning.
Rerun to make different interpretations of dialogue, more
complex sentences, unfamiliar language etc.
Make use of blurbs, chapter headings, glossaries, and indexes
quickly and accurately.
Take note and devise ways to remember the meaning and
spelling of unfamiliar words.
You will be able to access more advice to help you know how to support your child
progress with their reading during workshops run by your child’s class teacher
where you will have the opportunity to work alongside your child to improve their
reading.
These will be held on the following dates at the start of the school day for about
half an hour. Creche facilities will be made available for pre-school aged children.
Porpoise: 2nd February 9am
Seal: 4th February 9am
Dolphin: 5th February 9am
Fox: 8th February 9am
Stag: 10th February 9am
Deer: 11th February 9am
We look forward to working with you to help improve your child’s reading. If you
have any questions, please approach your child’s class teacher in the first
instance.
Best Wishes
The English Team