The benefits of shared reading
School librarian Bridget Hamlet explains how valuable shared reading can be:
Spark Reading has been created to be used flexibly to support your reluctant and unengaged readers at Key Stage 3. The pack includes five titles for shared reading sessions – in sets of six – and a further ten titles for sharing or reading aloud.
Some ideas for using the packs include:
Encouraging book talk
The books have been chosen as they offer great scope for discussion and informal book talk.
The group reading sets are ideal for shared reading activities – with guidance in the accompanying reading guides and introductory author videos to get the students talking.
The sets can be used in intervention sessions, nurture groups, book clubs and much more!
Helping students to find the right book for them
Reluctant readers can often find it hard to know where to start when they need to choose a book – Spark Reading provides a selection of titles that offers choice without being overwhelming.
The pack includes both fiction and non-fiction titles and a range of formats, to help break down barriers and suit different reading abilities.
Reading with a friend
Sharing a story with others is a great way of building reading confidence and reading enjoyment.
"We're building the community aspect of reading with things like 'read with a friend' displays, offering duplicate copies of a book that's really accessible, so two students can read it together and discuss." Head of English
The Spark Reading pack includes accessible titles like Echostar, which is perfect for a less confident reader to share with a friend.