Reading
At Forest Hall School, we believe that reading is at the heart of every child's success. During form time, pupils take part in shared reading sessions led by their form tutor, helping to develop reading fluency, vocabulary, comprehension and a lifelong love of reading. Tutors model expressive reading, explore new vocabulary and encourage discussion through thoughtful questioning, ensuring every pupil actively engages with the text regardless of their reading ability.
Our carefully chosen reading programme exposes pupils to a wide range of high-quality fiction and classic literature, exploring important themes such as friendship, courage, equality, resilience, identity, justice and diversity. Books studied include Wonder by R.J. Palacio (kindness and inclusion), To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (justice and prejudice), When the Sky Falls by Phil Earle (friendship and resilience), Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman (equality and discrimination), The Boy Who Made Everyone Laugh by Helen Rutter (confidence and perseverance), and The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (courage and adventure). Through these shared reading experiences, we aim to develop knowledgeable, successful and confident learners who enjoy reading and are well prepared for their future learning and life beyond school.
Research has shown that reading for pleasure makes a big difference to children’s educational performance. Children who read for enjoyment every day not only perform better in reading test than those who don’t, but also develop a broader vocabulary, increased general knowledge and a better understanding of other cultures. In fact, reading for pleasure is more likely to determine whether a child does well at school than their social or economic background.
Learning to read is about listening and understanding as well as working out what’s printed on the page. Through hearing stories, children are exposed to a wide range of words. This helps them build their own vocabulary and improve their understanding when they listen, which is vital as they start to read. Below is a suggested reading list for your child over the summer holidays.
| Year 7 suggested reading | |
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Fight Back – A.M.Dassu Can You See Me? – Libby Scott & Rebecca Westcott The Marvellers – Dhonielle Clayton Glowrushes – Roberto Piumini Peregrine Quinn and the Cosmic Realm – Ash Bond When I See Blue – Lily Bailey Pig Heart Boy – Malorie Blackman Flyaway – Lucy Christopher |
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| Year 8 suggested reading | |
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The Wordsmith – Patricia Forde No Fixed Address – Susin Nielsen Kerb-Stain Boys – Alex Wheatle Stay A Little Longer – Bali Rai Like A Girl – Rebecca Westcott The Five Clues – Anthony Kessel Rugby Flyer – Gerald Siggins Toffee – Sarah Crossan |
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The Boy in Striped Pyjamas – John Boyne King of Nothing – Nathanael Lessore You’ll Be the Death of Me – Karen M.McManus The Secrets Act – Alison Weatherby Every Line of You – Naomi Gibson Thief – Malorie Blackman The Day of the Jackel – Frederick Forsyth Life of Pi – Yann Martel |
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The Fault in our Stars – John Green My Left Foot – Christy Brown Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier Sophie’s World – Jostein Gaarder Touching the Void – Joe Simpson The Bosy in the Library – Agatha Christie Tarzan of the Apes – Edgar Rice Burroughs Boys Don’t Cry – Malorie Blackman |
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The Women in Black – Susan Hill I Boy – Kevin Brooks Dead Time – Anne Cassidy The Girl You Left Behind – Jojo Moyes Confessions of a Murder Suspect – James Patterson Blood, Sweat and Tears – Bear Grylls I Loved You in Another Life – David Arnold Six of Crows – Leigh Bardugo |
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Year 6 Summer Reading List
Try and read five of these books over the holidays.
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Boy X by Dan Smith
Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Demolition Dad by Phil Earle
El Deafo by Cece Bell
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Holes by Louis Sachar
How to Capture an Invisible Cat by Paul Tobin
Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens
My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish by Mo O’Hara
Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Perijee and Me by Ross Montgomery
Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson
Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell
She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick
Small Change for Stuart by Lissa Evans
The Astounding Broccoli Boy by Frank Cottrell Boyce
The Dreamsnatcher by Abi Elphinstone
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
The Map to Everywhere by Carrie Ryan and John Parke Davis
The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
The School For Good and Evil by Soman Chainini
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt