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"Reading is critical to everything we do as active members of society. Reading is a skill and like many skills, requires a teacher to teach and a student to practice."
Dartford Technology College is introducing the Accelerated Reader Programme which is supported by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust with Renaissance Learning. The Accelerated Reader Programme is embedded in the Key Stage 3 curriculum and is suitable across the ability range to get students excited about books. Every student should have 'a book in their bag'. This programme encourages students to get 'back to basics' and enjoy books, enabling students, staff and parents to engage with each other and achieve the goal of becoming skilled lifelong readers who love to read.
Accelerated Reader provides three easy steps to continuously guide students to appropriate books within their zone of proximal development (ZPD) this helps teachers to give guidance on personalized reading instructions for individual students and helps staff to intervene with students who need extra support and guidance.
Students reading skills are assessed using STAR Reader
Step 1: Students read a book. All types of students reading are monitored, included guided, paired, literature-based and text book reading.
Step 2: Students take a comprehension quiz on the book they have read. Accelerated Reader offers more than 8,000 quizzes on library books, popular reading and textbooks. The quizzes provide assessment information to help motivate reading, monitor progress and target instruction to accelerate reading growth.
Step 3: Information is provided from quizzes in easy to read reports on the reading level and comprehension skill of each student to guide instruction and help student’s select more reading material.
Students in year 7 & selected year 8 & 9 students will be provided with and supported by their English Teacher, Mrs Phillips the School Librarian and Learning Support Assistants during the programme. Students will also have access to the Library & Study Centre at lunch time for extra reading time. Students will be encouraged to take their reading books home to read in the evenings and at weekends.
The aim of this programme is to keep students challenged - using Accelerated Reader we can continuously guide students to appropriate books and curriculum within their ZPD. This means we can ensure that every student is challenged without being frustrated.
Are any of your books at home on the Accelerator Reader? Check here by clicking on the photograph above of when 7 Year Eight students attended the 'AR Trapped by Monsters' Event in London
Book Donations
If you have any reading books at home that are gathering dust on your bookshelves. The school would be delighted if you were to donate them to our library. Please bring any books into the Study Centre and we will ensure that they reach Mrs Philips the School Librarian.
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