Reading at Meridian
“Reading is the gateway skill that makes all other learning possible” Barack Obama
At Meridian High School, we believe that reading opens the door to learning, confidence and future success. Strong reading skills help students access every subject, communicate their ideas and become increasingly independent.
Reading support is carefully matched to each student. We use regular reading assessments to identify strengths and any areas where additional help may be needed. Students may receive focused support with phonics, decoding unfamiliar words, spelling, reading fluency, vocabulary or comprehension. Progress is reviewed regularly so that support can be adjusted as students develop.
Students may access programmes such as Fresh Start Phonics, Dyslexia Gold and Lexia PowerUp. These provide personalised activities and small-group support, allowing students to work at the right level and build their skills gradually.
Reading is also an important part of tutor time. Through our Faster Reading programme, tutors read engaging, age-appropriate texts aloud while students follow the text. This helps students experience high-quality literature, discover new vocabulary and develop their reading confidence, stamina and enjoyment.
Our aim is simple: every student should receive the support and challenge they need to become a confident reader who can succeed across the curriculum and beyond school.
Tutor time reading- Faster Reader
Tutor Time Reading uses the Faster Reader approach is a framework designed to support readers, from the University of Sussex. The purpose is to help students build confidence and fluency in a supportive, structured way. Twice a week, tutors read aloud to their tutees, modelling expressive, accurate reading while exposing students to rich vocabulary and engaging texts.
This approach allows students to hear what fluent reading sounds like, helping them to develop better comprehension, pronunciation, and pace. Listening to a skilled reader also reduces pressure, making reading more enjoyable and accessible-especially for those who may struggle. Over time, students build confidence, deepen their understanding of texts, and develop a stronger foundation for their own independent reading.
Explicit teaching of new vocabulary
At Meridian High School, we want every student to understand and confidently use ambitious vocabulary. A strong vocabulary helps students communicate clearly, understand challenging texts and express their ideas effectively in academic writing.
As part of our approach to reading and oracy, we use Direct Vocabulary Instruction (DVI) to introduce new and challenging subject-specific words. This helps students understand the complex language they encounter across the curriculum and improves their reading comprehension.
When introducing a new word, teachers:
- Ask students to say the word three times to build confidence with pronunciation.
- Break the word into smaller parts, such as prefixes, roots and suffixes.
- Explore where the word comes from and how it has developed.
- Connect it to familiar words with similar meanings.
- Provide a clear definition supported by an image or visual example.
This consistent approach helps students understand, remember and confidently use new vocabulary in their speaking, reading and writing.
How we identify and support our readers
We use the New Group Reading Test (NGRT) to understand each student’s reading strengths and identify where additional support may be helpful. The assessment looks at areas such as understanding vocabulary, completing sentences and making sense of longer passages.
Results are reported using stanines, which range from 1 to 9. Stanines 4-6 represent the average range, while stanines 1-3 indicate that a student may need additional support. Stanines 7-9 show that a student is reading securely and may benefit from further challenge.
We do not use stanines to label students. They help us build a clearer picture of what each student can do and where the barriers may be, and importantly how we can support them.
Support is matched carefully to each student:
- Students working within stanines 1- 3 may receive targeted support with phonics, decoding, word recognition or reading fluency through programmes such as Fresh Start Phonics and Dyslexia Gold.
- Students working within stanines 4-6 may receive support through Lexia PowerUp or focused work on vocabulary, sentence reading, fluency and comprehension.
- Students working within stanines 7-9 continue to be challenged through increasingly complex texts, ambitious vocabulary and higher-level comprehension activities.
- All students benefit from regular reading during tutor time through our Faster Reading programme.
Students’ progress is reviewed regularly. This allows us to adapt the support, provide additional help where needed and recognise when a student is ready to move on from an intervention.
Our library
Our school library is a welcoming and supportive space where students can enjoy reading, complete their homework and study independently.
Students can visit the library during break and lunchtime using a library pass. Any student who would like regular access can speak to their tutor, who will help them request a pass.
We also offer additional study support throughout the week:
- Years 7, 8 and 9 Home learning Club: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:00-4:00pm.
- Years 10 and 11 Independent Study: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8:00-8:30am.
Friendly staff are available to help students with homework, coursework and revision. Laptops and other useful resources are also provided, helping students to work confidently and independently.
Whether students are looking for a great book, need help with an assignment or want a quiet place to revise, the Meridian Library is here to support them.
What does the Meridian Library have to offer?
- A comfortable place to sit and read peacefully
- An area to read with friends
- A range of fiction and non-fiction texts
- A space to complete home learning
- A space to work quietly
- A club space for break and lunch times
- A Reader Leaders Programme where our trained student leaders support year 7 and 8 readers
- An space for literacy lessons and interventions
World Book Day Celebrations
World Book Day changes lives through a love of books and reading. Our mission is to promote reading for pleasure, offering every child and young person the opportunity to have a book of their own. Reading for pleasure is the single biggest indicator of a child’s future success – more than their family circumstances, their parents’ educational background or their income. We want to see more children with a life-long habit of reading for pleasure and the improved life chances this brings them.
For world book day students and staff are encouraged to dress up as a literary character from a book of their choice. Students also have the opportunity to get involved in many reading relatedd activities which include:
The Masked Reader- students need to guess the reader from the short story or poem they are reading (click on the image to listen). Complete the google form to enter the competition
Short stories- Students are read a short story at the beginning of every lesson on world book day.
Library leaders assembly- Library leaders deliver an assembly to the whole school which promotes a love of reading and showcases all of the WBD activities happening throughout the day.
Best dressed competition- Prizes for students and staff for the best dressed WBD character
