“Independent reading, both at school and at home, builds successful readers. What’s more, the research shows that giving our students a say in what they read is the key. And from our experience, we also know frequent reading leads to becoming a proficient reader, which helps a child thrive personally and academically.” Scholastic Kids & Family Reading Report TM: Fifth Edition
Successful independent reading is the result of a well-executed balanced literacy program. It allows students the chance to practise the strategies they’ve learned through instructional practices such as; guided reading, shared reading, and teacher ‘read alouds’. Students are taught how to choose books that they can read and books that they want to read, these are called Just Right books. With appropriate just right materials, students build the skills they need to read on their own and this is why every classroom at Eltham Primary School has its own classroom library with an ever-increasing range of books for the students to choose from.
