Lilac

 Lilac

If your child brings home a Lilac book you can support them by modelling the processes of reading, such as how to hold a book and turn a page. The story is being told through the illustrations, therefore, talk about what they notice, who the characters are and what they like/dislike about what they can see. Help your child locate the title.

Pink

 Pink

Your child is beginning to learn to read. As they read, please help them to:

• - Read the words carefully. Ask your child to sound out and blend only the words they can’t read yet, not every word.
• - On second and third readings of the book, encourage them to read with more pace and with less focus on sounding out the letters in each word.
• - Make a story out of a whole book, rather than focusing just on what is happening on each page.

Tell you about something that happened in the book, or about something they found out in the book.

Red

Red

As above

Yellow

Yellow

Now that your child is reading Yellow books:

• - Some words will now be recognisable by sight.
• - Still encourage sounding out and blending unfamiliar words.
• - Give them time to recognise and correct their own mistakes.

Blue

Blue

Children on blue books will be able to:

• Sound out and blend unfamiliar words in their heads.
• Look at the punctuation marks. You may want to model how to read a page of writing, paying attention to punctuation, such as full-stops and question marks.
• Tell you about what the characters in the story are doing and why they are acting in that way.

Show you how they can find things that interest them in non-fiction texts.

Green

Green

As above but with a little more focus on punctuation.

Orange

 Orange

Now your child is reading orange books:

• Encourage them to examine the layout in non-fiction books.
• Check information in text with illustrations.
• Remind them to break a longer word into syllables.
• Encourage them to use expression, especially for speech in fiction books.

Talk about how characters are feeling and what they might be thinking.

Turquoise

Turquoise

When your child is reading Turquoise books:

• They will rely less on illustrations.
• They will become confident when reading longer sentence structures and paragraphs.
• They will be able to navigate glossaries, indexes and contents pages
• Talk to them about how events in the book relate to each other and help them understand how the story builds up in a longer book.

Ask them to tell you about interesting things they found out and to show you where the information is located in the book

Purple

Purple

The purple reading books require:

• Children to read a variety of fiction, non-fiction and poetry with growing independence.
• Children to read silently and rapidly. You should still listen to them read aloud too.
• Children to use punctuation to keep track of longer sentences.
• Children to solve most unfamiliar words by blending less common digraphs and recognising alternative spellings to read longer and more complex words.
• Children to predict content/layout/ story development
• Children to become more aware of literary effects and the formal language of non-fiction.
• Children to begin to consciously use reading to extend speaking, writing, vocabulary and syntax.

Gold

Gold

You can support your child read Gold books by:

• Asking them to find parts of the text which describe a character or place and talking about the words used in the description.
• Asking for regular updates as to what is happening in the book so that you know how the different chapters or sections link.
• Talking about how much they enjoy a book, or a type of book.

Encouraging them to look for more books of the type they enjoy.

White

White

Your child is now reading longer books with fewer illustrations, so they continue to need your help to ensure they are getting the full meaning and enjoyment from the text. They may prefer to read one chapter or section at a time, rather than reading the whole book in one session. They will now be:

• Sustaining interest in text for longer periods of time, returning to it easily later.
• Using text more fully as a reference and as a model, and find information in texts more flexibly.
• Noticing the spelling of unfamiliar words and relating this understanding to known words.
• Showing an increased awareness of vocabulary and precise meaning.

Express reasoned opinions and interpretations about what is read and compare texts.

Lime

Lime

Although your child is now taking off as a reader, it is still important that you read with them and talk to them about their reading. This reassures them that their reading is still important to you, as well as giving you an opportunity to share an enjoyment of books.

Children will be able to:

• Recognise text type and predict general content, returning easily to the book after a break.
• Read silently, altering speed to suit material.
• Return to the text to make different interpretations.
• Make use of blurbs, glossaries and indexes to locate information quickly and accurately.
• Express reasoned opinions about what is read and compare texts with other books they have read

Brown

 Brown

Although your child will now be enjoying reading independently and is less likely to read aloud to you, to support their reading you can:

• Make a time where you both read together.
• Make time for a conversation at the end of each reading session. You should ask your child questions which make your child go back to the book to find answers.
• Model skimming and scanning to find the information.

Continuing to read aloud to your child at bedtime. This shows them the importance you place on reading

Grey

Grey

As above

Dark Blue

 Dark Blue

As above.

Books on this level give increasing opportunities for children to develop their skills of inference and deduction. 

Dark Red

Dark Red

As above

Books on this level offer fluent readers a complex, substantial text with challenging themes to facilitate sustained comprehension.