Supporting the lowest 20% readers
Ensure every pupil becomes a confident, fluent reader—regardless of their starting point.
This practical and evidence-based CPD course is designed for school leaders, English leads and classroom practitioners seeking to improve reading outcomes for the lowest 20% of pupils.
Course Overview
Some children fall behind in reading for a range of reasons—from limited early exposure to language, to decoding difficulties, comprehension gaps, or lack of confidence. This course provides clear, actionable strategies to help schools identify and support those pupils with precision and purpose.
Participants will explore:
- How to identify the lowest 20% of readers and track their progress
- Research-informed strategies to support reading fluency, comprehension and vocabulary
- Approaches to engage parents and carers in reading at home
- How to structure and sequence reading across year groups
- Practical ways to strengthen whole-school reading culture
- What OFSTED expects from schools in relation to reading, phonics and curriculum implementation
Key Focus Areas
- Early Reading Foundations: Understanding the importance of starting early and building a language-rich environment.
- The Reading Process: Including phonics, word recognition, and language comprehension.
- Parental Engagement: Encouraging effective home-school partnerships around reading.
- Targeted Support: Implementing effective interventions that lead to sustained progress.
- Monitoring and Assessment: Using progression frameworks, pupil voice and miscue analysis to inform planning.
- Creating a Reading Environment: Practical ideas to make reading highly visible, valued and accessible throughout the school.
Course Features
- Downloadable resources and reading audit tools
- OFSTED-style questions to support preparation and reflection
- Tools to evaluate current practice and implement improvement strategies
- Examples of effective reading interventions
- Advice for curriculum leaders and subject leaders
9.30 am - 12.30 pm
Suitable for all phases.
Course audience:
- Headteachers and senior leaders
- English and reading leads
- SENCOs and support staff
- Teachers across EYFS, KS1, KS2 and transition years in KS3
This course was very informative. The trainer, John, provided very valuable information about OFSTED deep dives and how to promote reading across the school. In addition, the course leader presented the information in a very clear way. I was able to reflect on things that I could implement in my school. The vocabulary aspect was very interesting. The entire course was very enlightening. Thank you for this training.
Such a brilliant course. Very current and relevant to my role. Great ideas and John was very helpful. Look forward to attending another one of John’s courses in the future!
If you are interested in any of our courses as a twilight meeting, INSET or staff meetings for your school, please get in touch – contact info@jmbeducation.com for details.
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For our on-demand CPD training courses, please visit www.cpd.cloud