In the third blog in our Library Lifeline series, written in association with the School Library Association, we explore the ways in which your library can support teachers and staff to promote reading for pleasure. The question which sparks our blog, focuses on the all-too-familiar juggle school staff face when they are trying to balance different priorities.
This series is designed to support anyone working in a school library by answering their questions directly. Our ‘agony aunt’ – the SLA’s Member Development Librarian, Dawn Woods – has taken time to share her thoughts around how to support reading for pleasure at school and given some tips to make this easier for time-poor teachers.
If you have another question, please email us at worldofstories@literacytrust.org.uk and your question may be the focus of a future blog!
I’d like to increase the enjoyment in reading in my class. What can I do that won’t take up huge amounts of curriculum time?
The question of how to increase reading for pleasure whilst trying to balance other time pressures and priorities in school is one that’s being asked more and more. This is coupled with increased momentum from research which proves the huge emotional, social and economic benefits of reading for enjoyment.
We know, therefore, that reading for pleasure has multiple benefits and it's important to address how we make space in our timetables without impacting other areas. Creating a reading culture in your school, where everyone reads for enjoyment, will permeate children’s lives and there are lots of things you can implement in class, without compromising your curriculum time.
Why is reading for pleasure important?
Simply put, reading for pleasure increases mental wellbeing. The importance of this, especially after the roller-coaster years we have experienced, cannot be stressed enough.
The National Literacy Trust’s research has found that children and young people who are the most engaged with literacy are three times more likely to have higher levels of mental wellbeing than children who are the least engaged (39.4% vs 11.8%).
Reading for pleasure naturally increases the literacy levels of young adults too, thereby helping their entry into the job market. With that in mind, low levels of literacy undermine the UK’s economic competitiveness, costing the taxpayer £2.5 billion every year.
Reading for pleasure has also been shown to have massive social advantages and can boost children's confidence for many elements of their school life and beyond into their experience of the work place, and even to support them as adults to help their own children’s learning should they become parents.
The idea of reading for pleasure, and exposure to books, stories and other forms of literature is something that is greatly encouraged by local government too.
Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence (2006) says that children and young people must “… spend time with stories, literature and other texts which will enrich their learning, develop their language skills and enable them to find enjoyment.”
The Welsh Framework for Learning (2008) also prioritises reading for enjoyment, highlighting that readers should be given the opportunity to read for different purposes, including personal pleasure. It says that learners should experience a language-rich environment where oracy, reading and writing experiences are connected to ensure they become enthusiastic, independent and reflective readers.
How do we increase reading for enjoyment in schools?
Teachers as readers
One of the greatest motivators for pupils' reading habits can be as simple as teachers sharing their enthusiasm for current children’s literature. Both the Open University and Cheltenham Literature Festival run programmes to encourage teachers to model reading behaviour. Both offer book groups where Book Chat plays an important part.
- Find informal times in the day to mention what you read the previous evening. Ask pupils what they’re reading too. Not only is this a way to pick up ideas about fantastic titles to recommend to others, but current favourites may surprise you and help build an overall picture of strategies and themes that will help strengthen your reading for pleasure culture.
- Ensure you set aside time to read aloud to your class. This helps pupils who are less fluent at reading by modelling intonation and excitement, which can further inspire a love of reading.
Link reading for pleasure with your curriculum topics
Another way to increase reading for enjoyment whilst working within time constraints is to have suitable fiction titles available to link to your curriculum topics. For instance, Emma Carroll’s Letters from the Lighthouse is a good choice if you are teaching WWII, or David Wiesner’s Flotsam works really well when you are studying islands. Adding in fiction books to your curriculum topics can also kickstart discussions around the facts you need to convey in more memorable ways.
Weave reading for pleasure into your whole school assemblies
As far as whole school efforts go – what about book assemblies? You can always talk about picture books, which are accessible to most pupils. This acknowledges that we all like a comfort read, and shows that it’s perfectly fine for older readers to pick up a picture book. Mat Tobin’s excellent blog may help justify this.
Encourage book choice
Pupils’ right to choose what they read is crucial for encouraging a love of reading, and makes the activity more palatable for reluctant readers. Have a diverse range of books available. School libraries are absolutely vital in offering a healthy selection of great quality, wide-ranging books to every pupil.
See Lifeline Lifeline Part 1 to learn more about where you can find these titles. Support children in choosing books with this fun animation or book choice poster.
All Creatures Great and Small
Peer recommendations too, are a powerful tool when engaging pupils in reading for enjoyment. Invite a child to briefly talk to the class about their current favourite – it may well spark others’ interest in it. If you don’t regularly read graphic novels but have a graphic novel lover in your class, use their appetite for this genre to get others excited about trying it out. The National Literacy Trust Reading Tree Challenge is designed to help share reading recommendations in the library and classroom.
And, if your school has the funds and the capacity, you could always consider getting a Reading Dog. These are trained, certified therapy dogs whose presence can lower anxiety and pressure in children, leaving the latter calm and able to simply read for enjoyment.
Reading for pleasure activities
Tap into national initiatives that happen throughout the year. Pick a few that are spread out in the calendar to keep that vital reading for pleasure flame burning. The Library and Reading Planner on the SLA website is just one of their ready-made, professional-looking resources linking into national awareness days, and it helps you plan displays and book groups while crucially saving time.
The mental, cognitive and societal advantages of reading for pleasure are just too important and far-reaching to ignore. Armed with these handy tips you’re sure to set up a class where this enjoyment becomes a normal, daily part of the school day.
Other useful insights around Reading for Pleasure
- Reflecting on Reading for Pleasure Pedagogy: Open University Reading for Pleasure video interview with Sonia Thompson, Headteacher from St Matthews, Birmingham, on sustaining RfP pedagogy. Two minutes of wisdom and worth a watch. Sonia and her staff are ‘enabling children to read for life’ and all supported with research and evidence.
- Reading for Pleasure padlet from Jon Biddle, winner of the Whole School Farshore Reading for Pleasure Teacher Award 2021,
- Article charting a school's journey developing reading for pleasure: A Year of Reading Activities: How this primary school put the love back into its library
Explore our series of Library Lifeline blogs
Don't forget to check out our other blogs from Dawn Woods at the SLA:
- Library Lifeline part 1: Recommending books when you're short on time
- Library Lifeline part 2: Successfully managing book stock in your library
- Library Lifeline part 4: What to consider when purchasing a library management system for my library
Reading for Pleasure resources and training
The National Literacy Trust has a wealth of resources, research, programmes and CPD training opportunities that can also support your work and help you build an active reading for pleasure culture into your school timetable.