"Pupils were constantly trying to find ways around reading, but now they realise they have to read more carefully!"

Yavneh College is a modern orthodox school, situated in Borehamwood in North London. It is a school with a strong academic record (P8: +0.85; A8: 0.58; and EBACC: 4.99) and a powerful vision for 'a world built on kindness'. Many of its pupils go on to excel at top universities.

Despite its excellent academic provision, the school has identified that - for some pupils - there are significant barriers to access and progress when it comes to reading, meaning that they 'do not access the curriculum independently' (Ofsted, 2023). Yavneh College has proactively sought to reverse this issue - one that is cited by many teachers across the UK - by implementing a whole-school reading strategy with Sparx Reader at its core.

This case study will provide concise, realistic and practical hints and tips for schools looking to implement Sparx Reader effectively in their contexts.

What does Yavneh College's wider reading strategy look like now?

Yavneh has a many-layered strategy targeting reading across the board. They have ensured that reading is taking place at home, in the school library, in class, and as a group during form time. Those responsible for reading are exacting in their approach: they ask that shared reading occurs in the same format across the board, in all lessons.
One staff member leads on disciplinary reading, and a great deal of time is devoted to literacy in the staff weekly CPD sessions (this includes training for staff on how best to use a visualiser for group reading, for example).
Using the principles of 'Faster Reading', two novels are read - in a teacher-led approach - back to back in Y7 and Y8 in all English lessons from September through to January.
Some curriculum units are bookletised, to maximise the 'words read' each day by pupils.
There is heavy emphasis on explicit vocabulary instruction for tier 2 and 3 words that are due to be encountered in upcoming reading.
'Drop Everything And Listen' (DEAL) is being implemented three times per fortnight; this takes the form of teacher-led reading during form time.
Reluctant readers are regularly taken for reading aloud fluency practice, using 'Hi-Lo' Barrington Stoke books.
Y7&8 complete Sparx Reader every week for their home learning.
The library is still at the heart of the school's reading culture (see final section for further detail on how they have achieved this).

After starting Sparx Reader, what did Yavneh's teachers learn about their pupils' reading habits?

Sparx Reader is useful for seeing where students are not meeting expectations in terms of effort and concentration, as well as highlighting pupils who are genuinely struggling.
Staff are having lots of conversations with students about their free reading material and reading level because that information has been easily surfaced for them.
Sparx Reader revealed that many students were skim-reading, and not really digesting or focusing. Sparx Reader forces meaningful reading; they have to read slowly to get points.
Natasha Gonella, Head of English and the Sparx Reader Lead, noticed that the pupils found the Sparx Reader questions hard at first, which turned out to be because many of them were constantly trying to find ways around reading, but now they realise they have to read more carefully. There are no quick wins or short cuts!

Staff are having lots of conversations with students about their free reading material and reading level because that information has been easily surfaced for them.

How has Sparx Reader worked as KS3 homework?

Natasha explains that Sparx Reader has been really good in ensuring students have regular and meaningful homework that teachers can actually monitor.
Yavneh's teachers have welcomed being able to track reading and hold students accountable, as well as celebrate successes that would otherwise not have been visible to them.
They also appreciate having genuine, accurate information to respond to, both to support and challenge readers.
Sparx Reader has meant that the setting of home learning across the department is regular; any past inconsistencies between classes' homeworks has vanished and finally there is parity. This has made the HoD/Reader Lead's life immeasurably easier!
Teacher workload has been dramatically reduced, yet pupils are doing more work.
The English department faced some complex staffing issues this year, but Natasha could rely on Sparx Reader as an invaluable constant for the students during this difficult period.
While not without early teething problems, teachers can see how Sparx Reader will build crucial reading habits in their students.

Sparx Reader has meant that the setting of home learning across the department is regular; any past inconsistencies between classes’ homeworks has vanished and finally there is parity. This has made the HoD/Reader Lead’s life immeasurably easier!

Teacher workload has been dramatically reduced, yet pupils are doing more work.

How do teachers provide support for students with low accuracy or who are struggling to complete their reading?

Every week, Natasha holds a 30 minute, after-school catch up session in the library.
If a pupil has two consecutive weeks of poor hw completion (under 75% completion), then they are put into this after-school session (which is akin to a detention).
The school wants this 'detention' to be a meaningful opportunity for teachers to speak to students, and for it to feel connected to their reading homework (and its importance), which is why it is held in the library.
During these sessions, two teachers circulate and talk to the pupils; staff see it as an opportunity for even more visibility of their pupils' reading habits. Seeing them read (both silently and out loud) and answer questions 'live' is a hugely insightful and illuminating experience for teachers, and this is a space where genuine struggle can be identified and acted on.
Some students are anxious about reading aloud to their teachers, even in this safe context, so teachers will often read the first few sections aloud before the students then feel comfortable to do so themselves.
About five students with repeated low accuracy scores were coming to this session every week and after some time several of them mentioned that they had started liking their books; they had persevered and were starting to see that they could be successful readers! Natasha noted that their accuracy levels had increased as a result.
Access to the activity timeline, combined with insights from the after school sessions, has given staff the know-how to navigate some complex parental complaints, one of which alleged that catch-up was 'punishment for being poor at reading'. By explaining to parents that incomplete homework and low accuracy scores do not mean a student is a weak reader, staff are able to allay these very real concerns and show parents how they are using these after-school sessions to improve pupils' concentration, confidence, perseverance and attention.

About five students with repeated low accuracy scores were coming to this session every week and after some time several of them mentioned that they had started liking their books; they had persevered and were starting to see that they could be successful readers! Natasha noted that their accuracy levels had increased as a result.

How did Yavneh College make sure all staff and students were fully trained in Sparx Reader?

All of the English department were trained in a department meeting; teachers completed the student demo and Natasha fed back the 'headlines' from the initial Sparx Reader introductory calls to her team, including the wider messaging around 'careful, meaningful reading' being the priority over 'reading for pleasure'.
The in-product Sparx Reader Expert training was completed by all staff, which has now equipped them to respond to pupils and parents with full insight and understanding; for instance, staff were able to solve an early parental concern that the vanishing text was demotivating by explaining that the text is necessarily removed to allow for careful, attentive reading.
The Sparx Reader Activity Timeline has made all the difference for those occasions when parents get in touch with concerns and queries. For example, Natasha explained that she was able to give a parent tangible proof that when their child read carefully and slowly his accuracy was good, but when he rushed his accuracy was low. She was able to show the worried parent that there was only one week when their child invested more than three minutes in his reading, but that his ability was not of concern.
This kind of powerful data has given teacher-parent conversations a boost; it has had a really positive impact and provides extra concrete facts that lead to teachers and parents reaching practical solutions, together.

The in-product Sparx Reader Expert training was completed by all staff, which has now equipped them to respond to pupils and parents with full insight and understanding.

The Sparx Reader Activity Timeline has made all the difference for those occasions when parents get in touch with concerns and queries.

What are Yavneh College's top tips for an effective launch of Sparx Reader?

Yavneh books 'reading meetings' with parents of Y7 and Y8 pupils in early September; there is capacity for 50 or so parents from each year group to attend these meetings. The central aim is to smoothen the transition between primary and secondary reading instruction by giving parents a full run-down of what will, practically, be different as their child moves into KS3.
This includes talking to parents about how the world of primary reading logs will shift to that of Sparx Reader at secondary level. They give parents lots of actionable advice, such as to sit with their child as they embark on Sparx Reader at the start, offering encouragement and helping them to be resilient in the face of struggle.
To reduce inconsistencies going forward, teachers will be encouraged to use the hand in page much more frequently as those that did so saw better turn in rates; last year, many more 100% completion certificates were given in classes where teachers had been monitoring their pupils using the hand in page.
Natasha sends home this email when pupils achieve 100% completion: I am delighted to inform you that 'student' has been awarded a Sparx reader award for completing 100% of their reading homework tasks this half term. Please share the attached certificate with him. [Student] has shown diligence in completing his home learning tasks and is making a real effort in English. I hope [student] continues with the progress he is making.
One of the core messages given to pupils (and parents) is that Sparx Reader develops important GCSE reading skills, particularly because of the high reading age of GCSE materials, and the demands of the tasks associated with such reading. Natasha frames it as 'a long game' to her KS3 pupils.

One of the core messages given to pupils (and parents) is that Sparx Reader develops important GCSE reading skills, particularly because of the high reading age of GCSE materials, and the demands of the tasks associated with such reading. Natasha frames it as ‘a long game’ to her KS3 pupils.

What value does Yavneh place on the role of the Reader Lead?

Natasha is the lynchpin; not only does she hold the most up-to-date knowledge of the 'hows and whys' of Sparx Reader, she is also a critical conduit between middle and senior leadership.
She updates SLT regularly and frequently meets the SLT member responsible for reading. Natasha is given freedom to implement Sparx Reader within her department, but is both supported and held to account by her managers.

Successes

Staff are eagle-eyed when it comes to monitoring their pupils' text choices; recently a teacher noticed that a student had persevered for a great deal of time reading some difficult, classic texts. The teacher was delighted to celebrate such phenomenal effort and resilience, especially given the complexity of the texts she had completed.
The pupils who have struggled historically to feel like successful readers are directed to complete just ten minutes of their Sparx Reader homework each day, for three days, at first.
Certificates for 100% completion are given out regularly.
Natasha shares how many books and hours of careful reading they've read as a school and is looking into creating a 'live running total' of each measure, to display publicly around the school. “Thank you so much. I think the system is brilliant especially for kids with adhd like [my child] and once he finds something he likes reading, which is rare, it's a breeze!“
The response from parents has been really positive:

Recently a teacher noticed that a student had persevered for a great deal of time reading some difficult, classic texts. The teacher was delighted to celebrate such phenomenal effort and resilience, especially given the complexity of the texts she had completed.

How do they maintain an active library?

Yavneh College is rightly proud of their library's collection of 8000 books!
Students in Y7 and Y8 have a fortnightly guided reading practice lesson in their library (not on Sparx Reader); they spend half of the lesson reading a book of significant literary significance as a group and then use the remainder of the lesson to read independently. While the school believes it is important for pupils to have some autonomy over their personal reading, Natasha explains that this more traditional library-lesson set-up can reveal contrasting behaviours between avid and reluctant readers.
The library is used for all Sparx Reader-related catch-up and troubleshooting sessions.

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