Accelerated Reader

The Rationale

“There is no such thing as a child who hates to read; there are only children who have not found the right book.” Dr Frank Serafini

Children who read do better in life; whether that’s educational attainment, confidence, communication skills, wellbeing or health. Quite simply reading matters. We value reading highly at Northfield; giving every opportunity for our pupils to read for pleasure and together, parents and teachers can really make a difference.

How does it work?

Renaissance Accelerated Reader is used in thousands of schools across the UK. It was created to develop children’s love of reading for pleasure while giving teachers the tools to track reading habits, understanding of the books pupils have read and their progress. Pupils read books of their individual choice and then take a quiz, ensuring they understand what they have read.

There is a wide range of books that pupils can read and then take the quiz on, over 30,000, both fiction and non-fiction. Popular books by authors such as David Walliams, Anthony Horowitz and JK Rowling, together with classics such as Frankenstein and Jane Eyre

  • Pupils are assessed 3 times a year using Star Test, which gives their Reading Age at each point and from this we monitor their development. Your child’s reading age should be at or above their actual age and will look something like this: 11:08 (11 years and 8 months). The data from the test ascertains what level of book your child should be reading, and they are given a bespoke reading range called the ZPD. ZPD stands for Zone of Proximal Development; in a nutshell, it guides our pupils to choose reading books at the level in the library. The ZPD will look something like this: 4.6-5.5.
  • Using their ZPD we help each pupil choose books that they will enjoy; fiction or non-fiction whichever they prefer.
  • It is expected that your child brings a reading book to school that falls within their ZPD – this book should be brought to school every day as it is part of their school equipment.
  • In years 7, 8 and 9 pupils will read for 20 minutes once per week in their Literacy lesson and in a rolling period once per week, where they will also have the opportunity to discuss our Recommended Reads for their year group.
  • Pupils are expected to read for at least 20 minutes every day and quiz at least once a fortnight and achieve 85-95% - this shows they have fully understood the book but that it has the right level of challenge.
  • Your child may bring a book from home to read at school however, it must fall within their ZPD. You can find the ZPD of most books on the website www.arbookfind.co.uk. Please look at the number next to BL (book level) to determine the book’s ZPD. If the book cannot be found on the website, then, unfortunately, this book cannot be used for Accelerated Reader as no related QUIZZES can be completed.
  • Pupils can access Accelerated Reader from home to complete quizzes. The link for that can be found under the Curriculum Overview section of our website.

Celebrating pupil achievement in Accelerated Reader

  • As pupils progress through the programme they are awarded certificates, starting at Ready Reader and progressing through to Star Reader. Each time they complete a quiz with a score of 85% or above they receive an Achievement Point.

  • We also have rewards, every half-term for individual pupils who have read 250,000 words or more; inter-class competitions and for our Millionaire Readers - pupils who have read a million words or more!