A group of avid readers from Saint Paul’s Catholic High School in Wythenshawe, Greater Manchester enjoyed their reward for their positive attitude to reading when they were invited to a Pizza Party in the school library.
Saint Paul’s wants to encourage their students to enjoy reading whether by themselves or as part of a class in school. Research has shown that the more students read, and the more challenging their reading is, the more successful they will become in all subject areas.
Ms Irena Savova, the school Librarian, explained: “This year the reward is for individual readers. The competition ran from 2nd January until 30th April. The top three readers in each class automatically qualified for the party. In addition, two more students in each class were chosen to attend by their teacher. These were students who always came prepared for their lesson and consistently showed outstanding commitment and effort in their reading.
The competition was very successful in inspiring not only the most able readers but the struggling readers as well.
The word count of the whole school is 68,253,298 words which shows the commitment of both staff and students in supporting the reading for pleasure across the school.
Mr Jamie Sharrock, English teacher and Literacy Lead, commented: “We want to promote reading across the school and encourage all students to take pleasure in reading. We believe that treats like this encourage and inspire our students to achieve the best they can. It is always a great pleasure rewarding those dedicated students who have worked so hard throughout.”
Mr Mike Whiteside, Head Teacher, said: “We are very keen to encourage reading and the joy of books amongst our students. Students who read, gain a greater understanding of the world in which they live, they learn to appreciate how writers use language for effect and they extend their repertoire of vocabulary.”