Literacy is taken very seriously at BMS and viewed as a vital cog in the wheel of student progress. High standards of literacy allow students to access the curriculum in every subject area and model high quality oracy, which can then translate to elevated levels of writing.

Assistant Headteacher Mrs Till has recently completed a school wide literacy audit and on the back of this, improvements are already being planned.

With that said, a lot already takes place including DEAR events now being regular fixtures at BMS and contain a combination of fiction and non-fiction texts, the CDC time reading scheme meaning that every student reads for 20 minutes every Friday (following a carefully selected text to prepare them for the future – including a variety of novels, short stories and non-fiction), Bedrock Vocabulary being accessed across Year 7 meaning that students are being introduced to a wider range of vocabulary on a regularly basis, all classrooms featuring a ‘Golden Glossaries’ display containing specific terminology for the subject which is used in elements of the lessons, several staff training sessions geared towards lifting literacy in the classroom and staff reading initiatives such as ‘I am currently reading……’ posters and the ‘Desert Island Books’ display to help to raise the profile of reading across the school.

The attached photos show the LRC Manager, Mrs Turton in her Key Stage 3 literacy lessons and CDC reading support sessions.