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Inspiring a Lifelong Love of Reading
At St Bernadette’s, we are passionate about developing a lifelong love of reading. We want every child to discover the joy of books, develop their own reading identity and have opportunities to explore a wide range of authors, stories and texts.
Our Reading for Pleasure approach gives children opportunities to choose books, discover new authors, share recommendations and experience reading in a variety of exciting and meaningful ways.
Take a look at some of our reading initiatives…
Our School Bookshop
Each term, we run our very own complimentary school bookshop in partnership with The Children’s Book Project.
Every child has the opportunity to visit our bookshop and choose two books to take home. This gives children the opportunity to build their own collection of books at home and encourages them to choose books that genuinely interest and excite them.
Reading Ambassadors
Our team of Reading Ambassadors are passionate about championing reading across our school.
Our Reading Ambassadors:
● Help to lead and support reading events
● Promote our Author of the Month
● Recommend books and share their reading experiences
● Act as positive reading role models for younger children
● Help to develop pupil voice around reading and books
● Support the promotion of reading across the school
Our ambassadors help to make reading visible, exciting and
celebrated throughout our school community.
Book Buzz
In October 2026, we are excited to launch BookBuzz in partnership with the BookTrust.
Our KS2 children will have a dedicated afternoon to explore a collection of brand-new texts and books. Children will have the opportunity to browse, discover new authors and choose the book that most appeals to them.
Their choices will then form the basis of an exciting book club, giving children the opportunity to come together to share their thoughts, recommendations and enjoyment of their chosen books.
🧸 Story Suitcases
Our Story Suitcases give our EYFS and KS1 children the opportunity to take the magic of reading home.
Each week, a child takes home a Story Suitcase containing:
● 📕 A carefully chosen book
● 🧸 A teddy bear
● 📔 A reading journal
● 🎨 Reading activities
● ☕ Hot chocolate
Children can enjoy sharing the story with their families before returning the suitcase for another child to enjoy.
🏫 Reading for Pleasure in Our Library
Our new library space provides children with a welcoming environment where they can simply enjoy books.
During our Reading for Pleasure afternoons, children have time to browse, discover and read books that interest them, without the pressure of reading for a particular task.
We want our library to be a place where children can discover their next favourite book, share recommendations and develop their own reading preferences.
Author Visits & Special Reading Experiences
We believe that meeting authors and experiencing special reading events can inspire children to become enthusiastic and lifelong readers.
We provide children with opportunities to meet authors and take part in exciting reading experiences both in school and online.
Our children have enjoyed special events such as the Julia Donaldson livestream, giving our EYFS and KS1 children the opportunity to experience stories and authors in a different way.
We also take part in national reading events and challenges, such as the upcoming National Literacy Trust’s Take 10 Record Attempt, encouraging children to celebrate the joy of reading together. Keep a look out on our Instagram for more events coming soon…
What's next?
We are continually developing our Reading for Pleasure provision and have lots of exciting ideas planned for the future.
Coming soon, we hope to introduce even more opportunities for children to enjoy books and reading.
