Reading – Carr Hill High School

Reading is a fundamental skill that supports learning across all subjects. It helps students build vocabulary, improve comprehension and develop critical thinking. Regular reading boosts imagination, empathy and confidence, while also laying a strong foundation for academic success and lifelong learning. At our school, we encourage a love for reading to help students grow, both intellectually and personally.

Mentor Time Reading

Each morning, the school day begins with students being read to in mentor time for 25 minutes. Together, mentors and students read a range of books from different genres, such as navigating high school, adventure stories, dystopia and even verse novels. Within these texts are crucial themes for students to engage with, from racism and identity, to fitting in, relationships and war. At Carr Hill, we have chosen texts carefully to reflect on the everchanging world around us, allowing our pupils to become well-rounded and well-read critical thinkers.

Year 7

When the Sky Falls by Phil Earle

Joseph, an angry and abandoned boy, is sent to live with Mrs. F, a woman with a rundown city zoo, during World War II. Joseph becomes an unlikely friend to Adonis, a powerful silverback gorilla, and they bond amidst the chaos of the Blitz. As the bombing intensifies, Joseph is charged with protecting Adonis, leading to a heart-wrenching climax.

Themes: war violence, grief, childhood, healing, friendship.
Age rating: 11-14

Go Big by Matthew Burton

Go Big helps pupils tackle that big leap from primary to secondary school, offering advice on how to navigate exams, overcome peer pressure and start building toward future goals. This secondary school survival guide will ensure students start high school feeling prepared for what is to come.

Themes: non-fiction, school, friends, homework, empowerment
Age rating: 11

Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson

Orphan Maia is thrilled when she moves to live with relatives in South America, excited to experience the glories of the Amazon River. But when she arrives, the family is far from welcoming and they have blocked out all evidence of the rainforest from their home. Maia turns to her strict yet kindly governess, Miss Minton, for company, and strikes up some unusual and rewarding friendships.

Themes: nature, different cultures, exploration, identity, friendship.
Age rating: 11+

Year 8

Welcome to Nowhere by Elizabeth Laird

Twelve-year-old Omar Hamid and his family navigate through the civil war in Syria. Initially moving away from their home and out of the city to stay with relatives, Omar’s family of 7 are eventually forced to flee their homeland and end up navigating the community of a refugee camp with its official and unofficial rules.

Themes: war, family, belonging, patriotism, education, refugees.
Age rating: 11+

The Silver Sword by Ian Serraillier

The Balicki children (Ruth, Edek, and Bronia) are separated from their parents during the chaos of World War II and must survive alone in war-torn Poland. They meet orphan Jan, who possesses a silver sword-shaped paperknife which becomes a symbol of hope and a link to their father. Together, they embark on a dangerous journey to Switzerland where they hope to reunite with their parents.

Themes: war, family, hope, trauma, nature, the goodness of people.
Age rating: 11+

Year 9

Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman

Set in a dystopian Britain, in which society is divided by racism, dark-skinned Crosses are privileged and powerful, yet light-skinned noughts are treated as second-class citizens. Despite this, Sephy (a Cross) and Callum (a nought) maintain a childhood friendship which blossoms into romance, yet leads them into danger in a world that is fighting to keep them apart.

Themes: racism and discrimination, love and relationships, growing up.
Age rating: 12-17

One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus

Five high school students, including the outcast, Simon, are placed in detention for an incident involving phones. When Simon dies unexpectedly during detention, the other four suspects are investigated as they all had their own reasons for wanting to keep Simon’s gossip app, “About That”, from going live with his secrets.

Themes: gossip, secrets and lies, social media, acceptance, identity
Age rating: 14+

Year 10

The Five by Hallie Rubenhold

A historical biography that examines the lives of the five women who were the victims of the Whitechapel murders attributed to Jack the Ripper. The book reveals the diverse backgrounds and struggles of these women, including poverty, homelessness and discrimination. Rubenhold aims to give these women back their identities and dignity to explore the social contexts in which they lived.

Themes: poverty, Victorian era, working-class, women, relationships
Age rating: 14+

The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

A coming-of-age verse novel that follows Michael, a mixed-race, gay teen, as he navigates his identity and finds freedom through drag. The story explores his journey from feeling like he doesn’t fit in, particularly due to his mixed heritage and sexuality, to discovering his true self and embracing his uniqueness through drag.

Themes: identity, sexuality, acceptance, race, self-expression
Age rating: 14+

Reading across the Curriculum

Reading at Carr Hill fosters literacy and critical thinking by integrating reading into all subject areas. Whether analysing historical sources in History, interpreting word problems in Maths or exploring scientific texts in Biology, students develop the skills to understand and engage with diverse types of content. This cross-curricular approach supports deeper learning, enhances vocabulary and prepares pupils for assessments and real-world challenges.

Intervention

At the start of September, we assess the reading skills of all pupils and use this data to identify any gaps in students’ reading knowledge. From there, students in need of intervention are given appropriate sessions to allow them to develop and become proficient readers, both in and out of school.

Some interventions offered are centred around phonics, decoding, fluency, comprehension, inference and vocabulary; these sessions are run during mentor time for targeted pupils. Teaching Assistants also work with some students during mentor time, focusing on reading intervention; these groups read the same text as the rest of the year group but the small group scenario allows groups to work on questioning, prediction, summarisation and comprehension skills, as well as assessing fluency in reading.

The Hub

Carr Hill offers students a wide selection of fiction and non-fiction texts with an array of genres, suitable for all reading ages and abilities. The Hub is open to pupils before school, at break time and after school to allow pupils to change their books and take some out on loan to read at home. During lunch time, passes are given which allow small groups of students to work in the Hub, whether to complete homework, talk to library staff or take part in reading activities.

Reading Programmes

Book Buzz
Each September, we buy year seven students a book to encourage their love of reading. This programme, run by The Book Trust, offers around sixteen texts from a wide range of genres and we find that our pupils love picking their books every year!

Lancashire Book of the Year
This initiative is perfect for our book lovers in Key Stage 3 as we ask students involved to read as many of the books provided by Lancashire County Council as they can and write reviews. Some students are then given the chance to work with pupils from across the North-West in debates, discussions and tasks with the aim to narrow down dozens of exciting new texts, picking the county’s best book of the year. Previous winners include Phillip Pullman, Anthony Horowitz and Malorie Blackman.

Reading Lists

In the ‘Learning’ area of the school website you will find our Reading Lists, giving an insight into the types of reading materials offered across a range of different subjects. Whether this is a list of reading material for specific year groups to foster a love of reading, booklets of reading material to guide revision or subject-related texts to further knowledge, there is a great selection for pupils to inspire them on their reading journeys.