Our special friend, Bertie Bear, absolutely loves to read and listen to stories and he relishes any opportunity to do so. That is why he has started these reading classes as he wants to help others to be able to do the same. From time to time Bertie will be popping in to check on your progress and enjoy a good tale!

Being able to read is a fundamental part of life and learning to do so should be done in an exciting, interactive and fun way. Teachers say that promoting reading away from school is vitally important and that your child should have regular reading practice and this can sometimes be more fun in a group.

Our classes are aimed at children who have at least a basic reading level and also those who want to brush up on their reading skills.

Within the class we use the Oxford Reading Tree series which is used in 80% of primary schools and is the UK’s best-loved reading scheme. The stories follow a group of characters through many engaging storylines letting the children get to know and love them, progressing at their own pace as they move steadily up through the various stages of the scheme.

Through the use of Phonics, the children are able to associate the sounds of spoken English with letters or groups of letters; they learn how to combine the sounds of these together to work out how to pronounce difficult or unknown words.

We often incorporate different word and spelling games within the class, along with other related activities including play scripts, all of which are linked to the same series. This all helps to engage the children’s interest in reading in an enjoyable and meaningful way as children learn best when they are having fun!

We also encourage looking up unknown words together in our special Oxford Reading Tree dictionary. It has colourful pictures and clear explanations which help to expand their vocabulary and it also introduces them to the important features of a dictionary.

We provide copies of all the stories for use within the class but should you wish to purchase your own copies then please let us know and we will tell you the titles of books we use.

The classes are 45 minutes long and cost £4 per session. The minimum age for the class is 5 with no upper age limit. Click here for class times.

Being able to read aloud helps to develop vital speaking and listening skills and some children may like to do more of this in our Little Acorns Drama Fun class for 6-7 year olds. If they are between 7 & 12 then, in our Let's Act! class, they will also have the opportunity to take a reading exam through LAMDA.

Private reading tuition

If your child has little or no reading skills then we will be happy to help on a private tuition basis, again in a fun and playful atmosphere. We can do these classes for either individual children or small groups (up to three students) if they are all at the same reading level. These classes are offered to any age as long as younger children are happy to be left with us as we find they work better in this way. Please phone for further details.