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As the summer holidays approach, you may be thinking about how to help your pupils maintain literacy progress beyond the classroom. While the break offers an important chance for children to rest and recharge, even small amounts of reading and language practice can help learners return to school feeling confident and ready to learn.
The good news is that summer literacy support doesn’t need to feel like formal learning. With the right mix of accessible digital tools, creative activities and flexible resources, you can help families build literacy into everyday moments throughout the holidays.
Here are five Lexia resources that can support your pupils over the summer and keep learning going in a manageable and engaging way.
1. Lexia Online Programmes for Flexible Home Learning
Both Core5 Reading and PowerUp Literacy can be used seamlessly at home, making it easy for your pupils to continue their learning routines during the summer break. Because learners are already familiar with the programmes, many families find it straightforward to fit short sessions into their week without needing extensive support or preparation.
To get pupils set up for summer learning, you simply need to provide login cards and home use letters to families. Staff can also access this helpful video showing how to print login cards quickly and easily.
Additional guidance and support materials for families can be found in the School to Home section of the myLexia Resources Hub, helping you feel confident that parents and carers have everything they need to support learning at home.
2. Summer Reading Bingo Challenges
Keeping pupils motivated to read over the summer can sometimes be a challenge, particularly when reading begins to feel like “school work” to some learners. Lexia’s Summer Reading Bingo Challenges are designed to make literacy practice feel fun, flexible and achievable.
The bingo boards include a variety of age-appropriate reading activities that encourage pupils to explore literacy in different ways. Some activities focus on independent reading, while others encourage discussion, creativity or shared family experiences.
Your learners can aim to complete five activities in a row or challenge themselves to finish the entire board over the holidays. This flexible format allows families to participate at their own pace while helping pupils maintain positive reading habits throughout the summer.
These resources are available in the School to Home section of the myLexia Resource Hub.
3. Skill Builders for Targeted Literacy Support
For some pupils, summer can be a useful opportunity to revisit specific literacy skills and strengthen areas where they may need additional practice. Lexia Skill Builders provide structured activities that can be tailored to individual learner needs using programme data.
You can use information from Student Action Plan reports and Skill Check scores to identify the most appropriate activities for each pupil. This helps ensure that summer practice feels purposeful and supportive rather than overwhelming.
Skill Builders are available both as printable paper activities and as digital resources through the myLexia Resource Hub, giving you flexibility in how you choose to share them with families.
4. Lexia Read at Home Activities
The Lexia Read at Home resources are designed to help families support literacy though simple, engaging activities that can easily fit into everyday routines.
Available through the Resource Hub, these activities encourage pupils to build vocabulary, develop comprehension skills , and use language creatively in real-world contexts. Activities include ideas such as vocabulary scavenger hunts, photo story challenges and literacy-inspired art projects that encourage conversation and creativity alongside reading and writing practice.
Because the activities are quick and accessible, they can help families create positive literacy experiences at home without requiring lots of preparation or specialist resources.
You can find these activities in the School to Home section of the myLexia Resource Hub.
5. Fluency Passage Packs for Reading Practice
Reading fluency is an important part of literacy development, helping pupils improve accuracy, confidence, pacing and comprehension. Lexia’s Fluency Passage Packs provide short, levelled texts that allow pupils to practise reading regularly over the summer break.
These passages are matched to pupils’ reading levels, making them suitable for independent reading practice or shared reading with parents and carers. The short format also makes them manageable for families who want to support literacy in small, consistent ways throughout the holidays.
While you may already use these resources during term time, they can also be an effective way to encourage continued reading practice over the summer months. Fluency Passage Packs can be accessed in the Support for Instruction section of the myLexia Resource Hub.
Helping Your Pupils Return Ready to Learn
Summer literacy support can be most effective when built around small and consistent opportunities to read, talk, explore vocabulary and engage with language. These fun and relaxed activities can make a meaningful difference to pupils’ confidence and readiness for the new school year.
By sharing practical, accessible resources with families, you can help make literacy support feel manageable and enjoyable throughout the holidays while continuing to nurture positive reading habits beyond the classroom.
If you need any further support or guidance regarding Lexia in school or at home, get in touch with our dedicated Implementation and Support Team.
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As the academic year draws to a close, many schools begin preparing pupils for the exciting changes ahead. Whether students are moving into a new year group, transitioning to secondary school or joining a completely new setting, this period can bring a mix of excitement and uncertainty.
Creating positive transition experiences is an important part of helping pupils feel confident, settled and ready to learn from the start of term, reducing anxiety, strengthening relationships and building continuity.
Here are five practical ways schools can support successful transitions this half term and beyond.
1. Involve older pupils
One of the most effective ways to ease worries about change is by giving younger pupils the opportunity to hear directly from students who have already experienced the transition themselves.
Inviting older peers to share their experiences can help normalise common concerns and provide reassurance in a relatable and authentic way. Pupils are often more likely to engage with advice from someone closer to their own age, especially when it comes to practical questions about routines, expectations and school life.
This could include:
- Peer monitoring sessions
- Question-and-answer assemblies
- Transition videos created by current pupils
- Student-led tours or classroom visits
These activities not only support younger pupils but also help older students develop leadership, empathy and communications skills, strengthening your wider school community in the process.
2. Get started now
Transition days are a valuable opportunity to introduce pupils to the learning experiences they will encounter in the new academic year.
By familiarising students with classroom routines, expectations and learning programmes ahead of time, schools can help create a smoother and more confident start in September. Early exposure can also reduce cognitive overload during those first few weeks back, allowing pupils to focus on building relationships and engaging with learning.
For example, introducing incoming Year 7 pupils to Lexia PowerUp Literacy before the summer break can help ensure literacy interventions and independent learning routines feel familiar from the outset. This means less time spent navigating the new systems in September and more time focused on meaningful progress.
3. Get to know your students
Every cohort bring a unique range of strengths, interests and learning needs. Taking time to gather meaningful information about your incoming pupils can help staff tailor support more effectively and build positive relationships from the beginning.
Understanding pupils’ academic profiles alongside their personal interests can also help create a stronger sense of belonging during those first few weeks in a new environment.
Assessment and diagnostic tools can play an important role here. For example, Lexia’s Auto Placement activity provides a quick and efficient way to identify areas where students may require additional support, helping educators make informed decisions and target interventions early.
When teacher begin the new year with a clearer understanding of their pupils, it becomes easier to target teaching and support, making learning accessible and engaging for everyone.
4. Make sure your students get to know you
In addition to building new classroom routines, transition activities can also build trust and familiarity with the adults who will support them..
Providing transition materials with photographs, welcome messages and information about the classroom environment can help pupils feel more comfortable even before they arrive. This simple approach helps reduce uncertainty and allows students to begin forming connections ahead of September.
You might include:
- A short “meet the teacher” letter
- Photos of key staff members
- A virtual classroom tour
- Information about classroom routines or expectations
- Fun facts or hobbies to help pupils find common ground
These small touches can have a big impact, particularly for pupils who may feel anxious about change or unfamiliar environments.
5. Provide summer activities to help prepare your new students
Providing optional, accessible activities over the summer encourages continued engagement with literacy and learning in a low-pressure way. It also gives families an opportunity to feel involved in supporting the transition process at home.
Resources such as the Summer Reading Bingo challenges and Reading at Home activities are available in the myLexia Resource Hub. Theses quick, low pressure activities can help keep reading enjoyable and purposeful throughout the break, while reinforcing key literacy skills before pupils return in September.
Final Thoughts
Transitions can be a significant milestone in a child’s educational journey, but with the right support in place, they can also be a positive and empowering experience.
If you’d like to explore how Lexia can support smoother transitions in your setting, our team is here to help. Get in touch to discuss your school’s needs, see how other schools are using Lexia effectively during transition periods or arrange a short walkthrough of the programmes and reports in action.
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Find out how we are helping schools to accelerate their literacy progress.
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The final weeks of term often feel like a constant balancing act. Alongside assessments, reports and celebrations, school leaders are already looking ahead, planning for September while ensuring pupils remain engaged in learning right to the end of term.
At the same time, literacy continues to sit high on the national agenda. For many schools, improving engagement and closing attainment gaps remains an ongoing challenge, particularly as pupil needs become more complex.
While time is limited, this point in the year offers a valuable opportunity. Small, focused actions taken now can make a meaningful difference to how effectively your literacy strategy lands in the new academic year.
Here are five practical ways to make that time count:
1. Get a Head Start on Identifying Needs:
One of the most impactful things you can do before the summer is build a clear picture of your pupils’ literacy needs heading into September.
Reading age can provide a useful overview, but it rarely tells you why a pupil is struggling. A deeper understanding of the underlying skill gaps, whether in phonics, fluency, vocabulary or comprehension, allows you to plan support that is both targeted and effective.
Investing time in this now means that interventions in the autumn term can begin with clarity and purpose, rather than delay.
Further reading: Why Reading Age isn’t everything, and what to focus on instead
2. Make the Most of Transition Day and Summer Holidays
Transition is a key moment to gather insight and build momentum and continuity in learning.
Transition days can be used to introduce light-touch diagnostic activities that help you better understand incoming pupils. This early insight can inform planning, grouping and support strategies before the new term begins.
Similarly, the summer holidays, while often associated with learning loss, can also be an opportunity to maintain momentum. Simple, accessible approaches such as reading challenges, structured home activities or flexible online learning can help pupils stay connected to literacy in a manageable and engaging way.
The goal is consistency: Keeping literacy ticking over so September starts from solid foundation, not just focused on recovery.
Further Reading: 5 Tips to Support School Transitions
3. Strengthen the Link Between Literacy and Whole-School Priorities
Literacy has the greatest impact when it is embedded across the school, rather than positioned as a standalone initiative.
Taking time now to reflect on how your literacy strategy aligns with wider priorities, whether that is raising attainment, closing gaps or supporting SEND pupils, can help ensure it becomes a consistent thread running through teaching and learning.
When literacy is positioned as a foundation rather than an add-on, it becomes easier to secure staff buy-in, allocate time effectively and embed consistent practice across the school.
4. Set Staff Up for Success
A strong strategy depends on confident, well-supported staff.
Before the end of term, consider where additional guidance or professional development may be most beneficial. This might include strengthening subject knowledge, improving consistency in classroom approaches or ensuring staff feel confident using available tools and data.
Providing clarity and support at this stage helps reduce pressure in September, enabling staff to focus on implementation rather than preparation.
Further Reading: Building Teachers’ Capacity and Confidence: Empowering Educators Through Literacy Tools
5. Put Sustainable Support in Place
Effective literacy improvement relies on consistency over time. Having the right structures and tools in place can make that consistency easier to achieve.
Approaches that combine accurate assessment, targeted support, and ongoing progress monitoring can help ensure that no pupil falls behind, and that staff have the data they need to respond quickly.
Putting the right tools in place before the summer means you can start September with systems already working in the background, supporting both pupils and teachers from day one.
Looking Ahead
The steps you take now can shape how confidently your literacy strategy begins in September. With the right insight, preparation and support in place, you can move into the new academic year focused not on catching up, but on moving forward.
If you’re exploring ways to strengthen your approach, Lexia’s programmes are designed to support schools with exactly this challenge. Its adaptive approach combines assessment, targeted intervention and independent practice in one place.
You can trial Lexia free for 30 days to see how it could support your pupils and staff in the year ahead.
Simply complete the form below to request your trial and we’ll get you set up and ready to start before the holidays.
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Celebrating the best and brightest of Core5 and PowerUp
It’s awards season! Over the next term, we’re celebrating The Lexia Awards, recognising the pupils, classes and educators who are delivering exceptional Lexia progress this year!
We are looking to shine a light on outstanding individual progress, creative classroom routines, dedicated Lexia Coordinators and whole-school achievement, so there are lots of ways to celebrate the impact of Lexia in your school.
This is your chance to nominate those who go above and beyond. Awards categories include:
For Learners:
- Lexia Learner of the Year – Outstanding individual progress
- Resilience Award – Overcoming barriers to make meaningful progress
For Educators and Schools:
- Lexia Leader Award – Exceptional commitment to driving Lexia success
- Literacy Impact Award – Whole-school literacy progress through Lexia
Nominating is quick and easy, simply use the form link below to celebrate Lexia achievements in your school. Winners will receive book vouchers, certificates and digital badges, plus a special place in our Lexia community spotlight!
Submit your nominations for the Lexia Awards 2026
And what to focus on instead
Reading remains one of the most powerful gateways to learning, wellbeing and future opportunity. It is no surprise, then, that literacy continues to sit high on the national agenda. With initiatives such as the National Literacy Trusts’ National Year of Reading, there is renewed focus on ensuring all young people develop the reading skills they need to thrive, both in school and beyond.
For secondary schools, this challenge is particularly complex. Each year, pupils arrive from a wide range of primary settings with hugely varied experiences, abilities and needs. Some students transition confidently into the demands of the secondary curriculum, while others struggle to access subject content because of underlying literacy difficulties that may not be immediately visible.
To identify pupils who need support, most secondary schools already undertake some form of standardised reading assessment. Reading age is by far the most commonly used measure, offering a quick snapshot of attainment. However, once schools have this data, a familiar question often follows: What can we actually do with it?
In this article, we explore why many secondary educators find Reading Age data difficult to act on and what can be done instead to gain a clearer, more useful picture of pupils’ reading ability, one that genuinely informs teaching and interventions.
Why Reading Age isn’t everything
Reading Age scores are popular because they appear simple and concrete. They allow for easy comparison between students and can quickly highlight those reading below their chronological age. In busy secondary settings, this clarity can feel reassuring.
But reading is far more complex than a single number suggests. It is not one skill that can be neatly captured by one data point.
The Simple View of Reading provides a helpful framework here. It explains that reading comprehension, the ultimate goal of reading, is the product of two broad skill sets: Word Recognition and Language Comprehension. Both are essential, and weakness in either can significantly limit a pupil’s ability to understand text.
Dig a little deeper, and each of these areas breaks down further into more specific component skills. These include phonemic awareness, phonics, reading fluency, vocabulary, background knowledge, inference and other comprehension strategies. Together, these skills enable pupils to become fluent, confident, curriculum-ready readers.
Reading Age assessments rarely allow teachers to explore these components in enough detail. While a score may tell us that a pupil is reading below expectations, it does not explain why. Is the difficulty rooted in decoding? Slow or inaccurate fluency? Limited vocabulary? Weak comprehension strategies? Many assessments focus heavily on a pupil’s functional ability to read words, rather than their deeper understanding of meaning, structure and purpose. Without this insight, it becomes challenging to plan effective support.
There are also broader limitations to consider. Reading Age scores can imply that there is a single ‘normal’ level of reading for each age, when in reality, there is a wide and natural range of ability, particularly in adolescence.
Finally, an over-reliance on Reading Age can unintentionally affect pupils’ confidence and engagement. Labelling texts (or pupils) by age can limit book choice, discourage risk-taking and undermine motivation to engage with a wider range of challenging and interesting material.
Proven Results
Backed by independent research and trusted by thousands of educators, our literacy programmes are research-proven.
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Find out how we are helping schools to accelerate their literacy progress.
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Introducing The Big LexiaUK Survey 2026!
“How do other schools implement Lexia?”
It’s a question we hear often from schools looking to maximise their impact on reading.
During the National Year of Reading, it feels like the perfect time to ask a wider question too:
How are schools supporting reading and what challenges are they facing along the way?
That’s why we’d love to hear from you.
Take part in The Big Lexia Survey 2026 and help us better understand how reading is being supported in your school, how Lexia fits within that approach and where the biggest pressures and priorities lie. From targeting and timetabling to tracking progress and overcoming reading barriers, we’re keen to learn what’s working well and where you’d value more support.
In return, you’ll be entered into our prize draw to win £250 of National Book Tokens for your school library.
Your feedback will help shape future resources, guidance and support, ensuring Lexia continues to support schools effectively during the National Year of Reading and beyond.
Click below to take part. It only takes 15 minutes, but your insights will make a lasting impact.
Giveaway Rules
- Only one entry per person.
- Entrants from the UK and Ireland only.
- Entrants must be teaching staff in a school that is a current customer of LexiaUK.
- We are unable to accept entries from anyone connected with any schools participating in empirical studies relating to Lexia..
- Winner will be selected using a random number generator and checks to ensure all entry requirements are satisfied will take place until an eligible winner is chosen.
- Prize will only be sent to a school email address. Winner must provide a valid school email address upon selection for prize to be delivered.
- Winner will be notified by email where email address will be confirmed for prize delivery. A follow up phone call to the school will be made in a further attempt to make contact. If no response in received within 7 days of initial contact, the prize will be withdrawn and a new winner selected.
- All entry requirements must be satisfied for successful entry into the prize draw.
- Giveaway submissions will be accepted between 4th March 2026 at 8:30am and 24th July 2026 at 4:00pm after which a winner will be selected. We cannot accept entries submitted after this time.
- Winner will be announced from 1st September 2026.
- In the event of unforeseen circumstances beyond reasonable control, LexiaUK reserves the right to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the competition or these terms and conditions, either in whole or in part, with or without notice.
Giveaway Entry Requirements
To Enter, participants must:
- Complete The Big Lexia Survey 2026.
- Provide contact details at the end of the survey.
- Be a member of staff at a school that is currently a LexiaUK customer.
Proven Results
Backed by independent research and trusted by thousands of educators, our literacy programmes are research-proven.
Real Schools, Real Stories
Find out how we are helping schools to accelerate their literacy progress.
Blog
Keep up to date with the latest industry news from LexiaUK.
As secondary school educators, we face the constant challenge of ensuring every student reaches their full potential. For many, literacy is the cornerstone of academic success. However, struggling readers, limited resources, and diverse learning needs often make literacy progress difficult to achieve. In this post, we’ll explore five common barriers to secondary school literacy development and offer practical solutions to overcome them.
1. Lack of Reading Engagement
One of the most significant challenges in secondary education is motivating students to engage with reading. By the time students reach secondary school, many may have fallen behind in their literacy skills, leading to frustration and disengagement. This disengagement often stems from the perception that reading is a task, not an enjoyable activity.
How to Overcome This:
To reignite a passion for reading, it’s crucial to create an environment where reading feels rewarding and engaging. One effective strategy is to incorporate interactive, hands-on learning experiences. For instance, using gamification in reading interventions can transform the process into something more engaging and less like a chore. Allow students to track their progress and celebrate milestones, which fosters a sense of accomplishment and motivates them to continue.
Additionally, offering a variety of reading materials that align with students’ interests and reading levels can help them connect with texts in meaningful ways. Tailor lessons to their preferences—whether through graphic novels, nonfiction articles on topics they care about, or interactive digital platforms that present reading as an exciting challenge rather than an obligation. By focusing on engagement and celebrating progress, you can help students regain their enthusiasm for reading and build the confidence they need to succeed.
2. Diversity of Literacy Needs
In secondary schools, students often have varying levels of literacy ability. Some may be fluent readers but lack the comprehension skills to fully engage with text, while others struggle significantly with decoding. Teachers are tasked with catering to these diverse needs, often without the necessary resources or time to provide individualised support. Without the right tools, it can be overwhelming to ensure that all students receive the right level of attention.
How to Overcome This:
The key to managing diverse literacy needs is differentiation. Begin by assessing each student’s specific strengths and weaknesses, and tailor your approach accordingly. Use a mix of whole-class instruction, small group work, and one-on-one support to ensure that all students have the opportunity to progress at their own pace.
When planning lessons, include activities that allow for various levels of complexity so that advanced readers can be challenged while struggling readers receive the support they need. For example, create tiered assignments or offer alternative texts that match different reading levels.
Another effective strategy is peer support. Pairing stronger readers with those who need more help can create a collaborative learning environment where students learn from one another. This approach not only aids in literacy development but also fosters a sense of community within the classroom.
3. Limited Time and Resources for Intervention
In the busy secondary school environment, teachers often face the challenge of finding enough time to provide meaningful interventions for struggling readers. With varying student needs and a heavy curriculum load, providing individualised literacy support can feel nearly impossible.
How to Overcome This:
Maximising available resources is key. Start by using time-efficient, evidence-based interventions that require minimal preparation. For instance, online platforms or reading apps can offer students personalised, self-paced learning, enabling you to monitor progress without having to prepare individual lessons for each student.
Additionally, create a system for grouping students based on their needs and use instructional time to target those areas during class. For example, you might allocate certain class sessions for small group work or independent practice while you provide more focused attention to students who need it most.
Collaboration is also essential. Team up with colleagues, SEN staff and Learning Support Assistants to share the load. Working together can make it easier to design interventions and provide more targeted support.
4. Lack of Literacy Expertise
Not all secondary school teachers are literacy experts. While they are experts in their subject areas, many may not have the specialised knowledge required to teach struggling readers effectively. Without proper training or resources, it’s difficult to know how best to support students with literacy challenges.
How to Overcome This:
Building your own literacy expertise can start with professional development. Seek out training opportunities or online resources that focus on effective literacy instruction strategies, such as phonemic awareness, reading comprehension, or vocabulary development. Many organisations and websites offer free or low-cost webinars and workshops that are tailored to educators in secondary schools.
Another way to bridge this gap is by using adaptive teaching programs grounded in the science of reading. These tools are designed to provide evidence-based instruction in essential literacy skills such as word recognition, language comprehension, and vocabulary acquisition. Adaptive programs analyse student performance in real time, offering targeted support and guiding both teachers and students through personalised learning pathways. They make it easier for educators to implement proven literacy strategies without requiring extensive prior expertise.
Finally, don’t underestimate the power of reflection and ongoing learning. After trying a new teaching strategy or intervention, assess how it worked and refine your approach as needed. The more you learn and adapt, the better equipped you’ll be to support students’ literacy growth.
5. Emotional Barriers to Learning
For many students, literacy struggles can take an emotional toll, causing feelings of embarrassment, frustration, and low self-esteem. This emotional barrier often manifests as a lack of confidence, which can prevent students from engaging fully with literacy tasks.
How to Overcome This:
Fostering a supportive, inclusive classroom environment is crucial for overcoming emotional barriers. Create a culture where mistakes are seen as a natural part of learning and emphasise effort and progress over perfection. Encourage students to set their own literacy goals and celebrate even the smallest achievements to build their confidence. Incorporate positive reinforcement, whether through praise, rewards, or simply acknowledging progress and sharing success with the class.
Allowing students to take ownership of their learning can also improve their emotional connection to literacy. Let them make choices about what they read or how they demonstrate their understanding, offering a sense of autonomy. Building a supportive peer network can also help students feel less isolated in their struggles, and group work can provide reassurance and encouragement.
Lastly, be mindful of students’ emotional needs and create opportunities for one-on-one support. Building strong relationships with students, showing empathy, and offering encouragement can help them overcome self-doubt and regain confidence in their literacy skills.
Final Thoughts: Building a Confident Literacy Future
The barriers to secondary literacy growth are real, but with the right tools and support, they can be overcome. By embracing adaptive, data-driven solutions like Lexia PowerUp Literacy, schools can address the diverse needs of students, engage reluctant readers, and empower teachers to deliver effective interventions with confidence. Whether you’re a school leader looking to inspire your team or a teacher seeking tools to reduce your workload, LexiaUK offers a comprehensive solution that supports both student and teacher success.
Proven Results
Backed by independent research and trusted by thousands of educators, our literacy programmes are research-proven.
Real Schools, Real Stories
Find out how we are helping schools to accelerate their literacy progress.
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Keep up to date with the latest industry news from LexiaUK.
The Department for Education has recently set out proposals to introduce a mandatory reading test for pupils at the end of Year 8, as part of its wider Schools White Paper reforms. Once implemented, this would mark the first national statutory assessment at Key Stage 3 since 2008.
The intention behind the proposal is clear: to gain a better understanding of pupils’ reading ability at a crucial stage in their secondary education and to ensure that reading difficulties are identified early enough to make a meaningful difference. The test is expected to assess reading fluency and comprehension, helping schools understand whether pupils are well-equipped to access the increasingly demanding curriculum they face as they move towards GCSEs.
While results are expected to be reported nationally rather than used for school-level accountability, the announcement has prompted important conversations across the sector about how secondary schools support reading development, particularly for pupils who arrive in Year 7 already behind.
KS3 Reading: Why now is the time to strengthen foundations
Strong reading skills are fundamental to success in every subject. When pupils struggle to read fluently, or to understand what they are reading, the impact is felt far beyond English lessons. Vocabulary gaps, slow or effortful reading and limited comprehension all act as barriers to learning across the curriculum.
By Year 8, many pupils who find reading difficult have been struggling for several years. Without targeted support these challenges can become entrenched. This is why a renewed focus on foundational reading skills at Key Stage 3 is so important, not as an ‘add-on’, but as an integral part of whole-school literacy provision.
Foundational skills include:
- Decoding and word recognition, enabling pupils to read accurately and confidently
- Fluency, supporting pace, accuracy and expression
- Vocabulary knowledge, particularly academic and subject-specific language
- Comprehension and inference, allowing pupils to engage meaningfully with complex texts
Strengthening these foundations supports pupils not only in any formal assessment, but in their day-to-day learning and long-term outcomes.
What should secondary schools do next?
1. Take a Whole-School Approach to reading
Reading support is most effective when it’s consistent and reinforced across the school. Many secondary schools already carry out assessments when pupils enter Year 7. The key is to use this data strategically to guide teaching, intervention and curriculum planning.
This could include:
- Map reading skills across subjects: Identify where literacy is explicitly taught and other areas where it can be reinforced, such as science, history or maths.
- Set shared expectations: Ensure all staff use the same terminology, model reading strategies and reinforce key skills, so pupils experience consistent approaches in every classroom.
- Use data to target support: Analyse assessment results to identify pupils who need extra help and ensure interventions are tailored to their specific reading gaps.
- Monitor progress regularly: Track the impact of whole-school strategies and interventions, adjusting approaches to meet emerging needs.
2. Focus on foundational skills
Currently, the format of the Year 8 reading assessment remains unclear. Officials are still considering what form the new statutory check will take and what it will assess although it is expected to be externally marked.
Given this uncertainty, schools are best placed to focus on strengthening the foundational reading skills that underpin success across the secondary curriculum and are most likely to be relevant regardless of how the assessment is ultimately designed.
This could include:
- Structured, targeted support for pupils who continue to struggle with decoding.
- Regular and deliberate opportunities to practise and develop reading fluency.
- Explicit vocabulary instruction across subjects, supporting both comprehension and curriculum access.
- Guided teaching of comprehension strategies such as summarising, questioning and inferring meaning from texts.
There is a strong case for any national reading check at KS3 to help identify pupils with gaps in these core areas, while remaining closely aligned to the demands of the secondary curriculum. Evidence-based approaches that address foundational skills can therefore play a crucial diagnostic and instructional role, particularly for pupils who have previously struggled to keep pace, while ensuring schools are prepared to respond effectively once greater clarity emerges.
3. Use assessment to inform support
Ongoing, formative assessment plays a vital role in understanding pupils’ reading needs. Short, regular checks can help identify specific gaps and ensure that support is well targeted.
Where additional intervention is needed, programmes that adapt to pupils’ individual reading profiles can be particularly effective. Diagnostic approaches that pinpoint skill strengths and areas for development allow schools to implement, deploy support and track progress over time.
For example, structured literacy programmes designed for older pupils, such as Lexia PowerUp Literacy, focus on identifying gaps and building key skills, including decoding, fluency, vocabulary, grammar, and comprehension. These programmes are age-appropriate and responsive to individual needs, supporting pupils in strengthening their reading skills alongside their wider curriculum learning.
4. Embed reading across the curriculum
Effective reading support shouldn’t narrow what pupils learn; it should enhance access to the full curriculum. Every subject offers opportunities to reinforce and extend reading skills, helping pupils become confident, independent learners.
Approaches to this include:
- Model reading strategies explicitly: Show pupils how to approach subject-specific texts. For example, think aloud when interpreting a diagram in science or when unpacking a historical source, demonstrating how to identify key information and make connections.
- Teach key vocabulary in context: Highlight and explain subject-specific terminology as part of lessons and revisit it regularly to deepen understanding. Encourage pupils to explore morphology like word roots, prefixes and suffixes to help them decode unfamiliar words and make connections across subjects. Tools like vocabulary journals, word maps or flashcards can support retention and help pupils apply new words independently.
- Support comprehension of complex language: Break down long sentences, challenging phrasing, or unfamiliar diagrams and charts, showing pupils strategies for making sense of them independently. For example, when faced with a dense historical source text, highlight key dates, underline cause-and-effect phrases and show pupils how to rephrase sentences in their own words.
- Create purposeful reading opportunities: Encourage pupils to actively engage with texts through structured tasks that require thinking, analysis, and reflection. For example:
- Discussion: After reading a passage, ask pupils to debate an interpretation or predict what might happen next, encouraging justification with evidence from the text.
- Note-taking: Use graphic organisers such as mind maps or tables to summarise key information, compare ideas or track character traits and themes. PowerUp’s Resource Hub includes ready-made templates to support here.
- Summarising activities: Have pupils write a short paragraph in their own words explaining the main idea or sequence of events, or create a “key points” summary to practise condensing information.
Targeted support for KS3 ahead of the Year 8 Assessment Reform
The proposed Year 8 reading test highlights an area that has always been central to pupil success: ensuring strong disciplinary reading skills across Key Stage 3. For schools, it’s an opportunity to reflect on how reading is supported, how foundational to GCSE-ready literacy skills are developed and how interventions are targeted and monitored over time.
Structured, evidence-informed approaches can make a real difference. By identifying gaps in decoding, fluency, vocabulary, grammar and comprehension early, schools can provide timely support that prepares pupils not just for assessments, but for the wider curriculum and their future learning.
Programmes like Lexia PowerUp Literacy offer diagnostic-led, personalised support that targets the specific reading skills pupils need to build confidence and independence. PowerUp can help schools pinpoint and address gaps, track progress and provide actionable data for teachers, giving staff the tools to intervene effectively and pupils the opportunity to strengthen their reading at their own pace.
Want to know more?
If you’re looking to ensure every pupil has the skills and confidence to succeed in reading, LexiaUK can help your design a targeted, data-driven strategy that supports both day-to-day classroom learning and preparation for the Year 8 reading test.
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Reading engagement plays a vital role in nurturing a lifelong love of learning and supporting literacy development across school. By focusing on the factors that spark intrinsic motivation, we can better understand how to encourage active engagement in the learning process and help pupils become confident, motivated readers.
The Power of Engagement
Research has consistently shown that students who are deeply engaged in their own learning not only adapt better to the classroom environment but also perform significantly higher academically. Fredricks, Blumenfeld, & Paris (2004) highlight the pivotal role of internal motivation in successful learning, emphasising the need for students to be both motivated by and deeply engaged in their educational journey.
Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation
Before we can develop strategies for motivating our students, we must first understand that not all strategies are created equal. One common way in which motivational strategies are categorised is intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation refers to motivation that comes from within the student such as the activity being personally rewarding or enjoyable, while extrinsic motivation may come from factors such as an external reward scheme or incentives.
Delving into the debate of intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation, a meta-analysis of over 100 studies by Deci et al. (1999) revealed that intrinsic motivation is correlated with higher levels of effort, satisfaction, and learning. But how can we inspire intrinsic motivation in our students?
What Drives Intrinsic Motivation?
Pillars of intrinsically motivated behaviour include:
- Autonomy: Instilling a sense of control, agency, and independence.
- Competence: Fostering feelings of effectiveness, capability, and internal reward in tackling challenges.
- Relatedness: Meeting the need for meaningful interaction and connection with others. This sharpens social skills and provides an external motivation for the child.
Harnessing Intrinsic Motivation with Lexia
How can we guide our students towards intrinsic motivation when engaging with the Lexia program? Here are some different ways that you can employ these key drivers of intrinsic motivation in your Lexia sessions:
Autonomy
- Choice Matters: Provide students with choices, allow them to select their activities or strands during sessions. Both Lexia® Core5® Reading and Lexia® PowerUp® Literacy offer students a choice of activities, promoting their autonomy.
- Interactive Engagement: Encourage participation in the varied opinion polls and questions embedded throughout the program. Look out for these appearing and ask the student why they answered that way. Encourage their independence in their responses.
- Goal Setting: Enable students stay actively involved in their learning by setting their own personal goals. The myLexia Resource Hub provides downloadable Goal Setting Worksheets to empower students to set themselves actionable goals and the Student Programs dashboard gives students to the tools to track their progress towards these goals.
- Involvement: Share data with students, allowing them to play an active part and clearly see the growth that is occurring due to their effort.
Competence
- Personalised Learning: Lexia’s Auto Placement feature ensures the right level of challenge for each individual pupil. If a student has continual difficulty on the program, consider reassessing them to see if their needs have changed. You can also manually place a pupil at a level based on your own knowledge of their needs.
- Celebrate Success: Acknowledge every success, whether it’s completing levels, units, or dedicated usage goals. Verbal reinforcement can be a powerful tool to highlight each small achievement as they occur in the classroom.
- Certificates of Achievement: Utilise Lexia certificates to mark students’ achievements and let them know they are succeeding. A range of different types of certificates can be download from the Resources Hub by visiting the Student Achievement section.
- Regular Monitoring: Keep up with myLexia reports to intervene when students face challenges. This can prevent too many unsuccessful attempts in an activity, potentially leading to reduced motivation.
Relatedness
- Open Dialogue: Engage in open conversations with students about their Lexia progress, levels, minutes completed, and goals. Most pupils enjoy the opportunity to talk about their most recent achievements in the program.
- Peer Sharing: Encourage students to share their experiences with each other, fostering a sense of community. Allowing students to share what they are covering in their new level can motivate others to get to that level too!
- Competitions: Host competitions at the class or individual level, showcasing individual achievements to the class. You can utilise myLexia data or information from the Student’s dashboards to introduce a ‘Streak of the Week’ or ‘Units Leaderboard’.
- Classroom Environment: Leverage the classroom environment to display Lexia progressions and successes. Timelines can be used to provide a clear visual of your pupils progress through the program while certificate displays and leaderboards give students a space to celebrate each other’s achievements.
- Social Media Sharing: Capture and share success stories on your school’s social media. This helps to create a sense of pride within the wider school community. Make sure to use #LexiaUK to share these achievements with us too!
Crafting a Lexia Engagement Plan
To ensure a holistic approach to fostering Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness, consider creating a Lexia Engagement Plan for your school to ensure that these strategies are tailored to your unique environment. Follow the steps below to begin:
- Build Autonomy: Detail how the school will empower students with choices, goal-setting, and transparent data sharing.
- Promote Competence: Outline the school’s commitment to celebrating every success, utilising personalised learning features, and monitoring progress proactively.
- Promote Relatedness: Describe how the school will encourage open dialogue, peer sharing, and the use of the classroom environment and social media to enhance the sense of community.
By implementing these strategies, your school can unlock the full potential of Lexia programs, creating an environment where students are not only motivated but deeply engaged in their learning journey. If you require any support in developing your Implementation Plan for Lexia, get in touch with our knowledgeable and friendly Customer Care team.
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With the first inspections now underway under Ofsted’s updated 2025 framework, many leaders are taking stock of what the changes mean for their schools. The shift to a more detailed report-card model, the introduction of new evaluation areas and the sharper focus on inclusion all represent a significant adjustment to the inspection landscape.
For reading and literacy, particularly for pupils who may face barriers to learning, these changes bring renewed attention to how consistently and effectively schools support progress. While the framework continues to evolve in response to feedback from the sector, one thing remains clear: strong, joined-up literacy provision is essential for ensuring all pupils can access the curriculum.
This blog offers a clear overview of the reforms now in place and provides practical strategies to help your staff and wider literacy provision feel confident and well-prepared for the months ahead.
Overview of the New Ofsted Framework
From December 2025, all routine school inspections transitioned to the updated Education Inspection Framework (EIF). Key developments affecting reading include:
A shift to detailed report cards
Schools are no longer defined by a single headline judgement. Instead, each setting receives:
- a 5-point grade across several evaluation areas
- a short narrative describing strengths and priorities
- Contextual information that acknowledges pupil need and school demographics
This more detailed approach gives leaders richer feedback, but it also means inspectors are looking more closely at the quality and consistency of provision.
Evaluation areas
ding and literacy now contributes evidence across multiple areas, most notably:
- Curriculum and teaching
- Achievement
- Inclusion
- Leadership and governance
Because reading and literacy underpins curriculum access, practices in this one area now influences outcomes in several parts of the report card.
A new 5-point grading scale
The scale is designed to recognise sustained excellence and identify improvement needs more transparently:
- Exceptional
- Strong standard
- Expected standard
- Needs attention
- Urgent improvement
The expected standard reflects effective, consistent teaching aligned with statutory guidance. Most schools are likely to sit between expected and strong.
Stronger emphasis on inclusion
The introduction of a standalone Inclusion evaluation area signals a national commitment to addressing gaps in attainment and curriculum access. Inspectors are paying close attention to:
- How quickly needs are identified
- The quality of adaptations and scaffolding
- The impact of targeted support for disadvantaged, SEND, and vulnerable pupils
What These Changes Mean for Literacy Leaders
With reading and literacy threaded throughout the new evaluation areas, leaders have a clear opportunity to make literacy a central strength of their school. Strong literacy provision directly impacts Curriculum and Teaching, by ensuring pupils can access lessons across all subjects; Achievement, by supporting measurable progress in reading and comprehension; and Inclusion, by addressing barriers faced by disadvantaged or SEND pupils. In practice, inspectors will look at how well reading is taught and supported, how gaps are identified and addressed and how all pupils are supported to make meaningful progress, making literacy a key factor in multiple aspects of a school’s report card.
1. The need for a coherent, school-wide approach
Inspectors are looking for:
- shared understanding of reading progression
- consistency in lesson design and support
- routines that help pupils build secure, cumulative knowledge
Inconsistency between classes or phases will be more visible under the new toolkit.
2. Confidence in demonstrating impact
Because outcomes are reported across multiple categories, leaders need:
- timely, accurate data
- clear evidence of progress over time
- specific insight into the experiences of disadvantaged groups
Being able to talk confidently about how your pupils are reading and how quickly they improve supports several inspection areas at once.
3. Sustainable support for teachers
The new framework also recognises teacher workload and wellbeing. Approaches to literacy need to be:
- manageable
- repeatable
- aligned to existing routines
Teacher confidence is a key part of demonstrating a strong standard. When staff know what to prioritise, pupils benefit and inspectors notice.
How Technology Can Support
While digital tools are not always required, many schools are now turning to technology to help manage the increased emphasis on evidence, early identification and targeted support.
Technology can help by:
- Improving assessment accuracy, giving teachers precise information without additional workload.
- Providing adaptive practice, supporting diverse needs at the right level.
- Reducing differentiation burden, helping teachers plan in a way that supports all abilities without additional workload.
- Generating clear progress evidence, which can strengthen inspection narratives across multiple evaluation areas
Used thoughtfully, technology enhances teacher effectiveness and ensures pupils receive consistent, well-targeted support.
Leading Literacy with Confidence
The new Ofsted framework introduces more detailed reporting and new evaluation areas, but the fundamentals remain consistent: clear, structured reading provision supports pupil progress, including for disadvantaged learners.
Focusing on reliable routines, targeted early identification, and consistent teaching allows schools to manage inspection expectations effectively. The reforms provide a framework to demonstrate the quality and consistency of your reading provision and the practical impact of your teaching and support.
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