At Stokesley School, we are proud to champion literacy as a whole-school priority. We believe that every teacher is a teacher of literacy, and this philosophy is embedded across all departments. Since September 2024, staff have been working collaboratively to increase students’ exposure to complex texts and to develop subject-specific reading skills. A key part of this work includes the pre-teaching of Tier 3 vocabulary in every subject, helping students access and engage with challenging content more confidently.

Each week, all main school students take part in form-time reading activities using The Day, a website that provides up-to-date, thought-provoking articles on current affairs. These sessions are designed to develop a range of reading strategies and are followed by class discussions to support comprehension and critical thinking. 

Year 7 students also benefit from a dedicated literacy lesson in the Open Learning Centre (OLC), where they experience a blend of being read to and reading independently. These sessions are co-facilitated by their usual teacher and Mrs Bailey, our OLC Manager, who brings a wealth of expertise and enthusiasm to the programme. In addition, all KS3 students complete weekly Sparx Reader homework, which supports reading fluency and comprehension while rewarding consistent effort and progress. 

We are fortunate to have an outstanding resource in our Open Learning Centre. The OLC is a vibrant, welcoming space where students can read, study, or borrow from a vast collection of fiction and non-fiction books. It plays a central role in our literacy strategy, offering students a quiet and inspiring environment to develop a lifelong love of reading.