Assess comprehension separately only when the pupil can access the words and sentences with enough accuracy and fluency for meaning to be judged. Otherwise, address decoding or fluency as part of the plan.

Identify where understanding breaks down

Check vocabulary, literal information, inference, locating evidence, summarising and monitoring understanding. Use short narrative and curriculum texts. Record whether the pupil:

• understands essential words;

• identifies what the question requires;

• locates relevant information;

• combines information to infer;

• supports an answer with evidence;

• notices and repairs misunderstanding.

Do not treat “comprehension” as a single undifferentiated skill.

Teach a stable routine

A useful reciprocal-reading sequence is:

1. Predict using the title, context and available evidence.

2. Clarify essential vocabulary or confusing sentences.

3. Question the important ideas and locate supporting evidence.

4. Summarise the section in a concise form.

5. Check whether the interpretation still fits the text.

Model the thinking aloud, practise it with the pupil, then reduce prompts. At Primary, secure vocabulary and literal meaning before demanding inference. At Secondary, include disciplinary vocabulary, text structures and evidence expectations from several subjects.

Plan and monitor the intervention

Define the assessed starting point and intended outcome. Record trained staff, session frequency, text selection, routine, fidelity and a review point. A typical pattern is two or three sessions a week of 20 to 30 minutes for a group of four to six. How long you run it will depend on how much support the pupils need, so decide where it fits in the timetable and when you'll review progress on an unseen text (many schools review after six to eight weeks). Monitor individual components and performance on unfamiliar text, not only the passage practised in sessions.

Change the provision if the pupil does not transfer the routine, if word reading remains the real barrier, or if the assessment suggests a broader language need.

Programme options to investigate

• FFT Reciprocal Reading (paid): a structured programme for KS2 and KS3 teaching predicting, clarifying, questioning and summarising. The targeted version runs with groups of 4 to 8 pupils at least twice a week for 20 to 30 minutes, usually 20 or more sessions over about 12 weeks. Training is online or a day in school, from £750 plus VAT in October 2026 depending on school size. In EEF-funded trials the targeted version added about two months' progress in Years 5 and 6 (2019) and about one month in a larger trial in 2023/24, with more for pupils who had 20 or more sessions. The whole-class version showed no clear benefit in the first trial.

• Lexia PowerUp Literacy (paid): adaptive Secondary software with comprehension, word-study and grammar strands, plus printable lessons for adult-led follow-up. Licence prices are on request. Lexia's UK site leads with an EEF trial result, so check which programme and age group that trial covered. Use as guided additional practice where it matches the profile; it should not replace explicit adult modelling and discussion.

• EEF reading-comprehension strategies: a free overview of the evidence and implementation considerations, not a packaged intervention.

Provider claims should be separated from independent evidence. Select an option because it matches the assessed pattern, pupil age, available staffing and intended outcome.

Talamo has no commercial relationship with any of the organisations named here. We suggest them only because we think they could be useful to schools.