Outcomes Framework | Reading Outcomes Framework Toolkit

Activity to encourage reading for pleasure and empowerment

This activity results in positive impact on one or more of the following reading engagement outcomes

Attitudes to reading

What you think about reading, whether you enjoy it and whether it is important to you
Awareness of reading preferences & how to choose what to read

Understanding that different people like to read different things, knowing what you do and don't like to read and being able to select reading materials accordingly
Confidence about reading

Feeling able to read well and being confident in your own reading abilities, either for yourself or when reading to others
Identifying as a reader

Thinking of yourself as a reader, as someone who is able to read and chooses to do so
Motivation to read

The extent to which you are driven to read
Reading behaviour (frequency, quantity, breadth & depth)

How often you read and how long you spend reading, as well as the amount and variety of things you read
Reading environment

Access or exposure to a supportive reading environment (e.g. encouragement, reading role-models, help and reading materials). This may be at home, in school or in other settings
Sharing enjoyment of reading

Talking about reading to other people, encouraging other people to read, reading with other people and/or reading to other people
Understanding how to find reading materials

Knowing where you can get the things you want to read, such as in libraries, bookshops or online, and feeling comfortable / confident to use these

Increased reading engagement can have a positive impact on the following outcomes for individuals

Mental health

Your emotional, psychological and social wellbeing which affects how you think, feel and behave
Physical health

Being fit and healthy, free from disease or feeling able to manage a long-term condition
Relaxation

Being free from tension and anxiety in your body and mind. This may include escapism, which means reading about things that take you away from your day-to-day life

Attainment

Achieving a goal that you've worked towards, which could be an educational, workplace or personal goal
Critical thinking

Being able to think clearly and rationally to make reasoned judgements about what to do or what to believe
Focus and concentration

Performing an activity where you are fully involved and absorbed in the flow of the activity and being able to sustain engagement in an activity through to completion
Knowledge

Developing an awareness or understanding of something, including differences and new possibilities
Language and literacy

Being able to read, write, listen and communicate well, or getting better at these skills

Being open-minded

Being willing to hear new ideas, try new things and being tolerant of different lifestyles, beliefs and cultures
Creativity

Turning original or imaginative ideas into something new, or finding different ways to solve a problem
Empathy

Experiencing another person's feelings as if you are seeing life through their eyes
Self-expression

Expressing your feelings, thoughts or ideas, for example, through speaking, writing, art, music or dance
Self-esteem

Having a positive attitude towards yourself, feeling like you are worth something and having confidence in your own abilities

Communication skills

Being able to share meaning with other people by talking, listening, writing and exchanging views
Relationships

Making and sustaining connections with other people including children, family, friends and the wider community
Social and cultural participation

Being an active part of a community. This could take the form of volunteering, recreational activities, online activities and generally interacting with other members of the community
Understanding self and others

Being aware of your own characteristics, identity, needs and desires as well as those of others, including people with different perspectives, backgrounds, cultures and ways of life

Success in achieving these outcomes contributes to wider positive impact in the following areas

Cultural

Artistic activity and the ideas, customs and social behaviour of a society
Economic

Relating to money and costs, includes employment and spending on services like health care
Societal

Social relations, including social mobility

The Reading Outcomes Framework (theory of change)