26th April 2024Phonics
The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Dr. Seuss
As a school we know it is paramount that all children leave primary school able to read in order to access a broad curriculum and wider opportunities as well become lifelong ‘bookworms’! Our teaching of reading begins right from the beginning of Reception with daily phonics lessons. Children are taught the relationship between spoken language and written words through a high quality programme called Sounds-Write.
Since introducing this programme in 2020, we have been proud of the progress the children have made with their reading and spelling. Sounds-Write is effective in teaching pupils to read, spell and write because it starts from what all children know from a very early age – the sounds of their own language. From there, teachers plan carefully sequenced, incremental steps and teach them how each of the sounds in the English language can be spelt.
Sounds-Write teaches the different spellings of each sound in the order of how often it is seen in the English language. This gives the children the sounds they need most often to read and write right from the start of their learning.
The connection between what is taught in school and what is sent home is very important. From the beginning of Reception until children are reading sufficiently fluently, they take home a phonetically decodable book each week to practise the phonics they have been learning in school and develop their ability to decode unfamiliar words.
Useful resources
The Sounds Write website has an excellent section which offers advice on reading with your child, free books as well as signposting for how to complete their free course for parents. https://www.sounds-write.co.uk/parents-carers/support-for-parents-carers/
The following video gives advice on how to read a decodable book with a child that is beginning their reading journey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXoNZoKWQu4&t=1s
Video with a boy saying the sounds correctly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8ZMfYjdN-s
