Phonics at Spring Meadow

We use a phonic scheme called Sounds~Write

Phonics is a way of teaching children how to read and write. It helps children hear, identify and use different sounds that distinguish one from another in the English language.

Written language can be compared to a code. Knowing the sounds of individual letters and how those letters sound when they’re combined will help children to decode words as they read. Understanding phonics will also help children know which letters to use when they are writing words.

In their phonics lessons the children are taught 3 main things:

Segmenting: the skills of splitting a word, like ‘dog’, into its three component sounds /d/…/o/…/g/.

Blending: the skill of blending individual sounds to enable your child to say words, such as /c/… /a/… /t/… ‘cat’.

Phoneme manipulation: the skill of changing (manipulating) sounds within words to enable one sound to be replaced by another. For example, take the word ‘bat’ and then replace the sound /a/ with /i/ to make ‘bit’

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The ‘Sounds ~ Write’ Programme is used to teach phonics from Reception to Year 2 experiencing:

• Phonic lessons for approximately 15 – 30 minutes each day depending on age and ability
• Learning in groups according to need
• Learning how to say the sounds and write the letters that represent these sounds
• Reading Sounds~Write phonic books that contain the sounds that match those taught
• Close monitoring of progress to ensure the teaching is meeting their need
• Additional reading and phonic games opportunities if they need to ‘catch-up’
• Reading a variety of other scheme books which focus on the sounds being taught. These are used to develop fluency.
• Opportunities to use their phonic knowledge in reading and their early attempts at writing
• A national phonic test when in Year 1 in June each year. They are expected to meet national standards
• A re-sit of the national phonic test at the end of Year 2 if they did not meet the expected standard when in Year 1
• The opportunity to read a wider range of books to develop fluency further, as well as developing a love of the written word and the importance of inference.

Every child is closely tracked and monitored. Groups are adjusted and changed on a half termly basis where needed. We provide annual opportunities for parents to attend phonic training events where we can explain in greater detail how parents and carers can support their child at home.  If you would like information in the meantime, your child’s phonic lesson teacher would be happy to provide this.