Phonics & Early Reading
Through reading, we recognise that pupils have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. It also allows them to build on what they already know. All the skills of language are essential to participating fully as a member of society and early reading is therefore a priority across in our school.
Our Phonics and Early Reading Leader is Mrs Gemma Appleyard.
They can be contacted by emailing: office@thorparch-leh.co.uk
At Lady Elizabeth Hastings’ School we aim for all our children to become fluent, confident readers who are passionate about reading.
Children who read regularly or are read to regularly have the opportunity to open the doors to so many different worlds! More importantly, reading will give your child the tools to become independent life-long learners. We can achieve this together through:
- Read Write Inc, a programme to help to your child read at school
- Encouraging children to develop a love of books by reading to them daily, at home and at school
- Giving children access to a wide range of books at school and at home
We use Read Write Inc Phonics (RWI) to give your child the best possible start with their literacy. Mrs Appleyard is our Read Write Inc leader, if you have questions about RWI, please contact school who can refer you to her.
What is Read Write Inc?
Read Write Inc (RWI) is a phonics complete literacy programme which helps all children learn to read fluently and at speed so they can focus on developing their skills in comprehension, vocabulary and spelling. The programme is designed for children aged 4-7. However, we continue teaching RWI to children beyond the age of 7 if they still need support in their reading.
RWI was developed by Ruth Miskin and more information on this can be found at:
Parent Guide to Read Write Inc
Five key principles underpin the teaching in all Read Write Inc. sessions:
Purpose – know the purpose of every activity and share it with the children, so they know the one thing they should be thinking about
Participation – ensure every child participates throughout the lesson. Partnership work is fundamental to learning
Praise – ensure children are praised for effort and learning, not ability
Pace – teach at an effective pace and devote every moment to teaching and learning
Passion – be passionate about teaching so children can be engaged emotionally.
Read Write Inc enables our children to become:
- Confident speakers,
- Fluent and enthusiastic readers,
- Keen writers
How will RWI be taught?
All children are assessed regularly by our RWI leader so they work with children at the same level. This allows complete participation in lessons.
Reception
In Reception all children will learn how to ‘read’ the sounds in words and how those sounds can be written down. Those who are ready will begin to read and write simple words within books.
Reading
The children:
- Begin to learn the 44 sounds and the corresponding letters/letter groups using simple picture prompts – see below
- learn to read words using Fred talk and sound blending
- read from a range of storybooks and non-fictions books matched to their phonic knowledge
- work well with partners
- develop comprehension skills in stories by answering ‘Find It’ and ‘Prove It’ discussion questions
Writing
The children:
- learn to write and form the letters/letter groups which represent the 44 sounds with the help of fun phrases
- learn to write words by using Fred Talk
- learn to build sentences by practising sentences out loud before they write
Talking
The children work in pairs so that they:
- answer every question
- practise every activity with their partner
- take turns in talking and reading to each other
- develop ambitious vocabulary
Year One & Year Two
Children follow the same format as Reception but will work on complex sounds and read books appropriate to their reading level. Daily sessions of RWI phonics last for 45 minutes to one hour Most children should complete the programme by the end of Autumn in year 2.