•Children are taught to read by breaking down

words into separate sounds or ‘phonemes’. They

are then taught how to blend these sounds together
to read the whole word.

•Children have a phonics lesson each day and they

are encouraged to use these strategies to read and
write in other lessons.

•There are around 44 different sounds.

• In each year group, phonic lessons follow
the same format:
• Revise: The children will revise previous
learning.
• Teach: New phonemes or high frequency
or tricky words will be taught.
• Practice: The children will practise the
new learning by reading and/or writing
the words.
• Apply: The children will apply their new
learning by reading or writing sentences.
 They will learn best fit spellings and learn
about sound families, e.g. ai, a-e, ay all make
the same sound in words (cake, rain, hay).
 Split digraphs will also be introduced, e.g. i-e,
o-e and a-e (line, bone, lake).
 Alternative pronunciations will also be
introduced, e.g. ea in tea, head and break.
 They will continue to read and spell tricky
words such as theirs, people, Mrs and called.
• The main aim is for children to become more
fluent readers and accurate spellers

• Applying phonic skills and knowledge to

recognise and spell an increasing number of
complex words

• Introducing and teaching the past tense

• Investigating and learning how to add

suffixes such as –ed, -ing and –est
•Every Year 1 child in the country will be taking the
phonics screening check in the same week in June
•The aim of the check is to ensure that all children
are able to read by the end of Year 2

•This ‘midpoint check’ will ensure

that we have a clear understanding of
what the children need to learn in
Year 2.
•The check is very similar to tasks the children already
complete during phonics lessons.
•Children will be asked to ‘sound out’ a word and blend
the sounds together, eg d-o-g - dog

•The focus of the check is to see which sounds the

children know and therefore the children will be asked
to read made up ‘nonsense’ words.

THIS IS NOT A READING TEST

• We will inform you of whether your child
falls below OR within the required standard

• If your child does fall below the expected

standard, they will re-take the phonics
screening check in Year 2

•Results will be reported home in July

• Keep reading and spelling as fun as possible and
linked to your child’s interests
• Encourage your child to ‘sound out’ when reading
or writing, using their sound mat and actions to
find the sound they need
• Look at tricky words
• Play matching games with words and pictures
• Children can practise their phonics by playing
games online. The children particularly like
‘Buried Treasure’
http://www.phonicsplay.co.uk/BuriedTreasure2.h
tml
•REMEMBER: Phonics is not the only thing
needed to become a fluent reader.
•Please continue to read with your child each night
and encourage them to:
•Re-read to check it makes sense.
•Use pictures for clues.
•Ask questions about the book.

•And most importantly ENJOY READING!