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Reading and Phonics
Phonics - Key Information for Parents
Phonics and Early Reading Policy
Little Wandle Parent Presentation
We use Little Wandle Revised Letters and Sounds to teach Early Reading and Phonics in our Early Years and Key Stage 1 Classes. We chose this scheme because it incorporates all the current research and guidance. This scheme is approved by the Department for Education. Having researched the available schemes, we believe that Little Wandle will really aid our teaching of phonics and early reading.
The link below has lots of information for Parents, including:
Videos of how to pronounce the sounds
Resources to show the sounds taught in the correct order
Videos to show how we will teach elements of phonics
https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/
Early Reading - Intent and Implementation
At Mayfield, all of our teaching is based on research (EEF), school data and pedagogy (particularly Rosenshine’s principles! Small steps and lots of repeated practice). The Education Endowment Fund research indicates that:
- children benefit from a balanced approach to literacy that includes a range of approaches.
- the emphasis of the different approaches will shift as children progress; effective diagnosis can help to identify priorities
- all pupils benefit from oral language interventions, and some studies show slightly larger effects for younger children and pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds (up to six months' additional progress)
- Phonics approaches have been consistently found to be effective in supporting younger readers to master the basics of reading, with an average impact of an additional four months’ progress.
Our school’s context
Baseline upon entry data indicates that a significant number of children enter Foundation Stage with speaking and listening skills that are below chronological expectations.
Intent
At Mayfield Primary School, reading is a top priority and is a key driver within our curriculum.
It is our intention to ensure that by the end of their primary education, all pupils can read fluently and with confidence in any subject. We intend all children to leave with a rich vocabulary that provides them with the ability to use language for a range of purposes. We want children to have the confidence to be able to communicate
effectively in a variety of situations’ both now and in the future.
We therefore intend to encourage all pupils to read widely across both fiction and non-fiction to develop:
- knowledge of themselves and the world in which they live
- to establish an appreciation and love of reading
- to gain knowledge across the curriculum
- develop their comprehension skills
We are committed to providing quality, vocabulary-rich reading material, which immerses and enhances all pupil’s wider knowledge of the spoken and written word, through modern and classic children’s literature and non-fiction texts. We have worked hard to ensure our libraries are stocked with a diverse range of books that represent our community.
Implementation
Phonics
Since September 2022 we have been using Little Wandle Revised Letters and Sounds to teach Early Reading and Phonics in our Early Years and Key Stage 1 Classes. We chose this scheme, as it was developed based on current research and fits well with our pedagogy. It explicitly incorporates:
- direct teaching in frequent, short bursts
- consistency of approach
- secure, systematic progression in phonics learning
- maintaining pace of learning
- providing repeated practice
- application of phonics using matched decodable books
- early identification of children at risk of falling behind, linked to the provision of effective keep-up support.
Click here to find out more about our phonics delivery
