How we teach Phonics and Reading at

1. How we teach Phonics and Reading at Thursday 20th September 2012

2. Welcome and thank you for coming to our meeting. We aim to cover: Phonics Reading Parental involvement After the presentation parents can look around classes, chat to teachers and have a cup of tea or coffee. We are happy to answer any questions you might have.

3. Being able to read is the most important skill children will learn during their early schooling and has far- reaching implications for lifelong confidence and well- being.

4. The Rose Review (2009) The independent review of early reading, conducted by Jim Rose, confirmed that ‘high quality phonic work’ should be the prime means for teaching beginner readers to learn to read (and spell).

5. Phonics • Phonics is the understanding of how letters combine to make words. • We teach by slowly creating a working knowledge of the letter sounds. • Although there are 26 letters in the English alphabet, there are more than 40 speech sounds. • Each sound is taught through stories, songs ,rhymes and games which encourages children to participate through actions and sounds.

6. Phonics 1. Letter sounds Children learn to make the link between letters and the sounds they make. At Holy Cross and All saints RC Primary School we follow the DFE ‘Letters and Sounds Programme this highly structured programme which allows children to work through 6 progressive phases, children are taught: The full range of common letter/ sound correspondences. To hear separate sounds within words. To blend sounds together.

7. Phonics 2. Letter formation • Children will begin to learn how to use and hold their pencil correctly. • They will learn through play how to form letters. • Children are encouraged to write in gloop, sand, jelly and with a variety of implements. • Above all our aim is to encourage a desire to write • As children develop through the phonics phases they practise writing the letters and sounds. • It is important that children are then encouraged and supported to apply their phonic knowledge in their reading and writing.

8. Phonics 3. Identify sounds in words • To help children spell words they must first listen to the sounds and segment sounds e.g c-a-t. • Sound buttons are also taught e.g. shop has three sound buttons sh.o.p. • Games such as I spy and tapping out the sounds in a word can help.

9. Phonics 4. Blending • Blending is the process of saying individual sounds and then running them together to make words. • To begin with children will sound out words individually and then say them more quickly to hear the word, this process varies with every child . • We often use games to help children hear sounds blended together. • Words that we cannot blend such as said we call tricky words and must be learned by sight.

10. Phonics 5. Spelling tricky words • There are several ways of learning tricky spellings. • Look, say, cover, write, check – write the letters in the air to check spellings • Say it as it sounds e.g. Monday is said M- on-day • Mnemonics – where the initial letter of each word gives it’s correct spelling e.g. Laugh= Laugh At Ugly Goats Hair.

11. http://www.letters-and-sounds.com/what-is-letters-and-sounds.htmlhttp://www.letters-and-sounds.com/what-is-letters-and-sounds.html

12. Reading in school and at home. • When your child receives a book they will be heard individually read, on a weekly basis in school. (Some children that need more support, may be heard more often) • We also run two reading intervention programmes FFT (Fisher Family Trust and BRF (Better Reading Partners) • Please try and aim to read with your child every day to encourage enjoyment in reading. • Please make a note in your child’s reading diary. This should be brought into school every day with your child’s reading book. • Children move progressively through the reading scheme. Not all children develop at the same time or pace.

13. Book Bands at Holy Cross and All Saints RC Primary (2012)

14. A love of Reading • Our aim is to create children who will become able independent readers. • We encourage children to read for pleasure.

15. The Research... ‘Being more enthusiastic about reading and a frequent reader, was more of an advantage on it’s own than having well educated parents in good jobs’ (PISA :Programme of International Student Assessment, 2000) ‘ Children who say that they enjoy reading and who read for pleasure in their own time do better at school. Reading for enjoyment is positively associated with reading attainment and writing ability’ (OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2002)

16. Dazzle Books

17. Our School Library

18. Developing your child’s reading skills Children are taught reading skills through literacy lessons, comprehension activities and daily Guided Reading sessions.

19. Guided reading is used to teach children how to improve their reading. It is an opportunity for the teacher to give individual help and to assess each child’s progress and needs. • Guided Reading takes place every day after lunch for 20 minutes and the children are in small groups based on their strengths and needs. • The teacher focuses on the meaning of the text and application of various reading strategies to problem solve when they do hit a road block in their knowledge or reading ability (phonics, picture clues, previous knowledge of what happened, predicting). • By providing small groups of pupils the opportunity to learn various reading strategies with guidance from the teacher, the children will develop the skills and knowledge required to read increasingly more difficult texts on their own. • Independent reading is the GOAL - guided reading provides the framework to ensure that students are able to apply strategies to make meaning from print.

20. What does a Guided Reading session look like? Pre-Reading: The teacher asks the children questions predicting what the text may be about based on the title, vocabulary introduction, or discussing ideas that will provide the readers with the background knowledge required for the text. Reading: The teacher observes the students as they read the text softly or silently to themselves. They may read round in a group too. The teacher provides guidance and coaching to individuals based on their observations by providing prompts, asking questions, and encouraging attempts at reading by using phonics/picture clues . Post Reading: The teacher asks questions to ensure that the text has been comprehended by the readers and praises their efforts. Further, the teacher may observe gaps in strategy application and address these gaps following in the following session. Whilst the teacher is reading with the group the rest of the class will be doing a variety of reading and spelling activities on a rota basis.

21. Learning to Read • As parents or carers you are your child’s most influential teacher with an incredibly important role to play in helping your child to read.

22. Reading Games • Look at letters and mail - talk about the address, sort by name. Send a letter to your child and read it together. Send postcards and talk about them. • Print hunt – encourage you child to recognise signs and labels, cars, registrations etc. • I Spy – Links sounds to real life objects. • What does it begin with? Use magnetic letters on the fridge or sponge letters in the bath e.g what does hat begin with? • Make letter cards together. • Odd One Out – collect items which begin with S and one which is T. Ask you child to spot the odd one out. • Cooking – Follow a recipe, use icing to write letters or names. • Make labels together and match them to items around the home. • If you have the internet look for sites such as help promote reading skills.

23. ReadingInfluence your child to take an interest. • Let your child see you read books, magazines, they will want to do what you are doing they love to copy grown ups. • Choose a quiet time everyday to read a story, always read with enthusiasm and use lots of expression. • Join the library and talk about the books they choose. • Offer your children choice, magazines, poems, books, information books, rhymes, fairytales. • When your child brings home a reading book, communicate with the teacher regularly with positive comments and of any concerns, this shows your child you value their reading.

24. ReadingWhat to talk about? These are often ideas which parents or carers automatically talk about with their children It is just as important that a child understands what is happening in the story as the importance of reading itself. • Talk about: • Emotions and feelings of characters • The weather and clothing worn by characters • Likes and dislikes and personal choice of reading materials • Predict what might happen next. • Their experiences, past, present and future events. • Who are the characters? (names, description, place in the family and where they live) • Where does the story take place?

25. Thank you for listening