Reading and Phonics

Reading: At St. Mary’s Wavendon CE Primary School we use phonics books matched to our phonics scheme ELS in Foundation and lower KS1 (or until the children are ready to progress to our banded scheme once their phonics knowledge is secure). The children will also have a ‘reading together’ book which includes some phonically decodable words but also some words they will need support with so they can enjoy a story with their parents. These books will be sent home for parents to read with their child, helping us to instil a love of reading from the very beginning of their reading journey. These could be read together with the child reading the words they are able to decode or could be read to the child. Once they are able they will progress to our banded progression which is built from different types of books, including a range of real, quality books, non-fiction and poetry texts- levelled to enable children to succeed as they build their reading fluency, understanding and comprehension skills. These progress throughout KS1 and KS2, supplemented with phonics-based scheme books, dyslexic-friendly texts and hi-low reading books to support older children who find reading more challenging or who have a more specific challenging need. Children may become a ‘free-reader’, once they have progressed through the KS2 levels, and then choose their own texts from class or the school library as their reading book. A reading for pleasure text will also be chosen from our school library or from class libraries for the children to enjoy in school or at home with their parents.

Phonics: The children in Foundation and KS1 will have daily phonics sessions using Essentials Letters and sounds- ELS. With ELS, there is a daily phonics lesson where the teacher teaches a new sound, or reviews sounds learned earlier in the week. This is shown to the class on the whiteboard. Children learn the letters that represent the sounds. They are then asked to read words and sentences with the new sounds in. Children will also practise writing the letters that represent the sounds.

You can find more information about the phonics scheme via Oxford Owl for Parents by following this link: Essential Letters and Sounds - Oxford Owl