Phonics
We know that reading is the key that unlocks the whole curriculum and enables them to access their learning. Therefore, we want to set firm foundations in our Early Years, embedding a strong phonic knowledge and the ability to decode efficiently. Once they have started on their reading journey, we continue to build upon these skills, which are essential for our children to become lifelong readers.
Here at the Abbey Catholic Primary school we are passionate about ensuring every child gets through the reading gateway. We are passionate about the way we teach Phonics and reading across our school. We are very proud to have been awarded Read Write Inc ‘Model School’ status in 2017 due to our passionate drive to ensure that every child is a reader. We have continued to showcase Phonics to other schools and have had many visitors throughout the years observing Phonics approaches within our school. We passionately believe that every child should become an excellent reader.
As a team, we work rigorously to challenge ourselves on the best ways to teach Phonics through using the Read Write Inc Phonic programme. RWI is a synthetic phonics programme, which helps our children, develops the core skills of segmenting and blending, to start them on their reading journey. Every term we invite a RWI consultant to work alongside, challenge and coach our staff so that we are never complacent with our methods and delivery. We believe that staff should be upskilled constantly. All new staff receive RWI training and all Phonic teachers attend weekly practice sessions, so that consistency continues.
We have a Reading Leader in our school who works alongside staff, team teaches and delivers Master Classes to staff every week. These Master Classes focus on identified areas for development. We believe that fluent reading is developed, through early language acquisition, developing a love of reading in our children.
We regularly welcome parents to attend parent workshops. Parents have said they find these workshops beneficial as it gives them an insight of how their child is taught Phonics in our school, what the programme expectations are and how they can best support their child at home. We work hand in hand with our parents so we can create long life readers.
“The best primary schools in England teach virtually every child to read, regardless of the social and economic circumstances of their neighbourhoods, the ethnicity of their pupils, the language spoken at home and most special educational needs or disabilities. Their success is based on a determination that every child will learn to read, together with a very rigorous and sequential approach to developing speaking and listening and teaching reading, writing and spelling through systematic phonics. This approach is applied with a high degree of consistency and sustained.” (Ofsted: Reading by Six. 2012)
Find out more about the teaching of Phonics at our school in the documents below:
- Phonics (RWI) Intent
- Phonics (RWI) Implementation
- Phonics (RWI) Impact (to follow)
Year 1 Phonic Screening Check
This is the most up to date information regarding the Yr1 Phonics Screening Check for this year. Please read and if you have any questions once you have read this information please feel free to speak to a member of staff. We have a meeting in the Spring Term to give you more information and a Phonic Screening pack.
How will the children know which words are ‘alien’ (nonsense) words?
The made-up ‘alien’ words are always have a picture of an alien on, so the children know that they are not real words that they might recognise. They are very familiar with this concept as they do this daily in their Phonic lesson.
How will the phonics screening check, be administered?
A teacher on a 1:1 basis takes each child through the screening check. This will be in a quiet area and there is no time limit.
Are you told about your child’s result?
Results are distributed in the Summer term, at parent/teacher drop-in.
What happens if my child doesn’t pass the phonics screening check?
Any child that does not reach the standard threshold will sit the screening check when they are in Year 2. All pupils regardless of whether they passed the phonic screening check will continue on our Phonic programme until they have graduated.
When will the phonics screening take place?
The government requires that the check must be taken, during a certain week in June. A pupil may only take the check the following week, if they were absent during check week. If a pupil does not take the check during this period, they must be recorded, as absent.
Parent Support
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