Phonics

Phonics at Glade Hill

Primary and Nursery School

At Glade Hill we teach phonics using the ‘Little Wandle’ (previously ‘Letters and Sounds’) systematic synthetic phonics scheme. This systematic approach teaches our children to use synthetic phonics as a strategy to support them in becoming fluent readers and confident writers. This rigorous approach is adopted throughout school to ensure consistency and progression.

Children are taught daily discrete phonics lessons and are encouraged to apply their knowledge through the use of decodable reading books. Decodable reading sessions take place in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 three times a week.

In Reception, pupils are taught phonics as a whole class and children needing extra support are given extra phonics sessions and precision teaching daily.

As part of our catch-up scheme, pupils in Year 1 and 2 are taught in ability groups enabling them to be taught according to their phonetic ability. Children needing additional support also receive daily extra sessions and precision teaching. The teaching of each group is very precise and is tailored to the needs of each child to ensure that they are able to ‘catch-up’ as quickly as possible.

Regular assessments ensure that our children are taught in the correct group and that all teaching builds on their existing phonetic knowledge and skills. When children can read both fluently and confidently, they will progress to daily spelling sessions to support their writing development. Some older children may continue to receive daily phonics support to ensure that they reach the required standard and make progress with their reading skills.