Phonics  Policy

Read write Inc is the chosen Systematic Synthetic Programme used at Broadbottom to deliver phonics. This is a highly acclaimed programme written by Ruth Miskin, who is one of the leading phonics practitioners in the country and DFE advisor,

Our chosen programme sets out clear expectations for all pupils phonics progress, term by term, from Reception to Year 2. It matches the expectations of the national curriculum and early learning goals and ensures that pupils make speedy progress in phonics and reading.

Reading 

At Broadbottom we put reading at the very heart of teaching. Pupils in our school are passionate about books and authors. From the very beginning of a pupils journey with us, we start to promote a love of reading. We have a Lead Reading Teacher, who is a member of Lacey Green English Hub and participant in the Wave 4 Reading programme. We have a rigorous training programme in place to coach, educate and monitor staff, to enable the teaching of reading to be the best it can be. As members of the hub we have training and mentoring from an outstanding team of DFE selected English professionals. It is our aim, that pupils leave Ks1 as fluent readers and to facilitate this, pupils read in Ks1 3 times each week, as well as 3 times at home. They also experience shared reading, guided reading and listen to a daily class read. Every opportunity is taken to develop reading fluency through a ‘keep up’ ethos where intervention helps struggling pupils to not fall behind.

Reading and Phonics

How we teach reading:

Read Write Inc. Phonics and Reading programme

Learning to read is the most important thing your child will learn at Broadbottom. Reading is the key to everything, so we believe it has to come at the top of our list.We want all our pupils to learn to read as quickly as possible, so that they can experience the absolute pleasure reading can bring to their life. Every effort is put into making sure that our pupils progress well and become independent readers, who enjoy accessing all types of reading material.

At Broadbottom CE (VC) Priamry School, we follow the Read Write Inc (RWI) Phonics/Reading Scheme.

Read, Write Inc, is a highly successful phonics programme for children aged 4 to 7 who are learning to read and write. It teaches children how to both decode and understand written language to become confident and enthusiastic readers and writers. This is achieved by a dynamic approach to teaching phonics that is consistent across the school using the Read, Write Inc phonics resources and fully decodable reading books.

Children are grouped according to their ability in Early Years and Key Stage 1 to ensure that teaching is matched to their level. Phonics in Early Years and Key Stage 1 takes place on a daily basis. Children in Key Stage 2 that still require phonics teaching, continue with a specially tailored programme (RWI) to meet their individual needs.

Shared Reading forms part of the daily phonics lessons and is led by the reading teachers. Each pupil reads for at least 20 minutes every day, in a small group with their reading teacher. All texts are linked to the pupil’s phonic ability. Pupils enjoy one focus text per week and learning activities support accurate and fluent reading to facilitate comprehension. In addition, pupils take fully decodable reading books home to further practice skills learnt at school. These books are matched to each pupil’s phonics ability and are closely monitored by the reading teachers to ensure that pupils are reading books of an appropriate level. Each pupil visits the school library every week to select a book of their choice to share at home.

How will my child be taught to read?

We teach pupils phonics straight away in Reception. This means that they learn how to ‘read’ the (Phonemes) sounds in words and how those sounds can be written down (Graphemes). This is essential for reading, but it also helps pupils learn to spell well.

We teach pupils simple ways of remembering these sounds and letters. Once pupils have learnt to blend accurately, they start to read with fluency. This is achieved through speedy reading of individual words and repeated reads of their shared reading books. ‘Tricky words’ such as ‘once’ ‘said’ ‘the’ are not phonetically decodable and these are taught explicitly as part of the reading session.

To develop the pupil’s love of stories, we have dedicated story time, across all Key Stages, daily. The teachers read to the pupils, introducing them to a variety of stories, poetry and information books – and authors. They acquire new vocabulary through our word aware teaching, which focuses on embedding new words into their autographic memory.

Pupils who join the School throughout the year are quickly assessed in phonics and grouped according to their ability. In Early Years and Key Stage 1, pupils are assessed and regrouped every half term to ensure they receive the correct level of support and challenge. If a child is notwhere we would expect them to be at certain points in the year, they will have daily extra phonics practise with their Reading Tutor, to secure progress. Every child learns to read and becomes a reader!

Good Reading Habits 

Throughout the curriculum, teachers encourage children to develop these reading habits:

• To sound/out segment words that they find difficult to say. 
• Reread phrases, sentences or paragrphs in order to help with understanding.
• Infer from the text: consider what a character is like/what they are feeling; develop your own picture of a setting, adding in your own features based on what you have read.
• Identify words that are tricky and to try and infer meaning from the text. 
• Make predictions based on what has been read. 
• Ask questions based on what you have read and your own interests.
• Make links with other texts based on themes/styles.
• Develop your own opinion on the text. 

Children progress from the Read Write Inc. Phonics programme to the Read Write Inc. Spelling programme, in Year 2 upwards throughout the school. A dedicated spelling session is taught daily from Year 2.

Read, Write Inc. has 5 underlying principles – the five Ps:

1. PACE – no time is wasted during teaching sessions! Children are active and involved in a fun and creative way. The aim is for the children to complete the programme as quickly as possible.
2. PRAISE – teachers praise the children constantly throughout the teaching sessions. Children learn more quickly when they are praised for what they do well, rather than nagged for what they do wrong. The children are encouraged to praise each other and as a school we have developed several ‘Praise Phrases’ and ‘Praise actions’. Ask your child to demonstrate!
3. PURPOSE – each activity has a very clear purpose. The teacher will set this purpose at the beginning of the lesson so that the children know exactly what they will be learning.
4. PARTICIPATION – all children take part in all parts of the lesson. Full participation is gained through partner work and choral response.
5. PASSION – as a staff we are passionate about our teaching and the benefits of the Read, Write Inc. programme! We love teaching the sessions and this enthusiasm rubs off onto the children.

Useful Links

http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk
Oxford Owl is a free website built to support you with your child’s learning.  You’ll find age-specific reading and maths tips and activities, eBooks, and lots of fun ideas to really bring your child’s learning to life.  You will also find support and advice on a range of questions you may have – including helping your child with their phonics, motivating boys to read and ensuring your child is doing their best in maths.

www.bookstart.co.uk
This website provides information about the national Bookstart scheme and the Bookstart packs that your child will receive as a baby, a toddler and at age three to four. It also gives information about sharing books with your child. You can find out about Bookstart events in your area, which you can attend with your child.

Summer Reading Recommendations

Summer reads 26.7.24