Phonics

What is Phonics?

Phonics is a way of teaching children to read with fluency and accuracy.  At Lowercroft, we use the Junior Learning programme to teach phonics daily. Junior Learning is a DfE validated phonics programme, providing a highly structured, systematic approach to teaching children to read and spell. The programme is based on wide research into the science of reading, providing a deep understanding of how children learn to read, the skills involved and the parts of the brain that are responsible.

Overall, the science of reading provides an evidence-based practice approach for teaching the key elements of learning how to read and spell through conceptual understanding, factual knowledge and the three skills of blending, segmenting and phoneme manipulation

If you wish to know more about Junior Learning phonics programme please click here.

How can you support your child's reading at home

Your child will be sent home books to read to improve their phonics – we call these 'decodable readers' at school. These are books that enable your child to practise the sounds and spellings that they are learning. Most of the words are words that they can decode because they contain phonemes/tricky words they have already learnt. We want your children to be able to read these books fluently so when your child reads these books to you, please let them have a go at reading all of the words by themselves. Sometimes, your child may need help with a word, but before you step in, please give them a few seconds to work it out for themselves.

What is the Year 1 phonics screening check?

The Year 1 phonics screening check is a short, light-touch assessment to confirm whether individual pupils have learnt phonic decoding to an appropriate standard.

It will identify the children who need extra help so they are given support to improve their reading skills. They will then be able to retake the check in Year 2 so that we can track pupils until they are able to decode.

Phonics is continued in KS2 classes where needed and resources are selected to match the child's age and stage of development sensitively

Click here watch  clips and learn more about how phonics  develops reading skills.