Phonics
At HJS we aim to assess children’s phonics skills, discover gaps and ultimately provide all children with a personalised teaching of phonics and spelling. We want our pupils to be able to read with confidence and fluency and give them the skills required to read for enjoyment.
Phonics at HJS
Our progressive approach to teaching phonics is based on the Letters and Sounds programme which follows 6 phases, systematically building on the skills and knowledge of previous learning. We supplement this with Rapid Reading phonics books, where children build on the use of phonics and develop the skills of segmenting and blending, as well as developing their comprehension skills.
Practical Phonics
Every session, the letters and sounds phonics are shown with flash cards to the children where they sound out the different phonemes. We encourage our children to apply their phonics knowledge to spellings words that the sounds are imbedded in. During lessons, we encourage children to use visual and practical equipment (pictures and letter building blocks). Phonics sessions are fast paced, fun and progress can be immediately assessed throughout.
Links to Reading
Once children become confident in reading sounds, they apply their skills to reading books that include that particular phoneme (how it sounds) or grapheme (how it is written). Rapid reading books and phonics games (such as Phonics play) are used to reinforce the skill of reading and give opportunity for children to develop their comprehension skills. With confidence in reading comes fluency and the ability to read with expression. In turn, children enjoy the books they are reading and can read with understanding.
Quotes from current Year 3 pupils about Phonics sessions
‘Phonics sessions are fun. They help to refresh my memory of the sounds different letters make.’
‘I pronounce the sounds better now and the sessions help me to identify the digraphs within words I was unsure of before.’
‘Phonics sessions help me to read and also spell new words.’