Intent

At Knowle Park, we recognise that being able to read is the most important skill children will learn during their early schooling and has far-reaching implications for lifelong goals, confidence and well-being. The combination of phonics teaching, effective interventions and access to phonetically decodable books provides all children with the chance to develop the starting point they need as they begin their journey in education.

Implementation

At Knowle Park Primary, we use Unlocking letters and sounds to teach phonics.

We use phonics to decode words to enable us to read with fluency. We segment words and use our phonics to spell words confidently. We are able to read and spell words we find tricky. We use phonics to read and write sentences in all areas of learning.

1. Overview

Being able to read is the most important skill children will learn during their early schooling and has far-reaching implications for lifelong confidence and well-being. The independent review of early reading conducted by Jim Rose confirmed that ‘high quality phonic work’ should be the prime means for teaching children how to read and spell words.

2. Unlocking Letters and Sounds

At KPPS, we are committed to following Unlocking Letters and Sounds, using their online resources.

To ensure there is consistency across classes and year groups, we follow the structure of: Revisit and Review/ Teach/ Practise/ Apply in every lesson.

• Revisit and Review- Practise previously learned graphemes. Practise previously learned common exception words.
• Teach- Teach blending and segmenting of common exception words. Teach new graphemes.
• Practise- Practise blending and reading words with the new GPC. Practise segmenting and spelling words with the new GPC.
• Apply- Write a sentence using one or more common exception words and words containing the new graphemes.

3. Progression

Children start phonics as soon as they begin full time in Reception in order to give them a secure start in reading. In Reception, they work through these phases of Unlocking Letters and Sounds:

• Phase 2- Term 1 (6 weeks)
• Phase 3- Term 2 and 3 (9 weeks)
• Phase 3 Mastery- Term 3 and 4 (9 weeks)
• Phase 4- Term 5 (6 weeks)
• Phase 4 Mastery- Term 6 (6 weeks)

In Y1, children continue to work through these phases of Unlocking Letters and Sounds:

• Phase 4 Revision- Term 1 (6 weeks)
• Phase 5a- Term 2 (6 weeks)
• Phase 5a Mastery- Term 3 (6 weeks)
• Phase 5b- Term 4 (6 weeks)
• Phase 5c- Term 5 and 6 (12 weeks)

In Y2, children continue to work through these phases of Unlocking Letters and Sounds:

• Phase 5a Spelling Recap- Term 1 (2 weeks)
• Phase 5b Mastery- Term 1 (5 weeks)
• Phase 5c Mastery- Term 2 (6 weeks)

At this point phonics teaching will continue as an intervention for those children who still require it. Year 2 children will move on to learning spelling using the Rising Stars Scheme.

4. Organisation

• Phonics is taught in a daily 25minute session, in the morning, from YR to Y1, moving onto spellings in Y2.

• Children are taught in their classes, on the carpet using lined whiteboards.
• Common exception words and phonemes are displayed in classes for the phase the children are working on.

5. Intervention

Ongoing, regular assessments enable teachers to identify the lowest 20% of children. These children may change as regular assessments will show progress and monitor gaps. Targeted children are supported by the LSA on the carpet and children identified as needing support have a 1 to 1 Precision Teaching Session, 2-3 times a week.

After regular assessments, children take home phonetically decodable reading books from the phase they are decoding at, to match their individual phonics progression.

For more information on reading, see ‘A Guide to Teaching Reading at KPPS’. For more resources including videos of phonics lessons, see the ‘Phonics’ folder on teams.

Impact

• Our children’s progress is reviewed on a daily basis, allowing immediate support to be put in place where needed.
• Our Children complete the Phonics Screening test towards the end of Year 1 and by the time they finish the ULSprogramme, children should be able to decode fluently and accurately, allowing them to access a greater range of texts with growing independence.
• As our children progress through the school, they focus on developing their fluency and comprehension skills. Teachers use formative assessment from guided reading and reading comprehension lessons to identify areas of need and to inform and adapt future planning.
• Most importantly, we know that the positive impact of excellent reading skills will be felt across all curriculum areas and that an enjoyment of reading goes far beyond the classroom.
• We aim to develop confidence, fluency, curiosity and a lifelong love of reading that will enhance the learning and the lives of all pupils at Knowle Park Primary School.