Phonics


The best primary schools in England teach virtually every child to read, regardless of the social and economic circumstances of their neighbourhoods, the ethnicity of their pupils, the language spoken at home and most special educational needs or disabilities. Their success is based on a determination that every child will learn to read, together with a very rigorous and sequential approach to developing speaking and listening and teaching reading, writing and spelling through systematic phonics. This approach is applied with a high degree of consistency and sustained.” (Ofsted: Reading by Six. 2012)At Four Dwellings we recognise the importance of a quality, well -structured phonics approach that gives children the essential skills to becoming a life-long reader. Staff at FDPA are all trained in the delivery of Read, Write Inc and we are in the process of implementing this throughout the academy.
What is phonics?Phonics means using the sounds of the letters in words (not the names) as the first strategy that children use to help them learn to read. Words are made up from small units of sound (phonemes) and phonics teaches children to listen carefully and identify the phonemes that make up each word. This helps them learn to read and spell words. How do we teach phonics?Phonics follows the Read Write Inc scheme and teaches the sounds in Sets 1-3. Children have several opportunities to apply their phonics knowledge in activities involving reading and spelling.  Children are also taught words that are not phonetically decodable through red words. 
We aim to provide the children with:
  • knowledge of the English Alphabetic Code (the letter-sound correspondences)  
  • Skill of blending (for reading)
  • Skill of segmenting (for spelling) 
  • Skill of handwriting (print letter formation) 

The teaching and learning cycle is dependent on which Set is being taught but it is vital the following take place at least once daily:
  • Introduce/teach
  • Oral blending
  • Word Time (reading and spelling)
  • Pinny Time

Classroom Expectations: Each classroom and teaching areas  (EYFS-KS1) will have Read Write Inc speed sound charts (simple or complex), frieze displays and pocket charts. Phonics teachers should be wearing a pinny throughout the day to ensure spontaneous Pinny sessions and Fred games take place. 
Phonics is taught once daily in the morning with Pinny Time taking place in the afternoon. Set 1 groups will have an extra session for Word Time in the afternoon. 1:1 tutoring takes place as an intervention as well as Fresh Start in Years 5 and 6.

Click on the Read  Write Inc button above for information about reading at home with your child.

Subject Documentation

Phonics Handbook 2022/2023

Updated September 2023