Phonics
At Longden, we use Twinkl Phonics to teach a systematic synthetic phonic approach. This is a clear way of teaching children to read, write and spell. The sounds that children are taught are in a specific systematic order (not alphabetically), so that children can begin to build words from these sounds as soon as possible. Phonics supports children to hear, identify and link the sounds that letters make (phonemes) and what the letters look like written down (graphemes). This helps children to recognise and read words, using knowledge of the sounds to read new and unfamiliar words.
Our reading books are linked to this phonics scheme and we are purchasing additional books to support it. These are called Rhino Readers, and children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 use these books alongside the phonics scheme in class. We use online Rhino Readers books in class too. As children move through the school phonics and reading remains a high priority and staff use a range of schemes to ensure that children's individual needs are met.
We also use other reading books for 'Share with me' reading at home, and these help the children to use the phonics they have been learning in class to develop as a reader.
Further information on Twinkl Phonics can be found below.
Our phonics policy has further detail about phonics in our school.
Reading cloud is a library management system with an innovative online pupil engagement community which helps schools promote reading for pleasure and helps children develop positive attitudes to reading to become lifelong readers. Please see the above document for further information.
The Reading School
In every class base there is a reading corner with a range of books, fiction and non-fiction. There is a central school information library from which children are encouraged to borrow books to take home and enjoy. The collection and maintains a broad range of subject matter so that every child will find something of interest there. Children learn poems for recitation in special assemblies for Mother’s Day or Advent. At Christmas every child takes part in our annual drama productions; humorous, musical versions of the Nativity and a well-known fairy tale are the usual subjects.
Learning to Read
Our aim at Longden School is to teach every child to read in such a way that they will enjoy a life-long appreciation of the pleasure and benefits of reading. Children are introduced to synthetic phonics in Nursery and are made aware of print in the environment and the representation of familiar language sounds in their names and everyday objects and activities.
The daily phonics lessons in Reception, Year 1 and 2 builds on these early experiences as the children engage with formal, systematic teaching designed to ensure mastery of the key sounds and their associated letters (reading) and letter formation (writing). Use of the Twinkl Phonics scheme makes these sessions fun and memorable for the children. It is here that children are introduced to Rhino Readers, the reading scheme linked to Twinkl Phonics. Children read individual copies of these books in class, read the book through the Rhino Readers app, as well as reading together using online versions of each title. Children also take 'real' books home from their class story corner.
Awareness of the role of grammar in supporting reading comprehension continues as children move towards greater independence in their literacy skills. All pupils are screened at the end of Year 1 to assess their phonics skills; those pupils who have not acquired mastery of basic letters and sounds at that stage are supported throughout Year 2 to meet their individual needs in this area ready for the screening as a Year 2 pupil.
Throughout Year 2 3,4,5 and 6 use is made of the Oxford Reading Tree scheme including focused phonics readers. This ensures that reading material of the correct challenge level and containing the necessary focus on developing phonics skills is available to children and their parents for use at home. Each child has a reading diary and this is used as a record for both teacher and parent to use when noting progress in the child’s reading development. From Year 3 children are encouraged to read beyond the structured scheme and to explore a range of authors and genres where appropriate, in a bid to discover their own preferences and to extend their knowledge of the breadth and quality of children’s fiction, both classic and contemporary. Teachers continue to read to children in order to develop through discussion comprehension and vocabulary and to give access to books that children might not otherwise encounter.
Assessment, recording and reporting
Informal assessment of children’s reading is continuous through hearing individual readers, group reading and reading across the curriculum in other lessons. Children have an individual reading book that reflects the stage of their development and which is used in individual reading sessions to assess progress and to highlight next steps for learning. In guided reading children will read from the same text and the teacher will focus on developing a specific reading skill. Reading ages (a nationally standardized measure of reading ability) are tested each year as a ‘dipstick’ measure of progress. This is also important in matching children’s learning needs to the reading material. A more in-depth assessment of reading incorporating reading and comprehension skills is made at the end of each term and this result is used in the whole school’s termly progress tracking system. Information from both of these measures is used by teachers in reporting termly to parents. At various points, children take statutory tests, the results of which are published to parents in annual reports: for children in Year 1 this is the phonics check and in Year 6 the end of Key Stage 2 tests in Reading; Grammar, Spelling and Punctuation; Writing; and maths.