At Croft Academy, we teach children to read by following the Read, Write, Inc phonics scheme by Ruth Miskin. From the start of Reception, children receive a daily phonics lesson starting at around 30 minutes and developing to 60 minutes as they reach Key Stage 1.
Read, Write, Inc is a systematic phonics scheme which teaches children to read sounds in sets, starting with single letter sounds then 'special friends' and finally the alternative vowel sounds.
How will my child learn to read?
First, your child will learn to read:
Set 1 Speed Sounds: these are sounds written with one letter:
m a s d t i n p g o c k u b f e l h r j v y w z x
and sounds written with two letters (your child will call these ‘special friends’):
sh th ch qu ng nk ck
Words containing these sounds, by sound-blending,
e.g. m–a–t mat, c–a–t cat, g–o–t got, f–i–sh fish, s–p–o–t spot, b–e–s–t best, s–p–l–a–sh splash
Blending Books and Red, Green and Purple Storybooks
Second, he or she will learn to read:
Set 2 Speed Sounds:
ay ee igh ow oo oo ar or air ir ou oy
Words containing these sounds
Pink, Orange and Yellow Storybooks.
Third, he or she will learn to read:
Set 3 Speed Sounds:
ea oi a-e i-e o-e u-e aw are ur er ow ai oa ew ire ear ure
Words containing these sounds
Blue and Grey Storybooks
Your child will be taught to say the sound for the letter and not the letter name, so ‘m’ as in ‘mat’, not ‘em’; ‘s’ as in ‘sun’ not ‘es’.
How to listen to your child read
Do not read the book aloud before your child reads it to you.
Ask your child to read the sounds and words before he or she reads the story.
When your child reads the story, ask him or her to sound out the words that he or she can’t read automatically. Don’t allow your child to struggle too much. Praise your child when he or she succeeds.
Read back each sentence or page to keep the plot moving. (Your child’s energy is going into reading the words not the story.)
Do not ask your child to guess the word by using the pictures.
Do it all with patience and love!
Please click on the link below to find out more information about phonics and to watch videos for helpful tips and advice.