Early Reading

The love of reading begins in our Nursery where our youngest pupils are encouraged to choose books independently, learning to hold them correctly, turn pages and beginning to recognise that text has meaning. We play games and go on walks to support our pupils to distinguish between sounds in the environment. Our EYFS Practitioners are enthusiastic in their telling of stories and engage our pupils to join in on repeated texts. They use the ‘Not just…’ to model new vocabulary and this vocabulary is revisited throughout the week. Pupils have the opportunity to learn and recite nursery rhymes through regular timetabled sessions. Our practitioners know the importance of getting our pupils ready for Reception. They teach oral blending through ‘Fred Games’ and teach the mnemonics for the single sounds. As pupils progress, the Nursery pupils are taught in smaller groups matched to their abilities and some pupils are already reading when they move into Reception.

At Keir Hardie, we use synthetic phonics and follow the ‘Read Write Inc’ programme (RWI). This is a systematic and rigorous method of learning letter sounds and blending them together to read, write and spell words. 

Here at Keir Hardie Primary School, children have daily phonics sessions in small targeted groups, where they participate in speaking, listening and spelling activities that are matched to their starting points and developing needs. The practitioners draw upon their observations and continuous assessment to ensure children are stretched and challenged. They also identify children who may need additional support. Children work through the different Read Write Inc. Sets 1-3, learning and developing their phonics sounds and knowledge.

 

Phonics in Action

 
These pupils are beginning to blend to read. They will work in smaller groups and receive additional one to one support in the afternoons. Here they are making the links from blending with sound cards, to blending with magnetic letters, to blending on a word card.
These pupils are near the end of the RWI Phonics programme. They are reading the Blue texts. They will be reading between 60-70 words a minute. 
Words in the text will be more challenging. In this book are words such as, chance, feathers, quarrel, hummingbird, amidst.  However, because the pupils have been taught sounds systematically and in the order they appear in the books, our pupils know how to tackle them. WE LOVE A CHALLENGE! To move up to the final set of grey books, these pupils will need to read 70 – 80 words per minute.

 

Although RWI is a reading programme, we also make the link to spelling and writing. Our practitioners use the ‘My Turn, Your Turn’ to model and guide the pupils throughout each part of the lesson. Here, our pupils are using their ‘Fred fingers’ to learn to spell with the new sound ‘er’. The pupils mark their own work with a green pen. They have the opportunity to ‘tick it or fix it’. Our pupils also learn to ‘hold a sentence’ which is related to the book they are reading. They will rehearse the sentence orally before writing it in their books. They will again mark their own work for, spellings, grammar and punctuation.
We believe that all of our pupils deserve the chance to learn to read.  Whatever barriers may make learning to read a slower progress for some children, we strive to overcome them. Some pupils may not yet speak English. Some may not speak at all! We support children with many Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.  All children should be given the gift of reading. At Keir Hardie we ensure our pupils work at their pace and are supported in groups at their reading level and receive additional learning and practice to accelerate their learning. You’ll be amazed at the progress they make and the joy they get from learning to read.

Parent Videos

 

What is RWI Phonics?

Understanding Phonics

How to say the sounds

Children who are still working on the Read Write Inc phonic system continue to do so by accessing a mixed ability phonics group. This is carried out on a daily basis. Small group intervention groups are used throughout the week as well as one-to-one support for those children identified as requiring additional time to develop their phonic knowledge and spelling skills.