Read, Write, Inc

We want our children to 'read to learn', not just 'learn to read' and we use an exciting new literacy programme called Read, Write, Inc. It aims to have all children reading by 6 and has proven succesful across the country. You can find out lots more about it at the following website:

https://global.oup.com/education/content/primary/series/rwi/parents/?region=uk 

Scroll to the bottom of this page to watch a video to learn how to pronounce the sounds accurately!

Each year we hold a phonics workshop so you can find out more, but feel free to ask your child's teacher if you want to know more.

Click here to read a letter from Read, Write, Inc expert Ruth Miskin

Photos of children learning below! See how Fred Frog helps us to sound talk and how we use our eyes for reading and fingers for spelling. We are learning to hear, say, read and write our bouncy and stretchy letters.

Hear it, say it, read it, write it!

 Ten top tips from Read Write Inc

1. Saying sounds correctly This is really important when you are helping your child to learn the sounds. Just remember not to add an uh to the end of the consonant sounds – so say mmm not muh, lll not luh, etc. because then later it’s easier to blend the sounds together to make words.

 2. Linking sounds to letters Encourage your child to make a link between the sound and the written letter shape. Start with the sounds in your child’s name and then look out for them in signs. The sound m in McDonalds is always a good starting point too!

 3. Sounds represented by more than one letter Some sounds are represented by more than one letter such as sh inship, ch in chat, th in thin, qu in quick and ng in sing. When you’re out and about point out examples of these to your child too. You might see them in posters, signs, or leaflets.

 4. Practise, practise, practise Build up a knowledge of the letters and sounds quite quickly with your child and keep practising so that it becomes automatic. Keep reminding ‘Do you remember when we were talking about the sound ch...?’, or ‘Oh look! There’s a big t (sound) on that poster!’.

 5. Putting sounds together to read simple words Say the sounds c-a-t to read cat, sh-o-p to read shop and s-t-r-ee-t to read street. If your child gets stuck and is struggling to blend the sounds, say the sounds yourself, quickly, until your child can hear the word! Only beginner readers need to sound out every word as they read all the time. But, they will still need to work out new and long words.

 6. Tricky words Some everyday words in English have tricky spellings and can’t be read by blending. Imagine trying to read the word said or does by blending each letter! These are sometimes called high frequency tricky words, or Red words. These words just have to be learned by sight and flashcard-type games are a good way to practise these.

7. Reading books Schools using a synthetic phonics scheme are likely to be sending home decodable books. This means the books contain mostly words that children can read by sounding out to get them off to a good start with independent reading. After your child has read a page, you can read it aloud again, to make sure that the story is enjoyed and understood.

8. Using pictures Pictures are great for sharing and talking about a story (which is really important too!) but don’t encourage your child to use pictures to guess the words that they don’t already know.

9. Writing letters Teach your child how to write the letters as the letter sounds are learned. And don’t forget to show your child how to hold the pencil correctly too!

10. Common sense ... Lots and lots of books! Carry on sharing and reading lots and lots of stories and information books to and with your child. Praise and hugs! Most importantly, remember that your child will learn much faster with encouragement, praise and hugs