Reading is the most important skill we teach at our school and our aim is for every child to be an enthusiastic and confident reader.  It enables children to access the full curriculum.

At West Denton Primary School, we use the Read, Write Inc. programme, developed by Ruth Miskin, which provides a structured and systematic approach to teaching phonics and reading. It is used by more than a quarter of the UK's primary schools and is designed to create fluent readers, confident speakers and willing writers.

Read Write Inc - Our Phonics Scheme

The Government strongly recommend the use of synthetic phonics when teaching early literacy skills to children.  Synthetic phonics is simply the ability to convert a letter or letter group into sounds that are then blended together into a word.

Reading opens the door to learning.  A child who reads a lot will become a good reader.  A good reader will be able to read more challenging material.  A child who can read more challenging material is a child who will learn.  The more a child learns, the more he or she will want to find out.

The children are taught by our highly skilled Read, Write Inc. trained teachers and teaching assistants.  They are assessed regularly and grouped according to their ability.

Reading

When using RWI to read the children will:

• Learn 44 sounds and the corresponding letter/letter groups using simple prompts
• Learn to read words using sound blending (Fred talk)
• Read from a range of story books and non-fiction books matched to their phonic knowledge.
• Show that they comprehend the stories by answering 'Find It' and 'Prove It'

Writing

When using RWI to write the children will:

• Learn to write the letter/letter groups which represent the 44 sounds with the help of fun phrases
• Learn to write words by saying the sounds and graphemes (Fred fingers)

Talking

When using RWI the children will also work in pairs:

• To answer questions
• To take turns talking and listening to each other
• To give positive praise to each other

This paired work ensures maximum participation from each child.

Blending

Help your child learn to read words by sounding blending (Fred talk) eg. c-a-t = cat, sh-o-p = shop. Children learn to read words by blending the letter sounds.

Help your child to say the pure sounds as quickly as they can, and then blend the sounds together to say the whole word.

Reading at Home

Children who are learning single letter sounds and are not yet blending fluently will bring home sound books for you to practise reading with them.

Once children can blend fluently and know the first 25 sounds they will bring home ditty sheets.  Children will then progress through the coloured Read, Write, Inc. storybooks as their knowledge and understanding of Phonics develops.  All reading books are carefully matched to the children’s reading abilities.

Read Write Inc. Storybooks

Please encourage your child to read though the speed sounds page first, then the green and red words page and then check your child understands the meaning of words on the vocabulary check page, before they start reading the book.  At the back of the book are find it/prove it questions for you to do with your child to help develop their comprehension skills.

Please try and read at home every day.  This will help develop their reading skills, a wider vocabulary (which makes a vast difference to their quality of writing), as well as encourages them to enjoy a good story!

Our Phonics Lead

Carol Knowles leads phonics at West Denton Primary School. If you have questions about phonics and early reading, please contact the school office who can put you in touch with Miss Knowles.