English and literacy teaching at Belmont is based on the conceptual model of the Simple View of Reading of which phonics is part of the word recognition aspect.
At Belmont Academy, we teach Phonics through a scheme called Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised. This is a complete systematic synthetic phonics programme (SSP) developed for schools by schools. It is based on the original Letters and Sounds, but has been extensively revised to provide a complete teaching programme which meets all the expectations of the National Curriculum.
Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised is a comprehensive programme where in the Nursery children follow the Little Wandle Sounds guidance, this focuses on early listening skills and developing language through stories and rhymes. In Reception children start learning single letter sounds in the autumn term of their Reception year and it builds in progression throughout Reception and Year 1, preparing children for the statutory phonics screening that takes place at the end of year 1. In Years 2 and 3 phonics lessons are taught daily and specific gaps are identified through assessment.
Phonics teaching at Belmont:
- is time limited aiming to secure fluent word recognition skills for reading and increasingly phonemically more plausible spellings for writing
- is taught explicitly through daily phonics sessions
- has high expectations for all children’s attainment
- assessment is used to monitor progress and to identify any child needing additional support as soon as possible
- planned ‘catch-up’ sessions for years 2-6 to address specific reading/writing gaps
- Children identified in Reception and Year 1 will have ‘keep-up’ session if required.
- is fully recognised that children need a full repertoire of literacy and literary experiences including the development of speaking and listening skills to become:
- fluent readers who read for information and pleasure
- confident writers who write appropriate to audience and purpose
Reading
Reading is essential for all subject areas. Children across reception, Year 1 and 2 and beyond if appropriate) apply their phonic knowledge by using a full matched decodable reading book.
For more information on the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds scheme including access to videos and resources, please click on the link below:
https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/
Phase 2 Sounds taught in Receptioin Autumn 1 : https://youtu.be/-ZtjFIvA_fs?rel=0
Phase 2 sounds taught in Reception Autumn 2 : https://youtu.be/qDu3JAjf-U0?rel=0
Phase 3 sounds taught in Reception Spring 1 : https://youtu.be/DvOuc7cWXxc?rel=0
Phase 5 sounds taught in Year 1 : https://vimeo.com/742982775?rel=0
A quick guide to alien words : https://vimeo.com/742989497?rel=0
How we teach tricky words : https://vimeo.com/742989066?rel=0
How we teach blending : https://youtu.be/IL5YUCPyC5I?rel=0
How we teach Phase 5 : https://vimeo.com/743021918?rel=0
