Reading is at the heart of our curriculum

At Chennestone we aim for all our children to  become fluent, confident readers who are passionate about reading.

Children who read regularly or are read to regularly have the opportunity to open the doors to so many different worlds!

More importantly, reading will give your child the tools to become independent life-long learners.

We can achieve this together through:

• Read Write Inc, a program to help to your child read at school
• Encouraging children to develop a love of books by reading to them daily, at home and at school
• Giving children access to a wide range of books at school and at home

Within our Reception setting, children participate in daily story reading and rhyme sessions. We foster a love of reading by sending home books to share as a family to develop understanding of a story.

Within the setting Phase 1 Phonics is taught. Within our Reception classes we build upon our Nursery and other pre-school settings by continuing to read stories to our children daily and by promoting rhyme.

We use Read Write Inc (RWI) to teach phonics during daily teaching sessions. Children take home a phonetically decodable book and a library book of their choice.

Mrs Chapman is our Read Write Inc lead, so if you have questions about RWI, please contact the school office to arrange a meeting.

What is Read Write Inc?

Read Write Inc (RWI) is a phonics complete literacy programme which helps all children learn to read fluently and at speed so they can focus on developing their skills in comprehension, vocabulary and spelling.  

The programme is designed for children aged 4-7. However, at Chennestone we begin the programme in Reception and will continue teaching RWI to children who need additional reading support, beyond the age of 7. 

RWI was developed by Ruth Miskin and more information on this can be found at https://ruthmiskin.com/en/find-out-more/parents/.

How will RWI be taught?

All children are assessed regularly either by our RWI lead or your child's class teacher.  From these assessments children are grouped into stages, where they work with peers on the same stage.

Reception

When appropriate, children will be introduced to the initial sounds.

In Reception all children will learn how to ‘read’ the sounds in words and how those sounds can be written down.

Reading

The children:

• Learn 44 sounds and the corresponding letters/letter groups using simple picture prompts – see below
• Learn to read words using Fred talk and sound blending
• Read from a range of storybooks and non-fictions books matched to their phonic knowledge
• Work well with partners
• Develop comprehension skills in stories by answering 'Find It' and 'Prove It' discussion questions

Writing

The children:

• Learn to write and form the letters/letter groups which represent the 44 sounds with the help of fun phrases
• Learn to write words by using Fred Talk
• Learn to build sentences by practising sentences out loud before they write 

Talking

The children

• They work in pairs so that they:
• Answer every question
• Practise every activity with their partner
• Take turns in talking and reading to each other
• Develop ambitious vocabulary

Progressing through the stages

Children follow the same format as Early Years but will work on complex sounds and read books appropriate to their reading level. Daily sessions of RWI phonics lasting 30 - 45 minutes (year group dependent)  Once children become fluent speedy readers they will move on to the RWI Comprehension Programme.

Five key principles underpin the teaching in all Read Write Inc. sessions:  

Purpose – know the purpose of every activity and share it with the children, so they know the one thing they should be thinking about

Participation – ensure every child participates throughout the lesson. Partnership work is fundamental to learning

Praise – ensure children are praised for effort and learning, not ability

Pace – teach at an effective pace and devote every moment to teaching and learning

Passion – be passionate about teaching so children can be engaged emotionally.

Phonics Screening Check

The phonics screening check is taken individually by all children in Year 1 and some children in Year 2 in England.  It is usually taken in June. It is designed to give teachers and parents information on how your child is progressing in phonics. It will help to identify whether your child needs additional support at this stage so that they do not fall behind in this vital early reading skill.  We approach this test as part of our routine assessment with pupils.  We do not make a big issue of it.  Staff will tell you about the Phonic Screening Test during  the annual welcome meeting.

To help at home:

Useful websites for Parents

Please find a list of websites that you may find useful in helping you and your child learn about phonics. Games and fun activity websites are also included.

https://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/find-out-more/parents/ - Information and resources to support phonics learning at home

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks1/literacy/phonics/play/ - fun games for the children to play

http://www.ictgames.com/literacy.html  - fun games for the children to play

http://www.firstschoolyears.com/  - fun games for the children to play

BBC Bitesize - many games to play covering all areas of the curriculum