Phonics

At Archibald First School, we believe that all our children can become fluent readers and writers. This is why we teach reading through Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, which is a systematic and synthetic government validated phonics programme.

AFS Phonics Subject Statement

We start teaching the foundations of phonics in Nursery. We do this through pre-phonic games and activities concentrating on listening skills, identifying familiar sounds, rhyming and introducing oral blending.

AFS Nursery Phonics School Overview 2023

We begin teaching phonics formally in Reception as soon as they are settled into school and we follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised progression, which ensures children build on their growing knowledge of the alphabetic code, mastering phonics to read and spell as they move through school.

Throughout school, we have a strong focus on language development for all our children because we know that speaking and listening are crucial skills for reading and writing in all subjects.

At Archibald First School, we value reading as a crucial life skill and instil in our children the need to aspire to become fluent readers. By the time children leave us, they read confidently for meaning and regularly enjoy reading for pleasure. Our readers are successful and equipped with the tools to tackle unfamiliar vocabulary. We encourage our children to see themselves as readers for both pleasure and purpose.

To support learners, we use the Little Wandle Keep up programme alongside other interventions and programmes such as IDL, Nessy.

We invite all our parents to a Reading and Phonic Workshop/Meeting at the beginning of Reception and Year 1. Please see below the parents’ section of the Little Wandle website too.

https://www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/

Programme Overview Reception and Year 1