Now that the children have settled into their new routines and classroom environments, we wanted to inform you of the arrangements for Phonics and Early Reading.

Where possible, children should read or share a book every day at home with an adult. Reading at home is extremely important as research has proven that it expands vocabulary, provides children with the opportunity to apply their phonic knowledge and will develop their understanding of the text through the pictures and phrases being used.

“The basic pleasure in the phonetic elements of a language and in the style of their patterns, and then in a higher dimension, pleasure in the association of these word-forms with meanings, is of fundamental importance.”

J R R Tolkien

At Eastbrook Primary Academy we are adamant that reading is the building block for all future learning – we will stop at nothing to ensure that all of our children become fluent, confident, capable readers.

 

Phonics at Eastbrook

We have recently started following a new phonics scheme called Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised which is a government validated systematic synthetic phonics programme. Phonics enables your child to learn to read by teaching sounds and tricky words in a systematic order. This means that children are able to start reading words and sentences quickly – even as soon as learning their first three sounds: s -a – t, sat! Children learn that sounds can be represented by graphemes (written letters) and to blend sounds together to read words. 

Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised is a complete phonics programme, complete with a brilliant website, a fully matched scheme of reading books and a wide range of resources for use in and out of the classroom. Children complete their phonics together as a whole class, repeating key phonics elements and extending their skills so that no child is left behind and no one forgets the basics. The scheme also includes clear models for the teaching of reading through dedicated, phonically decodable books (published for Little Wandle through the Collins Big Cat series). The learning is supported by high quality support and guidance for parents. You can follow the link below to find out more. 

Little Wandle Resources for Parents 

  

Reading Diaries

Your child should now have a reading record diary, and we kindly ask that reading diaries be brought into school every day, regardless of whether your child has read their allocated books. In school, we will be reading with children at least 3 times per week as part of the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised scheme.   It is important for us to identify children who are not reading at home and therefore, if we do not see a child’s reading diary on a regular basis, then we may contact you to ask that it be brought in. If you have lost your child’s diary, please do not hesitate to speak to a member of staff who will be able to find a replacement. Please ensure that you record in your child’s diary every time you have read with them at home. This could be a sharing book or a phonics book.   When books will be changed  In EYFS and KS1 (Years 1 and 2), each child will receive a phonics reading book based on the phonics sounds they know confidently. Your child should be able to decode at least 95% of this book and be reading with some fluency. In the front of the book, you will find important words and vocabulary and in the back, you will find ideas for comprehension practice. These books will be sent home every Friday and must be returned the following Tuesday.   Your child will also bring home a ‘sharing’ book. This is for you to read and share with your child at your leisure and to foster a love of reading. When your child has completed their books, please change the book, using the class sharing box outside the classroom.   Reading Awards  Every Wednesday, staff will count the number of reads your child has completed at home to allocate reading awards. Please ensure that your child’s reading diary is placed in the box on a Wednesday in order for this to happen.  For every set of 30 reads, the children will receive the following:  10 reads- Bronze sticker  20 reads- Silver sticker  30 reads- Gold sticker  For every set of 100 reads a child completes, they will receive a certificate which will be awarded to them in assembly.  Useful Resources and Games

Click on the images below to use the following useful games and resources.