Reading and Phonics
We want every child to become a confident reader who understands what they read and chooses to read for enjoyment. Reading opens the door to learning across the curriculum, introduces children to different lives and ideas, and helps them explore their own interests.
At Prospect Vale, our reading journey begins with talk, stories, songs and rhymes. Through systematic phonics, children learn to read words accurately. We then build fluency, vocabulary and understanding through carefully taught reading lessons and a rich range of texts.
We are proud to be a Champion School for phonics, working with Lacey Green English Hub. Our commitment to early reading sits alongside our ambition for every child to grow into an interested, capable and increasingly independent reader.
Strong foundations in Nursery
Before children begin formal phonics teaching, they develop the language and listening skills that support reading. In Nursery, stories, songs, rhymes, sound games and conversations help children listen closely, explore sounds and learn new words.
Adults talk with children, respond to their ideas and extend their language. Children join in with familiar stories, retell events and use books and language within their play. These experiences help them understand that reading is meaningful and enjoyable.
Learning to read with Little Wandle
We teach phonics using Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised. This systematic synthetic phonics programme gives children a carefully sequenced route through the sounds and spellings they need to read.
“Systematic” means that learning follows a planned sequence. “Synthetic” means that children learn to blend individual sounds together to read a word. For example, they can blend the sounds in c–a–t to read cat.
Daily phonics in Reception and Year 1
Children have daily phonics teaching following the Little Wandle progression. Familiar routines help them concentrate on the new learning while regularly revisiting what they already know.
Lessons include opportunities to:
· Revisit previously taught sounds and words.
· Learn new sounds and the letters that represent them.
· Blend sounds to read words and practise reading sentences.
· Learn the unusual parts of “tricky words”.
· Hear the sounds in words and use that knowledge when spelling.
Teachers demonstrate clearly, and children practise actively. The language and routines remain consistent so that support in class and additional practice reinforce the same learning.
How phonics develops
In Reception, children learn the early letter–sound correspondences and practise blending them to read words. They go on to learn sounds represented by more than one letter and read increasingly complex words and sentences.
In Year 1, children extend this knowledge, including learning alternative spellings for sounds and different pronunciations of familiar letter groups. Regular revision helps them use their phonics knowledge more confidently and automatically.
Children continue to receive phonics teaching and practice beyond Year 1 where they need it. Support follows their assessed reading needs.
Some useful phonics terms:
Phoneme
A sound in a word.
Grapheme
A letter or group of letters representing a sound.
Digraph
Two letters representing one sound, such as sh.
Trigraph
Three letters representing one sound, such as igh.
Blending
Combining sounds to read a word.
Segmenting
Identifying the sounds in a word to help spell it.
Tricky word
A word containing a spelling that is unusual or has not yet been taught. Children learn which part needs particular attention.
Checking progress and providing support
Teachers check children’s responses during lessons and use regular phonics assessments to identify what is secure and what needs more practice. This also helps staff select appropriately matched reading books.
Little Wandle Keep-up support provides extra practice with specific sounds, blending or word reading when needed. Children who continue to find decoding difficult receive targeted teaching to strengthen these foundations, including in Key Stage 2 where appropriate.
We adapt support to children’s needs while maintaining the ambition that every child learns to read. Please speak to your child’s teacher if you are concerned about their progress or would like help practising at home.
Putting phonics into practice
Children learning through Little Wandle have reading practice sessions using books matched to their secure phonics knowledge. The three-read approach gives each session a different focus, with repeated reading helping children become more confident.
Decoding — reading the words: children apply their phonics knowledge to read accurately.
Prosody — reading with expression: children practise phrasing, emphasis and attention to punctuation so that their reading reflects the meaning.
Comprehension — understanding the text: children discuss what they have read and develop their understanding of the book.
These reading practice sessions take place three times a week within the Little Wandle approach. Rereading a familiar book is purposeful practice: it helps children become smoother, more confident readers.
Reading books at home
An early reading practice book gives your child the opportunity to practise independently using the phonics they know. A sharing book offers a wider reading experience for you to enjoy together.
With a reading practice book, listen, encourage and celebrate success. A book that feels manageable helps your child build fluency. If they struggle with a word, support them calmly; if it remains difficult, tell them the word and keep the reading enjoyable. Let their teacher know about recurring difficulties.
With a sharing book, read to or with your child. Enjoy the pictures, discuss the story or discover new facts together. Your child is not expected to decode every word in this book independently.
Use the Little Wandle parent videos to hear how sounds are pronounced and see how blending is taught. When supporting word reading, encourage attention to the letters and sounds rather than guessing from pictures.
Little Wandle information and videos for parents
Becoming a fluent reader
As children become more secure at reading words, we help them develop fluency: accurate reading at an appropriate pace, with phrasing and expression that show understanding.
Fluency is about reading meaningfully. Children learn to notice punctuation, group words into phrases and use their voice to reflect what is happening. This supports the move from working out individual words towards thinking about the meaning of a whole text.
Phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension continue to support one another. Children can explore rich stories and ideas through listening and discussion while still developing their own word reading.
Reading World in Key Stage 2
In Years 3–6, children have four structured reading sessions each week. Our Reading World approach brings together engagement, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Teachers adapt the order and activities to the text while ensuring that all four strands are covered.
Engaging with the text
Children explore a text’s purpose, ask questions and connect it with what they already know. They discuss what interests or puzzles them and build a mental picture of the setting, events or information.
A picture, object, piece of music or short related text may help introduce the reading. Children revisit initial predictions and ideas as they learn more.
Developing fluency
Teachers model fluent reading and explain how punctuation and meaning affect their voice. Children practise through approaches such as:
· Echo reading: repeating a short passage after the teacher, practising phrasing and expression.
· Choral reading: reading a passage together.
· Partner reading: practising with a partner and discussing the reading.
· Repeated reading: returning to a passage to improve confidence and expression.
Rehearsed reading and performance can help children explore a character’s feelings and the effect of the author’s language.
Exploring vocabulary
We explicitly teach vocabulary that helps children understand the text and that they may meet again. Children discuss meanings, compare similar words and explore opposites, word families and examples.
They consider how words change the effect of a sentence. For example, walked, crept and strode suggest different movements and feelings. Children practise using new vocabulary in discussion and writing, helping them connect reading with their wider learning.
Teaching comprehension
Teachers show children how a reader makes sense of a text. They explain their thinking, demonstrate how to locate evidence and model what to do when something is unclear. Children practise together before applying their learning more independently.
Our comprehension work uses VIPERS as a reminder of important reading skills:
Vocabulary
Explain words and phrases in context.
Inference
Use clues and evidence to understand what is suggested.
Prediction
Make sensible predictions from what they have read.
Explanation
Explain ideas and the effects of an author’s choices.
Retrieval
Find relevant information and details.
Summarising
Identify and explain the main ideas or events.
Children also compare texts, explore themes and consider how a text is organised. Discussion, drawing, drama and written responses give them different ways to show understanding.
Reading books include two recorded tasks each week: a comprehension response and another response, such as vocabulary work, a prediction, a summary or a labelled drawing. These sit alongside the discussion and teaching that develop understanding.
Choosing texts with purpose
Children encounter fiction, non-fiction, poetry and other forms of writing. We select texts to develop enjoyment, vocabulary and knowledge, with meaningful connections to other subjects where appropriate.
For example, our Year 3 reading overview links texts including The First Drawing and Stone Age Boy with learning about the Stone Age. Children can use what they learn in history to understand the reading, and use the reading to deepen their historical knowledge.
We also want children to encounter unfamiliar worlds, different perspectives and authors whose work broadens their experience. Year-group reading overviews show the planned texts and learning focus.
A love of reading
Daily story time, shared reading and conversations about books help children experience the pleasure of reading. Listening to an adult read gives children access to language and ideas beyond the books they can yet read independently.
We encourage children to develop preferences, recommend books and discover new interests. Reading for enjoyment includes stories, poetry, information books, comics and other suitable texts that capture a child’s curiosity.
Our school library is a welcoming space where children can discover books, explore their interests and enjoy reading. Our school librarian carefully curates the collection, listens to children’s preferences and recommends books that spark their curiosity. By talking with children about what they enjoy and helping them discover new authors and stories, our librarian builds their confidence as readers and keeps them excited about what they might read next.
Supporting older readers at home
· Make regular time for reading and let your child choose from a range of suitable books.
· Continue reading aloud together, even when your child can read independently.
· Ask what they enjoyed, what surprised them or what they think will happen next.
· Explore an interesting word or ask which part of the text supports their idea.
· Encourage rereading a short passage with expression when helpful.
· Keep the conversation enjoyable and share your own reading interests.
Books and conversations in your family’s home language are valuable too. Talk, storytelling and shared enjoyment help children build language and knowledge.
Find out more
For information about your child’s reading, their books or additional support, please contact their class teacher through the school office.