Phonics
Little Wandle Letters and Sounds
Aspire School follows the 'Little Wandle Letters and Sounds' phonics programme to help teach early reading and writing. This programme provides a clear and structured framework to teach early phonics through a range of games, visuals and writing practise. Most of our teaching of phonics will happen in either short, whole-class sessions; smaller, group sessions or 1:1 work. This will all depend on the individual needs of the pupils.
To view all of the sounds and guidance on how to pronounce and form them, please click on the links below.
Click on the link below to view the programme overview.
PLEASE NOTE: For children working at age related expectations, then the time scale set out in the guidance will be followed. However, if your child is working below age related expectations, then the class teacher will be working 1:1 with your child at a slower pace.
It is important that your child continues to learn their sounds at home. Please watch the videos below to ensure the correct sounds are being used. Please note how the children are not adding 'uh' at the end of the words. These are incorrect sounds and should be pronounced 'ssss' rather than 'suh'.
As well as the reading books from Little Wandle, we also read books on Bug Club which each teacher would have specifically assigned to each child based on their individual needs. These are books which they will be able to access at home too. Please see the information below on how to support your child with reading at home.
Supporting your child with reading
Aspire school has an AMAZING reading website where your child will have access to a range of exciting books and phonic games that their class teacher has assigned to them to read and play at home.
Along the way, your child will answer questions about what they have read and they can earn rewards in their own virtual world. In their virtual world, they will be able to use their points to add stickers to a sticker book or play games in their own virtual arcade.
These books really encourage enjoyment for reading as many of the titles are topics that the children could be into, including: Alphablocks, comics, Doctor Who, Wallace and Gromit, dinosaurs, theme parks or how to be a pop star. Think of it like an electronic book bag with quizzes along the way. All they need to do is log in with their own personal details (which would have been sent home) and the world of books and games is theirs.
How you can help:
A reading, practise book. This will be at the correct phonic stage for your child. They should be able to read this fluently and independently. If your child is reading it with little help, please don’t worry that it’s too easy – your child needs to develop fluency and confidence in reading. Remember to give them lots of praise – celebrate their success! If they can’t read a word, read it to them. After they have finished, talk about the book together.
A sharing book. Your child will not be able to read this on their own. This book is for you both to read and enjoy together. In order to encourage your child to become a lifelong reader, it is important that they learn to read for pleasure. The sharing book is a book they have chosen for you to enjoy together.
Please remember that you shouldn’t expect your child to read this alone. Read it to or with them. Discuss the pictures, enjoy the story, predict what might happen next, use different voices for the characters, explore the facts in a non-fiction book. The main thing is that you have fun!