What is phonics?
In UK primary schools, phonics is used to teach reading and writing in the English language. Phonics is a method of teaching children to read by linking sounds (phonemes) with symbols that represent them (graphemes). It is based on developing learners’ phonemic awareness—the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate phonemes—in order to teach the correspondence between these sounds and the spelling patterns that represent them.
Once children can hear phonemes and identify the corresponding graphemes, they can use this phonic knowledge to create words by blending from left to right, for example, ‘c – a – t’, blended together gives ‘cat’. As the number of phonemes and corresponding graphemes that the children know increases, so does the number of words they can decode and subsequently construct.
Phonics is essential for children to become successful readers, spellers and writers in the early years of schooling and beyond. In the first three years of their school life, it is a requirement that all children should have a daily lesson of phonics. Over these years (and beyond in certain cases), a systematic synthetic approach should be followed in order that the best possible outcomes are available for all children.
Systematic phonics teaching is the direct teaching of a set of grapheme-phoneme correspondence (GPC) in a clearly defined sequence. If phonics teaching is truly systematic, children become confident and successful readers, spellers and writers in a very short amount of time.
Synthetic phonics refers to breaking up words into the smallest units of sound (phonemes). An emphasis is placed on every sound within each word. Children are taught how to break up words, or decode them, into individual sounds, and then blend all the way through the word. Children do not need to rely on any other cues to decode. They then spell and write the words using this approach as once the Grapheme-Phoneme Correspondence (GPC) is secure, the children can readily access the words needed for these skills.
There are 26 letters in the alphabet but there are 44 sounds, and over 100 different ways of spelling them. Phonics is all about sounds, which we put together to form words. Some are represented by one letter, like ‘t’, and some by two or more, like ‘ck’ in duck and ‘air’ in chair.
At Hill Top, ‘Monster Phonics’ is the chosen accredited provider used to teach phonics, high frequency words and to support early reading development. Monster Phonics is a highly engaging, structured, synthetic phonics programme, which facilitates learning by using monsters to group graphemes for recall and act as an easy and fun memory cue for children. It also uses colour-coding to highlight the grapheme when teaching a new grapheme. Once taught and secure, the colour is removed.
Monster Phonics matches the Reception EYFS framework and KS1 Spelling Curriculum. It progresses from simple to more complex phonic knowledge and skills, building on prior knowledge. The main principles of systematic synthetic phonics teaching are followed, allowing children to become confident and successful readers, spellers and writers from a very early stage in their school life.
Ten monsters and corresponding colours represent the areas of phonics that present the biggest obstacles to learning. Each of these are outlined below:
Monster Phonics is designed as a whole-class Systematic Synthetic Phonics programme for children in Reception and Key Stage 1. Daily 20–30-minute discrete phonics sessions are delivered by trained teaching staff.
Sound actions
Each sound in Monster Phonics has a sound action which helps chldren remember them.
Blending sounds
Monster Phonics teaches children to read by enabling them to identify the individual graphemes (letters) and blend the sounds (phonemes) together to read the word.
Synthetic phonics refers to ‘synthesising’, or blending, the sounds to read words. It is based on the idea that children should sound out unknown words and not rely on their context.
Letter formation
Children are taught to write the letters alongside learning the sounds. This enables them to become proficient and confident handwriters.
Segmenting sounds
Monster Phonics teaches children to write words by enabling them to segment the sounds (phonemes) to spell the word. They then identify the individual graphemes (letters) and write these down.
Interventions
Planned interventions are provided for children who have not met specific Learning Objectives for any phonics lesson, ensuring every child progresses and keeps up with their peers.
Guided Reading Sessions.
Children begin their reading journey in reception and are given a reading book with words when they are confident with the skill of blending sounds.
Pupils have 3 timetabled sessions of guided reading each week. The same book is read in each of these sessions. The three recommended guided reading sessions focus on key reading skills:
• book talk & decoding
• developing fluency and prosody – reading with meaning, stress and intonation
• comprehension – understanding the text. The same reading book is used for each of the group reading sessions and then this is sent home for further practice.
