Reading and Phonics

At Manuden Primary School, reading is at the heart of our curriculum. We want every child to become a confident, fluent reader who enjoys books, understands what they read and develops the vocabulary and knowledge needed to succeed across the curriculum.

We believe that learning to read well opens the door to the wider curriculum and supports children’s academic, social and emotional development.

Early Reading and Phonics

We teach early reading through Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, a systematic synthetic phonics programme.

Children in Reception and Year 1 receive daily phonics teaching. They learn to recognise grapheme-phoneme correspondences, blend sounds to read words and segment words for spelling.

Children are regularly assessed so that teaching can be matched closely to what they know. Where a child needs additional support, targeted keep-up or catch-up teaching is provided promptly.

Reading Practice

In Reception and Year 1, children take part in structured reading practice sessions using fully decodable books matched to their secure phonic knowledge.

These sessions focus on three key areas:

• Decoding – applying phonics knowledge accurately
• Prosody – developing fluent and expressive reading
• Comprehension – understanding and discussing what has been read

Children have repeated opportunities to practise the same text so that they develop increasing accuracy, fluency and confidence. Little Wandle recommends three reading-practice sessions each week, with each session having a specific focus. 

Supporting Children Who Need More Help

We closely monitor pupils’ reading development and respond quickly when children need additional support.

Children who require further phonics teaching receive targeted support matched to their individual gaps. For older pupils who are not yet reading at an age-appropriate level, additional phonics and reading support may include the Little Wandle Rapid Catch-up programme. 

Our aim is for every child to become an increasingly independent and successful reader.

Reading Beyond Phonics

As children become secure readers, teaching increasingly develops fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

Across the school, children experience:

• high-quality fiction, non-fiction and poetry;
• regular opportunities to hear adults read aloud;
• whole-class and small-group reading;
• discussion about texts and authors;
• explicit teaching of vocabulary;
• opportunities to retrieve information, infer meaning, make predictions and explain ideas using evidence from the text;
• reading across the wider curriculum.

We want children not only to be able to read, but to think carefully about what they read and communicate their ideas confidently.

Reading for Pleasure

Developing a genuine enjoyment of reading is an important part of school life at Manuden.

Children are encouraged to explore a wide range of authors, genres and text types through class reading areas, our school library, shared stories and wider reading opportunities.

We celebrate reading through activities such as World Book Day, themed reading opportunities and links with local library initiatives.

Adults model enthusiasm for books and help children discover texts that reflect their interests while also introducing them to new authors, experiences and perspectives.

Reading at Home

We value the partnership between school and home in developing successful readers.

Children are encouraged to read regularly at home and to talk about what they have read with an adult.

For children learning through Little Wandle, books are carefully matched to the phonics knowledge they have been taught. Children may also bring home a book chosen for enjoyment to share with their family.

As children become more independent readers, they select from a wider range of books appropriate to their reading development and interests.

Assessment

Teachers assess reading continually through observation, discussion, reading practice and pupils’ responses to texts.

Phonics is assessed regularly so that teachers can identify gaps quickly and provide appropriate support.

As pupils move through the school, teachers assess their accuracy, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension to ensure that they continue to make strong progress.

Find Out More

Further information about Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, including resources for parents, is available through the Little Wandle website.

If you would like further information about how reading or phonics is taught at Manuden Primary School, please contact the school office.