Early Reading and Phonics at Djanogly Sherwood

‘The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.’ Dr Seuss

Intent

At Djanogly Sherwood Academy we believe that success in reading stems from a love of reading and books. We select books and resources that will inspire and engage the children. Phonics is viewed as an essential part of learning to read to ensure that children have the skills that they need to decode words.

Our environment

Our environment is carefully planned so that a range of books are available in all areas of provision to support children’s independent learning. Our weekly book of the week is available for children to access along with activities and resources based on the book. In the home corner, we provide a range of books to reflect the pleasure of reading at home.

Implementation

We teach phonics using Little Wandle. Children have daily phonics sessions which are followed up with group reading 3 times a week using a book that matches the sounds they have been learning in class. This book is then brought home along with a ‘book for pleasure’ that the child has chosen.

RED TED is used to encourage children to read regularly at home. If they read 24 times over a half term, they get to take home a ted or an accessory. 

A book is selected each week for focussed teaching. Books are chosen for different reasons including children’s interests, special events or just because it is a good book! The book is read every day and encourages children to learn new vocabulary, ask and answer questions and predict what might happen,

Impact - Love of reading

We are developing a culture where books are valued and reading is important. In early reading this might include:

• Daily story time
• Weekly lending library
• Free Book Trust book
• Poetry basket and Brilliant books
• Story Café
• World Book Day celebrations
• Stay and Read

Impact – Reading skills

We equip children with key reading skills including:

• Orientation and Direction of text
• Word by word matching
• Decoding and blending
• Recognising sight words
• Access text so that they want to read