Our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum is ambitious, inclusive and carefully sequenced.

It is designed to enable learners to:

• develop strong communication and language foundations;
• hear and distinguish sounds;
• develop phonological awareness;
• understand that written letters represent spoken sounds;
• learn phoneme–grapheme correspondences;
• blend sounds to read words;
• segment spoken words for spelling;
• read common exception words;
• read fully decodable books;
• develop reading accuracy;
• build automaticity;
• read with increasing fluency;
• develop confidence and stamina;
• understand what they read;
• and become increasingly independent readers.

St Luke’s uses Read Write Inc. Phonics as its systematic synthetic phonics programme.

The programme provides a clear sequence for teaching:

• sounds;
• graphemes;
• blending;
• word reading;
• spelling;
• sentence reading;
• decodable texts;
• fluency; and
• early comprehension.

The programme is taught consistently so that learners encounter the same routines, terminology and expectations across relevant classes and intervention groups.

The Simple View of Reading

Our early reading approach recognises that successful reading draws on two connected areas:

• word recognition and decoding; and
• language comprehension.

Phonics enables learners to read unfamiliar written words.

Language comprehension enables them to understand vocabulary, sentences, stories, information and ideas.

Learners need both.

A learner may decode accurately but require further support with vocabulary or understanding. Another learner may understand rich spoken language but be unable to access it independently in print because decoding is insecure.

Teaching and assessment therefore identify the particular barrier rather than treating all reading difficulty in the same way.

Systematic Synthetic Phonics

Phonics is taught systematically.

This means that:

• content follows an agreed sequence;
• sounds and graphemes are introduced cumulatively;
• new learning builds on secure prior knowledge;
• blending is taught from the beginning;
• learners practise reading words containing taught correspondences;
• spelling is connected to phonics;
• books match learners’ phonic knowledge;
• assessment identifies specific gaps; and
• teaching responds promptly.

Synthetic phonics teaches learners to identify the sounds represented by letters or groups of letters and blend those sounds to read a word.

For example, a learner encountering an unfamiliar decodable word is taught to:

• identify the graphemes;
• say the corresponding sounds;
• blend the sounds together; and
• recognise the complete spoken word.

Learners are not encouraged to guess unfamiliar words from pictures, context or the first letter.

Pictures and context can support comprehension, but decoding is the primary strategy for reading an unfamiliar word while learners are following the phonics programme.

Equal Access

Our curriculum is ambitious for every learner, including:

• learners with SEND;
• disadvantaged learners;
• learners with English as an additional language;
• learners with speech, language and communication needs;
• learners with limited prior experience of books;
• learners who join the school during the year;
• learners with interrupted education;
• and older learners who have not secured decoding.

Teaching is adapted to remove barriers while maintaining fidelity to the essential sequence and principles of the phonics programme.

By the time learners complete the programme, they should be able to decode unfamiliar words accurately, recognise an increasing number of words automatically and read appropriately matched texts with growing fluency and understanding.

Our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum develops several closely connected bodies of knowledge.

Communication and Language Knowledge

Before and alongside formal phonics, learners develop knowledge of spoken language.

This includes:

• listening;
• attention;
• vocabulary;
• sentence structure;
• conversation;
• storytelling;
• description;
• questioning;
• explanation;
• rhyme;
• rhythm; and
• the sounds within spoken words.

Strong spoken language supports both reading comprehension and later writing.

Phonological Awareness

Phonological awareness is the ability to notice and work with the sounds within spoken language.

Learners develop awareness of:

• environmental sounds;
• instrumental sounds;
• voice sounds;
• rhythm;
• rhyme;
• alliteration;
• syllables;
• onset and rime;
• and individual phonemes.

Phonological awareness is developed through purposeful listening, songs, rhymes, oral games, stories and adult interaction.

It prepares learners to understand that spoken words can be broken into smaller sound units.

Phonemic Awareness

Phonemic awareness is the ability to identify and manipulate the smallest units of sound in spoken words.

Learners develop the ability to:

• hear a phoneme;
• identify the initial sound in a word;
• orally blend phonemes;
• orally segment words;
• recognise where a sound occurs;
• and distinguish between similar sounds.

Phonemic awareness is closely connected to the teaching of graphemes once formal phonics begins.

Grapheme–Phoneme Correspondence

Learners develop knowledge of the relationships between:

• phonemes, which are units of sound; and
• graphemes, which are the letters or groups of letters representing those sounds.

They learn that:

• one sound may be represented by one or more letters;
• the same sound may sometimes have different spellings;
• some graphemes may represent different sounds;
• and English contains both regular patterns and exceptions.

This knowledge is taught in a planned sequence.

Blending

Blending is the process of combining phonemes to read a word.

Learners are taught to:

• recognise each grapheme;
• recall the corresponding phoneme;
• move through the word from left to right;
• blend the sounds;
• and identify the spoken word.

Blending is practised regularly so that it becomes increasingly accurate, rapid and automatic.

Segmenting

Segmenting is the process of breaking a spoken word into phonemes for spelling.

Learners are taught to:

• say the word;
• identify each sound;
• hold the sounds in sequence;
• select appropriate graphemes;
• and write the word.

Blending supports reading, while segmenting supports spelling. The two processes are closely connected but not identical.

Common Exception Words

Learners develop knowledge of common words containing unusual or not-yet-taught sound–spelling correspondences.

These words are taught explicitly.

Learners are helped to identify:

• the regular parts of the word;
• the unusual or exceptional grapheme;
• the correct pronunciation;
• and the spelling that must be remembered.

Common exception words are not treated as visual shapes to be memorised without attention to their sound structure.

Word Structure

As learners progress, they develop knowledge of:

• syllables;
• compound words;
• prefixes;
• suffixes;
• root words;
• inflectional endings;
• and word families.

This supports both decoding and spelling.

Decoding

Decoding is the application of phonic knowledge to read unfamiliar words.

Successful decoding requires learners to:

• recognise graphemes accurately;
• recall phonemes rapidly;
• blend in the correct order;
• attend to the whole word;
• and check that the result forms a possible spoken word.

Learners are encouraged to apply phonics independently rather than wait for an adult to provide the word.

Automatic Word Recognition

Through accurate decoding and repeated successful reading, familiar words become increasingly automatic.

Automatic word recognition means that learners can read a word quickly without needing to sound it out overtly each time.

This reduces the demands placed on working memory and supports greater attention to meaning.

Automaticity develops through:

• secure phonic knowledge;
• accurate decoding;
• repeated reading;
• closely matched books;
• and frequent successful practice.

Fluency

Fluency connects word reading and comprehension.

Learners develop:

• accuracy;
• automaticity;
• appropriate pace;
• phrasing;
• attention to punctuation;
• expression;
• and prosody.

Fluency does not mean reading as quickly as possible.

A fluent reader reads accurately, at an appropriate pace and with phrasing and expression that reflect meaning.

Language Comprehension

Learners develop comprehension through:

• conversation;
• listening to stories;
• reading aloud;
• vocabulary teaching;
• background knowledge;
• discussion;
• retelling;
• explanation;
• prediction;
• and questioning.

Language comprehension can develop beyond a learner’s current decoding level. Adults therefore continue to read ambitious texts aloud while learners are learning phonics.

Book and Print Knowledge

Learners develop knowledge of:

• how books are handled;
• the direction of print;
• words and spaces;
• sentences;
• punctuation;
• titles;
• authors;
• illustrators;
• pages;
• text and images;
• fiction;
• poetry;
• and non-fiction.

These foundations support learners’ understanding of how written texts work.

Our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum is structured around recurring concepts that are introduced systematically and revisited through regular practice.

Spoken Language

Spoken language is the foundation of literacy.

Learners need opportunities to hear, understand and use a wide range of:

• vocabulary;
• sentences;
• stories;
• explanations;
• rhymes;
• songs;
• and conversations.

Adults model accurate and increasingly sophisticated language and respond thoughtfully to learners’ contributions.

Sound

Speech is made up of sounds.

Learners develop the ability to:

• listen carefully;
• distinguish sounds;
• reproduce sounds;
• identify phonemes;
• hold sounds in sequence;
• and connect sounds with written representations.

Phoneme

A phoneme is the smallest unit of sound that can change the meaning of a word.

Learners are taught to hear and articulate phonemes accurately.

Teachers use consistent pronunciation and avoid adding an unnecessary “uh” sound to consonants where this would make blending more difficult.

Grapheme

A grapheme is a letter or group of letters representing a phoneme.

Learners understand that graphemes may contain:

• one letter;
• two letters;
• three letters;
• or, less commonly, four letters.

They learn the graphemes in the sequence established by Read Write Inc.

Alphabetic Code

The alphabetic code is the system through which written letters and letter groups represent spoken sounds.

Learners gradually develop knowledge of:

• common correspondences;
• alternative graphemes;
• alternative pronunciations;
• and common exceptions.

Secure knowledge of the code enables learners to approach unfamiliar words independently.

Oral Blending

Oral blending involves hearing separate sounds and combining them into a spoken word without seeing the written word.

It is an important foundation for reading.

Learners might hear a sequence of phonemes and identify the complete word.

Blending for Reading

Learners apply grapheme–phoneme knowledge from left to right and blend the sounds to read the whole word.

Blending is the principal strategy for reading unfamiliar decodable words during the phonics programme.

Segmenting for Spelling

Learners break a spoken word into phonemes and select graphemes to represent those sounds.

They are taught to listen carefully, identify the sounds in order and apply known correspondences.

Accuracy

Accuracy comes before speed.

Learners should read words correctly by applying secure phonic knowledge.

Repeated inaccurate guessing can establish weak reading habits. Adults therefore prompt learners to look carefully at the complete word and use the taught strategy.

Automaticity

Automaticity develops when learners can recognise familiar words quickly and accurately following repeated successful decoding.

It enables attention to move from identifying individual words towards understanding sentences and complete texts.

Decodability

A decodable book contains words that learners can read using the sound–spelling correspondences they have already been taught, together with a limited number of explicitly taught common exception words.

Books used for independent early reading should be closely matched to current phonic knowledge.

Learners should not be expected to read books containing substantial amounts of untaught code independently.

Repeated Reading

Rereading a familiar decodable book supports:

• accuracy;
• automaticity;
• confidence;
• fluency;
• expression;
• and comprehension.

Repeating a book is purposeful practice rather than an indication that a learner is not progressing.

Fluency

Fluency develops through secure decoding and repeated practice.

Learners move from:

• sounding out each word;
• to blending more smoothly;
• to recognising familiar words automatically;
• to reading sentences with appropriate phrasing;
• and eventually to reading whole texts with increasing expression and understanding.

Prosody

Prosody refers to the rhythm, stress, phrasing and expression used when reading aloud.

Learners develop prosody through:

• hearing adults read;
• echo reading;
• repeated reading;
• attention to punctuation;
• discussion of meaning;
• and performance.

Expression should reflect understanding rather than become exaggerated or disconnected from the text.

Comprehension

Comprehension is the construction of meaning.

Learners develop understanding through:

• vocabulary;
• oral language;
• background knowledge;
• accurate word reading;
• sentence understanding;
• discussion;
• retelling;
• prediction;
• retrieval;
• and explanation.

Phonics and comprehension are taught as complementary rather than competing priorities.

Fidelity

Fidelity means implementing the essential content, sequence, routines and principles of the chosen phonics programme consistently.

At St Luke’s, this includes:

• consistent terminology;
• agreed pronunciation;
• common routines;
• accurate sequencing;
• matched resources;
• appropriate assessment;
• and training for staff involved in phonics teaching.

Adaptation should improve access without disrupting the cumulative structure of the programme.

Practice

Learners need frequent successful practice to secure early reading.

Practice should be:

• closely matched;
• purposeful;
• correctly modelled;
• sufficiently frequent;
• supported by feedback;
• and responsive to identified gaps.

Keep-Up

Keep-up provision provides prompt additional support when a learner begins to find new content difficult.

Its purpose is to prevent small gaps from becoming established.

Keep-up teaching should:

• begin promptly;
• focus on precise gaps;
• use familiar programme routines;
• provide additional practice;
• and be reviewed regularly.

Catch-Up

Catch-up provision supports learners who have accumulated more significant gaps or are substantially behind the programme’s expected sequence.

It should:

• begin from accurate assessment;
• teach missing knowledge systematically;
• use age-respectful resources;
• occur frequently;
• complement classroom teaching;
• and continue until the learner has secured the required knowledge.

Reading Identity

Learners should see themselves as readers while they are still learning to decode.

Adults build a positive reading identity through:

• successful practice;
• encouraging feedback;
• rich reading aloud;
• access to engaging books;
• book talk;
• celebrating progress;
• and avoiding comparisons that create shame.

Every learner should experience the message: reading is for me, and I can become a reader.

Our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum is implemented through a consistent, systematic and carefully monitored approach.

St Luke’s uses Read Write Inc. Phonics as its systematic synthetic phonics programme. The programme provides the sequence, routines, terminology, texts and assessment structure used to teach learners how to decode and read fluently.

All staff involved in phonics and early reading are expected to use the programme accurately and consistently.

Nursery Foundations

In Nursery, children develop the communication, listening and phonological foundations needed for later phonics.

Provision includes:

• high-quality adult interaction;
• songs and rhymes;
• storytelling;
• listening games;
• oral blending;
• sound discrimination;
• vocabulary development;
• repeated reading;
• print awareness;
• and purposeful mark-making.

Children are not rushed into formal written phonics before they are developmentally ready. However, adults deliberately prepare them to hear, attend to and manipulate spoken sounds.

Reception and Key Stage 1

Formal phonics teaching takes place daily through Read Write Inc.

Teaching includes:

• review of previously taught sounds;
• introduction of new phoneme–grapheme correspondences;
• oral rehearsal;
• blending;
• word reading;
• common exception words;
• sentence reading;
• spelling;
• reading of matched decodable texts;
• comprehension;
• and fluency practice.

Learners are grouped according to their current phonic knowledge rather than simply by age or class.

Grouping is reviewed regularly so that teaching remains closely matched to need.

Lesson Routines

Read Write Inc. lessons use consistent routines so that learners can focus on the reading content rather than repeatedly learning new task structures.

Routines may include:

• sound review;
• rapid recognition of graphemes;
• oral blending;
• reading words;
• reading common exception words;
• reading sentences;
• partner practice;
• repeated reading;
• spelling;
• and discussion of meaning.

Teachers maintain pace while ensuring that accuracy and understanding are not sacrificed.

Decodable Books

Learners read books that closely match the sounds and words they have been taught.

This means that:

• the code within the book is largely known;
• unfamiliar words can be decoded using taught phonics;
• common exception words have been introduced;
• the text enables successful practice;
• and books become progressively more demanding as knowledge develops.

Learners should be able to read their take-home decodable book with growing confidence.

The purpose of the home book is to practise and consolidate taught knowledge, not to introduce substantial amounts of unfamiliar code.

Learners may also take home or choose books to share with an adult for enjoyment. These books are not expected to be read independently unless they are fully decodable for that learner.

Reading Practice

Learners are given frequent opportunities to reread matched texts.

Repeated reading develops:

• accuracy;
• automaticity;
• fluency;
• confidence;
• phrasing;
• expression;
• and comprehension.

Teachers help learners move from sounding out individual words towards increasingly smooth and expressive reading.

Reading Aloud

While learners are learning to decode, adults continue to read ambitious stories, poetry and non-fiction aloud.

Reading aloud supports:

• language comprehension;
• vocabulary;
• background knowledge;
• imagination;
• literary knowledge;
• enjoyment;
• and reading identity.

Access to rich literature is not delayed until learners can read independently.

Daily Keep-Up

Learners who begin to find new content difficult receive prompt additional practice.

Keep-up provision:

• takes place as soon as a need is identified;
• focuses on specific sounds, blending or word-reading gaps;
• uses familiar Read Write Inc. routines;
• provides additional successful practice;
• and is reviewed regularly.

The aim is to prevent small gaps from becoming established.

Catch-Up Provision

Learners with more significant gaps receive structured catch-up teaching.

Catch-up provision is based on accurate assessment and may include:

• revisiting earlier sound sets;
• intensive blending practice;
• repeated word reading;
• age-respectful decodable texts;
• fluency work;
• individual or small-group teaching;
• and frequent review.

Catch-up teaching complements, rather than replaces, access to the wider curriculum.

Older Learners

Learners in Key Stage 2 who cannot decode securely continue to receive systematic phonics teaching.

Support is:

• based on precise assessment;
• age-respectful;
• frequent;
• focused on missing knowledge;
• closely monitored;
• and linked to suitable decodable texts.

Older struggling readers are not given generic comprehension work in place of the decoding instruction they need.

They continue to access age-appropriate stories, knowledge and discussion through reading aloud, supported reading and the wider curriculum.

Staff Training and Coaching

Staff who teach phonics receive training and ongoing support.

This may include:

• programme training;
• modelling;
• coaching;
• observation;
• feedback;
• practice of sound pronunciation;
• assessment moderation;
• lesson rehearsal;
• and shared review of learner progress.

Consistency is checked regularly so that learners receive accurate teaching across groups and classes.

Our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum is sequenced cumulatively.

Each new sound, word and text builds on knowledge that has already been taught.

Progression involves the development of:

• spoken language;
• phonological awareness;
• phonemic awareness;
• grapheme–phoneme knowledge;
• blending;
• segmenting;
• word reading;
• common exception word knowledge;
• automaticity;
• fluency;
• prosody;
• comprehension;
• and increasing independence.

Nursery

Children develop:

• listening and attention;
• vocabulary;
• oral storytelling;
• rhyme awareness;
• sound discrimination;
• syllable awareness;
• oral blending;
• print awareness;
• book knowledge;
• and enjoyment of stories.

Reception

Learners begin formal Read Write Inc. teaching.

They develop:

• recognition of taught sounds;
• blending of simple words;
• early segmenting;
• reading of decodable words;
• common exception word knowledge;
• sentence reading;
• early fluency;
• and confidence with matched texts.

Year 1

Learners deepen and extend their knowledge of the alphabetic code.

They develop:

• more complex sound–spelling correspondences;
• greater decoding accuracy;
• automatic recognition of familiar words;
• increased reading stamina;
• more fluent sentence reading;
• and secure application within decodable books.

Year 1 learners are prepared for the phonics screening check through the quality and consistency of daily teaching rather than through last-minute test practice.

Year 2

Learners who have completed the phonics programme continue to develop:

• fluency;
• automaticity;
• phrasing;
• prosody;
• vocabulary;
• and comprehension.

Learners who remain insecure continue to receive systematic phonics teaching and matched decodable reading.

Key Stage 2

Most learners will have moved beyond the formal phonics programme.

However, those who still have gaps receive targeted catch-up teaching.

Support focuses on:

• missing sound knowledge;
• blending;
• word recognition;
• fluency;
• morphology;
• and reading increasingly age-appropriate texts.

The aim is for every learner to become a secure reader as quickly as possible.

Progression Principles

Progression is guided by several principles:

• new knowledge builds on secure prior knowledge;
• assessment determines the correct starting point;
• learners do not skip essential code;
• practice is frequent and cumulative;
• accuracy comes before fluency;
• fluency develops from secure decoding;
• books match taught knowledge;
• and support continues until gaps are closed.

Learners may progress at different rates, but all receive an ambitious entitlement.

Consistent language supports effective phonics teaching.

Staff use agreed terminology so that learners do not have to interpret different explanations across classes or groups.

Key terms include:

• phoneme;
• grapheme;
• sound;
• letter;
• digraph;
• trigraph;
• blend;
• segment;
• decode;
• common exception word;
• syllable;
• root word;
• prefix;
• suffix;
• fluent;
• accurate;
• expression;
• punctuation;
• and comprehension.

Accurate Sound Pronunciation

Staff model sounds precisely.

Where appropriate, consonant sounds are pronounced without adding an unnecessary vowel sound.

For example, a sound should be modelled cleanly rather than with an added “uh,” because inaccurate pronunciation can make blending more difficult.

Consistent Prompts

Learners are supported through consistent prompts.

These may include prompts to:

• look at the complete word;
• identify the graphemes;
• say the sounds;
• blend from left to right;
• reread the word;
• reread the sentence;
• and check whether the result makes sense.

Adults avoid prompts that encourage guessing.

Partner Practice

Partner work may be used to increase practice and participation.

Learners are taught how to:

• take turns;
• listen carefully;
• support without giving the answer immediately;
• respond to agreed routines;
• and offer positive, accurate feedback.

Partner work is monitored so that errors are corrected promptly.

Language Comprehension

Vocabulary and comprehension are developed alongside phonics.

Teachers explain:

• unfamiliar words;
• sentence meaning;
• events;
• characters;
• information;
• and background knowledge needed to understand the text.

Learners are encouraged to:

• retell;
• predict;
• explain;
• answer questions;
• and discuss what they have read.

Phonics teaching should not become so focused on decoding that meaning is ignored.

Home-School Terminology

Families are supported to use the same broad approaches as school.

Where possible, the school provides guidance on:

• sound pronunciation;
• blending;
• segmenting;
• decodable books;
• repeated reading;
• and how to help without encouraging guessing.

Consistent language between school and home supports learner confidence.

Assessment is central to effective early reading provision.

It is used to identify what each learner knows, what remains insecure and what teaching is needed next.

Assessment is not used only to generate a score or assign a group.

What We Assess

Teachers assess:

• sound recognition;
• grapheme–phoneme knowledge;
• oral blending;
• word blending;
• segmenting;
• common exception words;
• decoding accuracy;
• automatic word recognition;
• sentence reading;
• fluency;
• prosody;
• comprehension;
• and confidence.

Read Write Inc. Assessment

Read Write Inc. assessments are used regularly to:

• identify current knowledge;
• place learners in appropriate groups;
• track progress;
• identify those falling behind;
• adjust teaching;
• plan keep-up;
• and determine catch-up needs.

Assessment is carried out by trained staff and moderated where necessary.

Day-to-Day Assessment

Teachers also assess continuously during lessons.

They notice whether learners:

• recognise sounds rapidly;
• confuse similar graphemes;
• struggle to blend;
• guess words;
• omit sounds;
• reverse sound order;
• read word by word without fluency;
• lose meaning while decoding;
• or rely heavily on adult support.

This information is used immediately.

Responding to Gaps

Teaching responds through:

• additional sound practice;
• further blending;
• more repetition;
• smaller groups;
• individual teaching;
• slower introduction of new content where necessary;
• extra decodable reading;
• repeated reading;
• fluency practice;
• and targeted vocabulary support.

The response is matched to the specific barrier.

Avoiding Generic Intervention

A learner who cannot decode securely needs systematic phonics teaching.

A learner who decodes accurately but reads slowly may need repeated reading and fluency practice.

A learner who reads fluently but does not understand may need vocabulary, background knowledge or comprehension support.

Assessment helps the school distinguish these needs.

Phonics Screening Check

The Year 1 phonics screening check provides additional information about how securely learners can decode.

It does not replace ongoing assessment.

Results are used alongside classroom evidence to identify next steps.

Learners who do not meet the expected standard continue to receive targeted phonics teaching and are supported towards the Year 2 recheck.

Monitoring Progress

Leaders review:

• individual progress;
• group movement;
• rates of progress;
• keep-up provision;
• catch-up impact;
• progress of disadvantaged learners;
• progress of learners with SEND;
• progress of learners with English as an additional language;
• and outcomes for older struggling readers.

Where progress is too slow, leaders review:

• teaching accuracy;
• programme fidelity;
• group placement;
• attendance;
• frequency of practice;
• barriers to learning;
• and whether additional specialist assessment is needed.

The impact of our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum can be seen in whether learners become accurate, fluent and confident readers.

Over time, learners should demonstrate:

• secure sound knowledge;
• accurate blending;
• increasing automaticity;
• successful reading of matched decodable texts;
• growing fluency;
• appropriate phrasing;
• increasing expression;
• stronger comprehension;
• greater reading stamina;
• confidence;
• independence;
• and enjoyment of books.

Evidence of Impact

Impact is evaluated through:

• phonics assessment;
• lesson observation;
• listening to learners read;
• decodable-book reading;
• fluency checks;
• phonics screening information;
• progress of intervention groups;
• learner discussion;
• reading confidence;
• and transition into the wider Reading curriculum.

No single measure is used in isolation.

Equity and Catch-Up

Leaders consider whether all learners are benefiting, including:

• disadvantaged learners;
• learners with SEND;
• learners with speech and language needs;
• learners with English as an additional language;
• learners with low attendance;
• learners joining the school late;
• and older learners with insecure decoding.

The school evaluates not only whether these learners receive support, but whether that support is closing gaps.

Reading Beyond Phonics

Successful impact is not defined only by completion of the phonics programme.

Learners should move into the wider Reading curriculum able to:

• read accurately;
• recognise many words automatically;
• read with appropriate fluency;
• understand what they read;
• and engage positively with books.

Learners who complete phonics continue to develop fluency, vocabulary, comprehension and reading for pleasure.

Intended Outcome

By the end of the early reading programme, learners should be able to approach unfamiliar words independently, read matched texts with confidence and use their growing fluency to focus on meaning.

By the end of Year 2, most learners should be secure, increasingly fluent readers.

Where learners have not yet reached this point, the school continues systematic support for as long as needed.

Our aim is that every learner leaves the early reading stage with the strongest possible foundation for future learning, wider reading and success across the curriculum.

Our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum is ambitious for every learner.

All learners are entitled to receive the systematic teaching, carefully matched practice and additional support they need to become readers.

Teachers identify barriers precisely and adapt provision without weakening the essential sequence or principles of Read Write Inc.

Adaptations may include:

• additional repetition;
• slower introduction of new content;
• smaller teaching groups;
• one-to-one practice;
• visual prompts;
• enlarged resources;
• adapted seating;
• reduced visual distraction;
• additional processing time;
• extra blending practice;
• more frequent retrieval;
• repeated reading;
• alternative response methods;
• careful use of gesture;
• assistive technology;
• and specialist advice where appropriate.

Learners with SEND

Learners with SEND may require additional support with:

• listening and attention;
• speech-sound discrimination;
• phonological processing;
• working memory;
• sound recall;
• blending;
• articulation;
• visual discrimination;
• motor control;
• fluency;
• or language comprehension.

Support is matched to the identified need.

The school does not assume that a learner with SEND cannot access systematic phonics. Many learners benefit from the clarity, consistency and cumulative structure of the programme.

Where adaptations are needed, staff preserve:

• the sequence of sound teaching;
• accurate modelling;
• blending as the main decoding strategy;
• matched decodable reading;
• frequent practice;
• and clear assessment.

For some learners, progress may require:

• smaller steps;
• greater repetition;
• additional rehearsal;
• specialist equipment;
• more individualised pacing;
• or support from external professionals.

Speech, Language and Communication Needs

Learners with speech, language and communication needs may understand a sound even where articulation is not yet fully secure.

Staff distinguish between:

• difficulty hearing a sound;
• difficulty recalling a sound;
• difficulty blending;
• difficulty producing a sound;
• and difficulty understanding the spoken word.

Where appropriate, the school seeks advice from the SENCo, speech and language professionals or other specialists.

Learners are not prevented from progressing solely because their spoken production is imperfect, provided they can recognise and apply the required sound knowledge.

Learners with English as an Additional Language

Learners with English as an additional language may need additional support with:

• unfamiliar English sounds;
• vocabulary;
• sentence meaning;
• idiomatic language;
• background knowledge;
• and distinctions that do not occur in their home language.

Teachers use:

• visual context;
• clear modelling;
• repeated oral practice;
• gestures;
• real objects;
• simple explanations;
• and opportunities to connect learning with languages already known.

Learning English as an additional language is not treated as a learning difficulty.

Learners may decode accurately while still developing language comprehension. They therefore receive continued vocabulary and oral-language support alongside phonics.

Learners with Physical or Sensory Needs

Learners may require:

• enlarged or high-contrast grapheme cards;
• tactile letters;
• adapted writing tools;
• specialist seating;
• hearing support;
• reduced background noise;
• alternative ways to indicate a response;
• additional positioning support;
• or digital access to texts.

Adaptations are planned carefully so that learners can participate actively rather than observe passively.

Disadvantaged Learners

Leaders ensure that disadvantaged learners have equitable access to:

• daily phonics;
• decodable books;
• keep-up teaching;
• catch-up provision;
• home-reading materials;
• workshops;
• library access;
• and wider reading experiences.

Where home reading is inconsistent, the school provides additional supported practice rather than lowering expectations.

Learners Requiring Greater Challenge

Learners who secure phonic knowledge rapidly are supported to develop:

• automaticity;
• fluency;
• prosody;
• comprehension;
• vocabulary;
• wider reading;
• and increasing independence.

Challenge should not involve skipping essential knowledge or moving learners prematurely into texts containing substantial amounts of untaught code.

Early reading begins in Nursery through communication, listening, vocabulary, stories, songs and careful attention to sound.

The EYFS provides the foundations on which systematic phonics is built.

Nursery

In Nursery, children develop:

• listening and attention;
• spoken vocabulary;
• sentence development;
• conversational turn-taking;
• enjoyment of stories;
• awareness of rhyme;
• rhythm;
• sound discrimination;
• syllable awareness;
• oral blending;
• oral segmenting;
• print awareness;
• and early mark-making.

Adults create a language-rich environment through:

• high-quality interaction;
• songs;
• rhymes;
• repeated stories;
• puppets;
• role play;
• storytelling;
• environmental print;
• picture books;
• non-fiction;
• and purposeful conversation.

Phonological awareness is developed through playful but deliberate activities.

Children may:

• identify environmental sounds;
• copy rhythms;
• recognise rhyming words;
• clap syllables;
• identify initial sounds;
• blend orally;
• and explore voice sounds.

Nursery provision prepares children for formal phonics without turning the curriculum into premature worksheet-based instruction.

Reception

In Reception, systematic synthetic phonics is taught through Read Write Inc.

Learners develop:

• secure sound recognition;
• grapheme knowledge;
• oral blending;
• word blending;
• early segmenting;
• reading of common exception words;
• sentence reading;
• decodable-book reading;
• early fluency;
• and comprehension.

Phonics is taught daily.

Learners are grouped according to their current knowledge and receive additional practice where needed.

Reception learners also continue to experience:

• rich talk;
• storytelling;
• songs;
• poetry;
• role play;
• high-quality reading aloud;
• oral composition;
• and access to a broad range of books.

Formal phonics does not replace the wider language and literacy curriculum.

Transition into Year 1

Information about each learner’s:

• sound knowledge;
• blending;
• word reading;
• fluency;
• language;
• confidence;
• and support needs

is shared carefully between Reception and Year 1.

This supports continuity and ensures that teaching begins from an accurate understanding of prior knowledge.

Learners should encounter books that support both successful decoding and a positive sense of themselves as readers.

Decodable Reading Books

Decodable books are selected according to learners’ current phonic knowledge.

They should:

• contain taught sound–spelling correspondences;
• include manageable common exception words;
• enable independent application;
• provide sufficient practice;
• support rereading;
• and become increasingly demanding as knowledge develops.

Decodable books are instructional resources. Their primary purpose is to help learners practise and secure the alphabetic code.

Books for Reading Aloud and Sharing

Learners also encounter a much wider range of books through adult reading and shared enjoyment.

These include:

• picture books;
• traditional tales;
• contemporary stories;
• poetry;
• rhymes;
• non-fiction;
• information books;
• stories from different cultures;
• books reflecting varied family structures;
• and texts representing different identities and experiences.

These texts are not restricted by learners’ current decoding level because adults provide access to the language and content.

Representation

Book selection is reviewed so that learners encounter:

• characters from different cultural backgrounds;
• Black and minority ethnic authors and illustrators;
• disabled characters;
• different family structures;
• different faiths and beliefs;
• varied social experiences;
• local and global settings;
• and a broad range of voices.

Representation should be meaningful rather than tokenistic.

Learners should be able both to:

• recognise aspects of their own lives;
• and encounter lives and experiences beyond their immediate world.

Reading Identity

Staff help every learner develop a positive reading identity.

This includes:

• celebrating effort and progress;
• avoiding public comparison;
• providing books at an achievable level;
• ensuring older learners receive age-respectful materials;
• reading ambitious texts aloud;
• encouraging book talk;
• involving learners in recommendations;
• and communicating that reading difficulty can be overcome through effective teaching and practice.

Learners should not be defined by a reading group, book colour or intervention.

The central message is that every learner belongs within the school’s reading community.

Families are important partners in early reading.

The school provides clear guidance so that home practice reinforces the approach used in class.

Supporting Phonics at Home

Families are encouraged to:

• listen to learners read regularly;
• use the sounds taught at school;
• encourage blending from left to right;
• avoid guessing from pictures;
• reread familiar decodable books;
• discuss meaning after reading;
• praise effort, accuracy and persistence;
• and return books according to school routines.

Families do not need to teach new sounds before they are introduced at school.

The most helpful role is to support successful practice of known content.

Reading Aloud at Home

Families are encouraged to continue reading aloud, including when learners can decode independently.

Reading aloud supports:

• vocabulary;
• knowledge;
• imagination;
• listening;
• comprehension;
• family connection;
• and enjoyment.

A learner’s independent reading level should not limit the books they can enjoy with an adult.

Parent Workshops

The school may provide workshops or guidance on:

• Read Write Inc. routines;
• sound pronunciation;
• oral blending;
• decodable books;
• common exception words;
• repeated reading;
• fluency;
• and how to respond when a learner is struggling.

Resources should be accessible and free from unnecessary jargon.

Home-Reading Barriers

Where learners do not have consistent reading support at home, the school may provide:

• additional reading practice;
• supported reading;
• breakfast or after-school opportunities;
• access to books;
• family guidance;
• and targeted communication.

A lack of home practice should not result in blame being placed on the learner.

Wider Opportunities

Early readers may participate in:

• library visits;
• book celebrations;
• storytelling sessions;
• author visits;
• poetry and rhyme activities;
• reading buddies;
• family-reading events;
• book fairs;
• and class reading challenges.

These wider experiences support motivation and belonging but do not replace daily phonics teaching.

Early reading contributes strongly to learners’ confidence, independence and sense of belonging.

Learning to read requires:

• attention;
• courage;
• patience;
• repetition;
• perseverance;
• willingness to make mistakes;
• and trust in the teaching process.

Learners develop resilience as they:

• attempt unfamiliar words;
• correct errors;
• reread texts;
• practise sounds;
• respond to feedback;
• and recognise their own progress.

Books also help learners explore:

• friendship;
• family;
• feelings;
• identity;
• kindness;
• courage;
• fairness;
• belonging;
• difference;
• imagination;
• and the wider world.

Our school values are developed meaningfully through early reading.

Kindness

Learners support partners, listen patiently and celebrate one another’s progress.

Respect

Learners respect books, different voices, home languages and the varied pace at which people learn.

Confidence

Learners develop confidence as they apply phonics independently, read aloud and recognise their growing success.

Excellence

Learners pursue excellence through careful listening, accurate decoding, repeated practice and increasing fluency.

Early Reading and Phonics supports our vision to Believe, Achieve and Thrive by helping learners believe that they can become readers, achieve through systematic teaching and purposeful practice, and thrive through access to language, literature and the wider curriculum.

Families play an important role in helping learners secure early reading knowledge and develop confidence.

The most valuable support is regular, positive and closely matched practice.

Listening to Decodable Reading

Families are encouraged to listen to learners read their school decodable book regularly.

These books are selected to match the phonemes and graphemes already taught.

When listening to a learner read, adults can support by encouraging them to:

• look carefully at the whole word;
• identify the graphemes;
• say the corresponding sounds;
• blend the sounds from left to right;
• reread the word;
• reread the sentence;
• and think about what the sentence means.

Adults should avoid encouraging learners to guess an unfamiliar word from:

• the picture;
• the first letter;
• the shape of the word;
• or the wider context.

Pictures and context can support understanding, but phonics should remain the main strategy for reading an unfamiliar decodable word.

Rereading Books

Learners may bring home the same book more than once.

Rereading is valuable because it develops:

• accuracy;
• automatic word recognition;
• fluency;
• phrasing;
• expression;
• comprehension;
• confidence;
• and enjoyment.

Families should not assume that a repeated book is too easy or that the learner is not progressing.

The aim is for reading to become increasingly smooth and secure.

Reading Aloud to Learners

Families are encouraged to read aloud every day where possible.

Reading aloud gives learners access to books that may be beyond their current decoding level.

It supports:

• vocabulary;
• knowledge;
• imagination;
• listening;
• comprehension;
• language development;
• family connection;
• and positive reading habits.

Families can read:

• stories;
• poems;
• rhymes;
• information books;
• magazines;
• library books;
• and texts in home languages.

Talking About Books

Useful questions include:

• What happened?
• Who was your favourite character?
• Which word was new?
• What do you think will happen next?
• Why did the character do that?
• What did you learn?
• Which part would you like to hear again?

Questions should support enjoyment and understanding rather than turn every home-reading session into a test.

Supporting Without Pressure

Families are encouraged to:

• praise effort and progress;
• keep reading sessions calm;
• stop before frustration becomes overwhelming;
• return to the book later where necessary;
• avoid comparing learners with siblings or classmates;
• celebrate small improvements;
• and contact the school if reading becomes difficult or distressing.

Home Languages

Families are encouraged to continue speaking, storytelling and reading in home languages.

Strong language development in any language can support:

• vocabulary;
• comprehension;
• storytelling;
• identity;
• confidence;
• and wider language awareness.

Using a home language does not prevent a learner from developing English reading.

Seeking Support

Families should contact the class teacher where they are concerned about:

• sound recognition;
• blending;
• reluctance to read;
• repeated guessing;
• difficulty remembering sounds;
• slow progress;
• speech or language;
• hearing;
• confidence;
• or access to home-reading materials.

The school can provide guidance, model appropriate support and review whether additional teaching is needed.

Our Early Reading and Phonics curriculum is sequenced so that learners build secure spoken-language, phonological, phonic and fluency knowledge over time.

The summaries below should be read alongside the Read Write Inc. progression and assessment information.

Nursery

Children develop foundations in:

• communication;
• listening;
• attention;
• vocabulary;
• stories;
• rhyme;
• rhythm;
• syllables;
• sound discrimination;
• oral blending;
• print awareness;
• and enjoyment of books.

Teaching is playful, language-rich and carefully planned.

Reception

Learners begin formal Read Write Inc. teaching.

They develop:

• phoneme–grapheme knowledge;
• recognition of taught sounds;
• oral blending;
• word blending;
• early segmenting;
• common exception word knowledge;
• sentence reading;
• decodable-book reading;
• comprehension;
• and early fluency.

Year 1

Learners extend and consolidate their knowledge of the alphabetic code.

They develop:

• more complex grapheme–phoneme correspondences;
• accurate decoding;
• increased automaticity;
• more fluent sentence reading;
• repeated reading;
• common exception word knowledge;
• and growing confidence with increasingly demanding decodable texts.

The Year 1 phonics screening check provides additional information about learners’ decoding knowledge.

Year 2

Learners who have completed the programme continue to strengthen:

• automatic word reading;
• fluency;
• phrasing;
• expression;
• vocabulary;
• and comprehension.

Learners who remain insecure continue to receive systematic phonics teaching and matched decodable reading.

Those who did not meet the expected standard in Year 1 are supported towards the Year 2 phonics screening recheck.

Key Stage 2 Catch-Up

Learners in Key Stage 2 who cannot decode securely continue to receive structured phonics support.

Teaching begins from precise assessment and focuses on:

• missing sound knowledge;
• blending;
• decoding;
• automaticity;
• fluency;
• morphology;
• and access to age-respectful decodable texts.

Support is frequent, closely monitored and reviewed until the learner can read with greater independence.

Phase Links

The page should link to:

• Nursery early language and phonological development;
• Reception Read Write Inc. overview;
• Year 1 phonics overview;
• Year 2 phonics and fluency overview;
• Key Stage 2 reading catch-up overview;
• and the whole-school phonics progression.

The following documents provide further information about Early Reading and Phonics at St Luke’s.

Core Documents

• Early Reading and Phonics Curriculum Overview
• Read Write Inc. Progression
• Phoneme–Grapheme Correspondence Sequence
• Phonics Assessment Calendar
• Decodable-Book Progression
• Early Reading Fluency Progression
• Nursery Phonological Awareness Overview
• Reception Phonics Overview
• Year 1 Phonics Overview
• Year 2 Phonics and Catch-Up Overview
• Key Stage 2 Reading Catch-Up Framework
• Phonics Keep-Up and Catch-Up Guidance
• Early Reading Inclusion Guidance
• Early Reading Leadership and Monitoring Framework
• Reading Policy or English Policy
• Reading for Pleasure Strategy

Early Reading and Phonics is led and monitored carefully because it provides the foundation for success across the curriculum.

The phonics and early reading leader works with:

• class teachers;
• phonics teachers;
• teaching assistants;
• senior leaders;
• the SENCo;
• English leaders;
• governors;
• families;
• and external advisers where appropriate.

Leadership responsibilities include:

• maintaining fidelity to Read Write Inc.;
• ensuring the programme is sequenced accurately;
• organising regular assessment;
• reviewing learner groupings;
• monitoring daily teaching;
• checking sound pronunciation;
• coaching staff;
• modelling lessons;
• reviewing decodable-book matching;
• monitoring keep-up provision;
• monitoring catch-up provision;
• reviewing Key Stage 2 support;
• checking home-reading systems;
• reviewing staff confidence;
• analysing progress;
• identifying groups requiring additional attention;
• and evaluating improvement actions.

Monitoring Teaching

Leaders may monitor through:

• lesson visits;
• coaching;
• assessment review;
• listening to learners read;
• checking group placement;
• reviewing decodable books;
• discussions with staff;
• learner voice;
• intervention review;
• and scrutiny of progress over time.

Monitoring focuses on whether learners receive accurate and effective teaching.

It should not become a checklist exercise detached from learner progress.

Key Questions for Leaders

Leaders consider:

• Are sounds pronounced accurately?
• Is the programme taught in the correct sequence?
• Are learners grouped according to current knowledge?
• Do books match taught phonics?
• Are learners encouraged to blend rather than guess?
• Is practice sufficiently frequent?
• Are learners rereading to build fluency?
• Are gaps identified promptly?
• Does keep-up begin quickly?
• Is catch-up focused on precise missing knowledge?
• Are older struggling readers receiving systematic phonics?
• Are staff sufficiently trained and coached?
• Are disadvantaged learners making strong progress?
• Are learners with SEND accessing ambitious teaching?
• Is home guidance clear and consistent?
• Are learners becoming confident and independent readers?

Staff Development

Staff development may include:

• formal Read Write Inc. training;
• induction for new staff;
• regular practice sessions;
• coaching;
• pronunciation checks;
• assessment training;
• fluency development;
• support for SEND;
• and review of common misconceptions.

Staff who teach intervention receive the same clarity and support as those teaching core phonics lessons.

Governor Oversight

Governors receive appropriate information about:

• curriculum implementation;
• staff training;
• progress;
• phonics screening outcomes;
• support for vulnerable groups;
• catch-up provision;
• resource needs;
• and improvement priorities.

Information is presented at an appropriate strategic level and does not identify individual learners.

Further information about Early Reading and Phonics is available from the school.

Parents and carers can request:

• more detailed information about Read Write Inc.;
• guidance on sound pronunciation;
• support with blending;
• help with home reading;
• information about decodable books;
• information about assessment;
• clarification about the phonics screening check;
• support for an older struggling reader;
• accessible versions of curriculum documents;
• and information about workshops or reading events.

Please contact the class teacher or school office through the contact details provided on the school website.

Families are encouraged to raise concerns promptly if a learner:

• avoids reading;
• appears anxious;
• guesses frequently;
• forgets taught sounds;
• finds blending difficult;
• reads very slowly;
• struggles to understand what has been read;
• or is not making expected progress.

Early support is more effective than waiting for difficulties to become established.

Paper copies of curriculum information can be provided on request.

The school welcomes constructive feedback about the accessibility and usefulness of its early reading information. Published content is reviewed regularly to ensure that it remains accurate, clear and consistent with the provision learners receive.