Handwriting at NOS
NOS stages of handwriting development
NOS Handwriting Progression map
Letter formation rhymes
At Normanton-on-Soar we teach phonics using the RWI (Read Write Inc) programme.
Before your child can start to read, they need to learn to:
- Say the sound that is represented by each letter or groups of letters. These are called ‘speed sounds’.
- Know how to blend the sounds together in a word to read it e.g. c-a-t = cat. This is called ‘sound- blending’.
- We also learn words that cannot be read with phonics. We call these “red words”.
In Nursery your child will learn how to listen, to join in and pay attention. We will then teach them the pictures that go with the sounds before we start teaching them the set 1 sounds.
The children start to tune in listening skills to hear sounds in words. We start listening out for, and saying, the sound at the start of the word. We ask for a bbbbanana or an aaaaapple at snack time.
In Reception your child will learn to read the Set 1 sounds by sight. They will also learn how to blend them together to read words e.g. c-a-t = cat before moving onto learning special friends and set 2 sounds.
In Reception the children begin discrete phonics teaching each day and learn the letters in the RWI order and method helped by Fred Frog.
The children begin to blend words and use the phonics in their writing, reading simple books linked to the taught sounds and this is the start of their journey into reading.
The children will bring home a book linked to the letters that they have learnt in phonics and will be able to read all of the words using their phonics skills.
The journey continues into KS1 and the children learn more complex sound letter correspondences, consolidating Set 2 sounds and learning Set 3 sounds.
The children become more fluent readers and learn alternative spelling patterns.
In year 1 the children will take part in the national phonics screening check which will determine if they are working at the expected level.
Please see below for more information about our phonics teaching.
RWI Phonics
Set 1 Sounds
To begin, we learn a sound a day. We use pure sounds so that your child will be able to blend the sounds into words more easily.
Set 2 Sounds
Once your child knows all Set 1 sounds by sight and uses them to blend to read words, we start teaching Set 2 initially and then Set 3 long vowel sounds.
We now start to learn that two or three letters together can make one sound. We call them ‘special friends’.
Set 3 Sounds
After learning the Set 2 sounds, your child will have learnt one way in which each long vowel sound is written. When learning their Set 3 speed sounds, they will be taught that there are more ways in which the same sounds are written, e.g. ee as in tree, and ea as in tea.
Reading Set 3 speed sounds will be taught for most of Year 1, and spelling the Set 3 speed sounds during Year 2. When your child learns their Set 3 sounds in school they will learn:
• The letters that represent a speed sound e.g. ‘ea’
• A simple picture prompt linked to the ‘speed sound’ and a short phrase to say e.g. ‘cup of tea’
There are 20 Set 3 speed sounds that are made up of two or three letters which represent just one sound, e.g. ea as in tea, ow as in cow, and are as in care. As before, it is important that your child does not pronounce these as 2 or 3 separate sounds.
When a sound contains two letters that makes just one sound e.g. ‘ea’, we call it a‘digraph’. When a sound contains three letters that make just one sound e.g. ‘ure’, we call it a ‘trigraph’. When a sound has two letters, which work as a pair to make one sound, but are separated with the word e.g. ‘a-e’ (cake), we call it a‘split digraph’.
Sound families
We learn to distinguish between the sounds that sound the same but have different spellings. E.g., we learn that , and all sound the same and we learn the correct spelling for words like day, rain, cake, play, train, shake.
Read Write Inc. Spelling is a 15-minutes-a-day programme for Years 2 to 6. Using a proven approach underpinned by phonics, fast–paced lessons and an online subscription, Read Write Inc. Spelling ensures spelling success for children who are fluent readers.
Parent Resources
Useful Websites
Reading
Oxford Owl – There are a variety of resources on here.
Teach Your monster to read – A free website ort you can download the app (possible cost)