Phonics Support
Phonics underpins how we as readers retrieve information from print. Our children are taught Read Write Inc. initial sounds from the Early Years and carry on the program until they acquire the foundations of the letter sounds and sounds created by a group of letters - this usually happens in year 2. After this however, pupils use their segmenting and blending skills beyond even primary and secondary school. How often do you see a new, longer word and try to piece it together in your head?
During the lockdown brought on by the Coronavirus, many websites have made their resources free and accessible via iPads, Mobile Phones and computers. There are so many games, guidance videos and craft designs that can make the daunting task of teaching your child phonics really quite fun!
As always, click the red hyperlinks to direct you to your chosen resource.
Read Write Inc.
As a school, we use Read Write Inc. to ensure the children are taught a fun and consistent way of acquiring phonic knowledge.
Everyday, the founders of Read Write Inc. are streaming lessons live on their YouTube channel. This is a fantastic way to keep practising a key skill that can help your child rapidly increase their reading fluency.
More information (and resources) can be found on the Ruth Miskin site here.
PhonicsPlay
PhonicsPlay is currently free for everyone! A website full of games to suit each child in their acquisition of phonics - despite where they happen to be on their learning journey. To access the resources, just login using:
Username: march20
Password: home
If your child is in Year 1 and would have been sitting the Phonics Screening Check in June, they would need to know the difference between real words and fake (alien!) words through using their phonics knowledge to sound out the phonics before blending the whole word together.
Highlights of the website can be found here and include the fabulous Dragons Den (for those real and fake word challenges) and Buried Treasure (for those working on their blending skills).
Phonics Bloom
Phonics Bloom is another website filled with shiny, colourful and accessible games for all readers - wherever they may be in their learning journey.
If you are looking for something that supports a child at the very early stages of developing their reading, then why not try Match Sounds, a game designed to do just that - match the initial sound to the picture as it flies across your screen.
Alternatively, Suffix Factory is a challenging and rewarding game which challenges children to spell words with the correct ending. Do you drop the final e or keep it as it is?
Teach Your Monster to Read
The very best Phonics website that I have found during lockdown. Actually, just calling it a Phonics website does it a gigantic disservice. Teach Your Monster to Read covers reading from that initial 'm' sound all the way through to reading in full sentences.
Presently, if you access the website on a computer, the whole resource is 100% free.
Some of the games remind me of the old Sega Megadrive classics from the early 90s!