Phonics at Eureka

At Eureka Primary School we have adopted a 'phonics first' approach to teaching our pupils to read and write. This means that we systematically teach synthetic phonics to our children and teach them how to use this understanding to blend sounds for reading and segment words into their constituent sounds for writing.    We currently use 'Bug Club Phonics' as our phonics teaching programme (this is one of the several government validated programmes) and use the accompanying 'Bug Club' books as our reading scheme Reception and Years One and Two.  All children are allocated a phonetically decodable book until they are deemed to be decoding texts fluently and automatically.  Mr Brazier is our Phonics Lead and oversees the teaching of phonics throughout the school.


For more information about Bug Phonics and Bug Club Reading please watch the video below, read the attached documents:

'Glossary -  A definition of terms', 'Letter to Parents' and the 'How to Guide' or email Mr Brazier at brazier.a51@eureka.derbyshire.sch.uk 

To support the children's learning in phonics each child in Reception and Key Stage One has their own login to Bug Phonics online at www.bugclub.co.uk for them to access if and when they get a little bit of spare time  - the school code is the same for everybody 'eure' but your child should have their own unique username and password in their book bag - usually stuck into their reading diary.  If you don't have this login please let your child's class teacher know.

The Phonics Screening Check:
What is the Phonics Screening Check?
Children in Year 1 throughout the country will all be taking part in a phonics screening check during the same week in June. Children in Year 2 will also take the check if they did not achieve the required result when in Year 1 or they have not taken the test before. Headteachers should decide whether it is appropriate for each of their pupils to take the phonics screening check. The phonics screening check is designed to confirm whether individual children have learnt phonic decoding and blending skills to an appropriate standard.

What Happens During the Screening?
The test contains 40 words. Each child will sit one to-one and read each word aloud to a teacher. The test will take approximately 10 minutes per child, although all children are different and will complete the check at their own pace. The list of words the children read is a combination of 20 real words and 20 pseudo words (nonsense words).

Pseudo Words (Nonsense Words)
The pseudo words will be shown to your child with a picture of an alien. This provides the children with a context for the pseudo word which is independent from any existing vocabulary they may have. Pseudo words are included because they will be new to all pupils; they do not favour children with a good vocabulary knowledge or visual memory of words. Reporting to Parents By the end of the summer term all schools must report each child’s results to their parents. They will also confirm if the child has met the standard threshold. Children who do not achieve the expected level will retake the test when they are in Year 2.

Phonics Play:

To help the children with their phonics learning we have also subscribed to a website called 'Phonics Play'.  This helps the children practise their grapheme recognition, segmenting and blending in a series of low stakes games and activities.  The children should access games within the phase they are working at.  Typically children in Reception are working at between stages 2 and 4, children in Year 1 are working at between stages 3 - 6 and children in Year 2 are usually working at beyond Phase 6 but may still be needing some Phonics work to support gaps in their learning or to address any misconceptions picked up in the previous years.

The whole school login for Phonics Play should be written in your child's reading diary - if you cannot find it then please just let your child's teacher know and they will provide you with it.

www.phonicsplay.co.uk

Other Useful Websites:

www.oxfordowl.co.uk  - A free website giving children access to a large selection of books from the Oxford Reading Tree scheme.  Children have a class subscription which should be in their reading diaries but you can also register for free as parents. 
https://www.topmarks.co.uk/english-games/5-7-years/letters-and-sounds   A selection of games designed to help your children apply their skills acquired in phonics lessons.

https://www.phonicsbloom.com/ - More phonics games organised by phase (some are paid for but most are free).