Phonics teaching in school

Phonics is a strategy of teaching used to develop reading skills. It involves breaking down words into their constituent sounds. At Gunthorpe School we have a whole school approach to the teaching of phonics. We use a system called Read, Write Inc. developed by Ruth Miskin.  

The phonics sessions are for 20 minutes each day and are implemented using a structured approach based on revisiting previous sounds, introducing new sounds and holding a sentence.  Common exception words are referred to as 'Red Words' with the understanding 'You can't Fred a red' (They cannot be sounded out therefore need to be learnt by sight or using pnemonics).

The children take part in Phonics lessons Monday to Friday and they are tested each Tuesday on the previous weeks learning.  The children are also assessed three times a year on the common exception words for their year group - these are incorporated into their phonics lessons and for up to three early work sessions a week.

For more information, including our Phonics Policy please visit our Reading and Phonics page where you can view more information including a range of resources and supportive materials.