READ WRITE INC. AT FERHAM PRIMARY SCHOOL

The school's vision is that every pupil learns to read quickly and continues to read - widely and often. 

Our pupils learn to read and write effectively and quickly using the Read Write Inc. Phonics Programme. 

The Read Write Inc. Phonics programme

The programme is for:

• Pupils in Foundation 2 to Year 2 who are learning to read and write. 

• Any pupils in Years 2, 3, and 4 who need to catch up rapidly. 

Struggling readers in Year 5 and 6 follow Read Write Inc. Fresh Start programme. 

We teach pupils to:

• Decode letter-sound correspondences quickly and effortlessly, using their phonic knowledge and skills

• Read 'tricky' words on sight

• Understand what they read

• Read aloud with fluency and expression

• Write confidently, with a strong focus on vocabulary and grammar

• Spell quickly and easily by segmenting the sounds in words 

• Acquire good handwriting 

In addition, we teach pupils to work effectively with a partner to explain and consolidate what they are learning.  This provides the teacher with opportunities to assess learning and to pick up on difficulties, such as pupils' poor articulation, or problems with blending or alphabetic code knowledge. 

In Foundation 2 we emphasise the alphabetic code.  The pupils rapidly learn sounds and the letter or groups of letters they need to represent them. Simple mnemonics help them to grasp this quickly.  This is is especially useful for pupils at risk of making slower progress.  This learning is consolidated daily.  Pupils have frequent practice in reading high frequency words with irregular spellings - 'tricky words' (common exception words).  

We make sure that pupils read books that are closely matched to their increasing knowledge of phonics and common exception words.  This is so that, early on, they experience success and gain confidence that they are readers.  Re-reading and discussing these books with the teacher support their increasingly fluent decoding. 

Embedding the alphabetic code early on means that pupils quickly learn to write simple words and sentences.  We encourage them to compose each sentence aloud until they are confident to write independently.  We make sure they write every day. 

Pupils write at the level of their spelling knowledge, that is, they use their knowledge of the alphabetic code and the tricky words they have learned.  They can soon spell more complex words confidently and accurately.  The quality of the vocabulary they use in their writing reflects the language they have heard in the books the teacher has read them; they also discussed what the words mean.