Fonics can be phun!

Ever since the Rose Review of 2006, phonics has been firmly on the agenda for the Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 pupils. Word recognition techniques should be the first strategy used by early readers.

Practice makes perfect

Many teachers already teach phonics very successfully, having a secure understanding of the pedagogy and methodology applied to a good quality phonics programme, which itself will be ‘embedded within a broad and language-rich curriculum’ (1).

However, for others, teaching phonics explicitly appears a daunting task and the terminology confusing. But help is at hand: the old DfE Letters and Sounds document provides a glossary of terminology. And the trick to hearing and counting phonemes is to say words normally, without over articulation. This is a skill that needs practice. If teachers can’t do it themselves, it’s unlikely they’ll be able to teach children to do it.