LITTLE WANDLE

Supporting Your Child’s Reading Journey

At Pelsall Village, we use the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised phonics programme to help children learn to read with confidence. This approach is designed to build strong foundations in reading through daily, consistent phonics lessons.

What is Phonics?

Phonics is a way of teaching children to read by learning the sounds (phonemes) that letters and groups of letters make. Children use these sounds to blend words together when reading, and to segment them when spelling.

What to Expect in Year 1

In Year 1, your child continues to build on the phonics knowledge they gained in Reception. The focus is on:

• Learning new sounds (graphemes), including those made by two or more letters (like ay, ea, igh)

• Reading longer words and words with suffixes (e.g. jumping, played)

• Spelling words using their phonics knowledge

• Developing fluency – reading more quickly and confidently

• Reading 'tricky words' – common words that can’t be sounded out easily (like said, were, some)

Daily Phonics Lessons

Children have a 30-minute phonics lesson every day. The lessons follow a clear structure so children know what to expect and can focus on learning.

Reading Practice Sessions

Each week, children take part in small-group reading sessions where they read a book matched to their phonics level. These sessions help build:

• Decoding skills (sounding out)

• Prosody (reading with expression)

• Comprehension (understanding what they read)

The same book is then sent home so your child can practise reading it with fluency and confidence.

How You Can Help at Home

• Read the reading practice book with your child – celebrate their success as they read it fluently!

• Share other stories together – read a variety of books for enjoyment and to build vocabulary.

• Practise tricky words – these are sent home regularly.

• Use phonics games and resources provided by the school or from the Little Wandle website.

Year 1 Phonics Screening Check

In the summer term, children take part in a short assessment called the Phonics Screening Check. This checks their ability to read words using the phonics they’ve learned. We prepare children for this in a calm, supportive way – it feels just like another reading activity.