Little Wandle Revised Letters and Sounds

EYFS & KS1 

We believe that all our children can become fluent readers and writers. This is why we teach reading daily through Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, which is a systematic and synthetic phonics programme. We start teaching phonics in week 2 of Reception and follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds revised programme, which ensures children build on their growing knowledge of the alphabetic code, mastering phonics to read and spell as they move through school. As a result, our children are able to tackle unfamiliar words as they read.

We also model the application of the alphabetic code through phonics in shared reading and writing, both inside and outside of the phonics lesson and across the curriculum. We have a strong focus on language development for our children because we know that speaking and listening are crucial skills for reading and writing in all subjects. 

Phonics

We teach phonics for 20 minutes a day. In Reception, we build from 10-minute lessons, with additional daily oral blending games, to the full-length lesson as quickly as possible. Each Friday, we review the week’s teaching to help children become fluent readers. Children make a strong start in Reception: teaching begins in the Autumn term. 

We follow the Little Wandle programme expectations: 

• Children in Reception are taught to read and spell words using Phase 2 and 3 GPCs, and words with adjacent consonants (Phase 4) with fluency and accuracy.
• Children in Year 1 review Phase 3 and 4 and are taught to read and spell words using Phase 5 GPCs with fluency and accuracy.

Daily Keep up lessons to ensure every child learns to read

Any child in Reception or Year 1 who needs additional practice has daily keep-up support, taught by a fully trained adult. Keep-up lessons match the structure of class teaching, and use the same procedures, resources and mantras, but in smaller steps with more repetition, so that every child secures their learning.

Year 2

Children in Year 2 begin the year by either completing the Year 1 programme content or with a phase 5 review. Children then begin the Little Wandle Bridge to Spelling programme before starting the Year 2 Little Wandle spelling programme. This provides a seamless link from the core Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised programme to teaching spelling in Year 2.  

Reading

We value reading as a crucial life skill. By the time children leave us, they read confidently for meaning and regularly enjoy reading for pleasure. Our readers are equipped with the tools to tackle unfamiliar vocabulary

We teach children to read through reading practice sessions three times a week. These:

• are taught by a fully trained adult in small groups of approximately six children
• use books matched to the children’s secure phonic knowledge using the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised assessments and book matching guidance. 
• Each reading practice session has a clear focus, so that the demands of the session do not overload the children’s working memory. The reading practice sessions have been designed to focus on three key reading skills: decoding, prosody (teaching children to read with understanding and expression) and comprehension.

Reading at home 

Children bring home the same decodable book they have read in school. This allows children to practice and read the book fluently. Children also have access to a sharing book, which parents read alongside their children in order to develop their vocabulary and continue to develop their reading skills. 

Year 2 and KS2

We timetable daily phonics lessons for any child in Year 2 and above who is not fully fluent at reading or has not passed the Phonics Screening Check. We use the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised assessments to identify the gaps in their phonic knowledge and teach to these using the Rapid Catch-up resources – at pace. Children have access to the same decodable book that they read in school via the Collins Ebook system.

Supporting your child at home

Although your child will be taught to read at school, you can a huge impact on their reading journey by continuing their practice at home. Please follow the link below to access Little Wandle information and resources for parents and carers. 

www.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk/resources/for-parents/ 

The documents section below contains the full Reception and Year 1 teaching programme overview to see what your child will learn and when as well as guides for how your child will be taught to say their sounds in Reception and Year 1.