Phonics is a way of teaching children to read quickly and skilfully. They are taught how to:

• recognise the sounds that each individual letter makes;
• identify the sounds that different combinations of letters make - such as ‘sh’ or ‘oo’; and
• blend these sounds together from left to right to make a word.

Children can then use this knowledge to ‘de-code’ new words that they hear or see. This is the first important step in learning to read.

(DFE 2013)

At Northbury we use Read Write Inc (RWI) to teach phonics, to given your child the best possible start to phonics and the enjoyment of reading. Children learn sounds in school which help them to read and write. They then practise these skills through reading 'Book Bag Books' at home which are specifically pitched to both consolidate learning and provide challenge in an engaging and fun way! This is what they look like:

RWI sounds are taught in 3 sets:

Set 1 Sounds  are taught in the following order together with rhymes to help children form the letters correctly and instantly recognise sounds ready for blending.

The children are then taught  Set 2 Sounds – the long vowels.

When they are very confident with all Set 1 and 2, they are taught  Set 3 Sounds.