READING 

Reading Gems is used for dedicated reading lessons every day. The key skills (gems) are taught explicitly to the children through discussions about texts, teacher modelling and opportunities to answer questions independently or with support where needed. Each new reading skill is allocated a colour-coded ‘gem’. Every week, children focus on a certain reading gem and learn strategies to help them develop that particular skill.

Each reading skill has an image and a colour associated with it so that children can make connections and, as they become confident in understanding each reading skill, they can identify which skills to use. They will help to ensure that our children develop a clear understanding of the different aspects of reading.

Foundation Stage Gems

KS1 Gems

KS2 Gems

PHONICS

At St Barnabas we are passionate about ensuring all children become confident and enthusiastic readers and writers. We believe that phonics provides the foundations of learning to make the development into fluent reading and writing easier. Through phonics children learn to segment words to support their spelling ability and blend sounds to read words. These skills all then lead into their writing skills. To allow our children to develop these skills and a strong phonic awareness at St Barnabas we follow the Rocket Phonics scheme. This is taught daily so that children can use the skills everyday this then leads them to be confident and fluent readers. We passionately believe that teaching children to read and write independently is a high priority. This enables them to access a broad and exciting curriculum and ensuring they flourish as learners throughout their time at our school. For example, children will read passages in History and they will need to write predictions and conclusions in Science. Without these phonics skills they will not be able to do this confidently. 

Rocket Phonics Scheme

​​Rocket Phonics is a fully resourced, systematic synthetic phonics programme. It provides a combination of digital and printed resources, and a fully matched series of decodable reading books. Big Books are at the heart of the programme, they consist of language-rich stories to teach all the target letter-sounds in context. These books are designed for use on an IWB at the front of the class. Flashcards are provided on cards and electronically to use during each lesson as an introduction to a new sound or recapping previous sounds. Children will complete a pupil practise book for each sound/tricky word that is taught. They will be able to show what they have learnt during the input of the lesson through the big books and flashcards. 

 

Preschool

Phonics is taught in small groups everyday.  Phase 1 of the Letters and Sounds programme is used to help children to gain good listening skills to aid their phonics learning. Phase 2 of the Letters and Sounds programme is used to introduce the children to single graphemes. A wide range of activities and games are used during Phase 1 and 2 to ensure that children reach their full potential. The aim in Preschool is to complete Phase 1 and have begun to implement some of phase 2 so children have had some exposure to single graphemes from phase 2. 

Rocket Phonics are currently creating a phonics scheme for preschool and these resources should be available around March/April 2023. We will be able to trial these schemes due to us being a partner school. 

 

Reception

Phonics is taught every day for 30 minutes from the start of the academic year. The Rocket Phonics programme is used alongside some of the Jolly Phonics actions. Teaching consists of whole class teaching followed by engagement in individual pupil booklets. This is to ensure that children are reaching their full potential to practise and apply the phonics skills taught and that appropriate support/challenge is given by an adult. 

Within the Rocket Phonics scheme each week consists of the same structure:  

Day 1 - Blending focus of a new grapheme

Day 2 - Segmenting focus of the grapheme from day 1

Day 3 - Blending focus of a new grapheme

Day 4 - Segmenting focus of the grapheme from day 3

Day 5 - Flexible Day - consolidation, focus on common exception words/tricky words, assessment, enrichment.

A wide range of activities and games are used to help support the children during the week within continuous provision linking to the phonics lessons that have been taught that day/week. 

 

Year 1

Phonics is taught everyday for 30 minutes from the start of the academic year. The Rocket Phonics programme is the sole programme used. Teaching consists of whole class engagement followed by practice in Pupil Booklets. This is to ensure that children are reaching their full potential and that appropriate support is given: some children are supported by an adult who is able to challenge/ support where appropriate; others may be working independently to consolidate their learning. 

Within the Rocket Phonics scheme each week consists of the same structure:  

Day 1 - Blending focus of a new grapheme

Day 2 - Segmenting focus of the grapheme from day 1

Day 3 - Blending focus of a new grapheme

Day 4 - Segmenting focus of the grapheme from day 3

Day 5 - Flexible Day - consolidation, focus on common exception words/tricky words, assessment, enrichment.

A wide range of activities and games are used to help support the children during phonics interventions. 

NB: Phonics screening takes place in June - further details can be found below. 

 

Year 2

Phonics is taught every day for 25 minutes from the start of the academic year. The Rocket Phonics Next Steps programme is the sole programme used. Teaching consists of whole class engagement followed by practice in Pupil Booklets. This is to ensure that children are reaching their full potential and that appropriate support is given: some children are supported by an adult who is able to challenge/ support where appropriate; others may be working independently to consolidate their learning. 

The structure of the week for year 2 is slightly different than the earlier teaching in the Rocket Phonics programme. Rocket Phonics Next Steps revisits letter-sounds correspondences that are taught in Year 1 but introduces new spelling content. A piece of learning is investigated and built upon over several days. The fifth day is planned as a cursive handwriting focus or can be used for consolidation, assessment or enrichment activities. A wide range of activities and games are used to help support the children during their phonics lessons. 

NB: Any children who did not pass the phonics screening test in Year 1 will retake in June also.