In Reception we have 5 phonics sessions a week and also have opportunities throughout the provision for the children to extend their phonic knowledge. This term (Autumn) we will be learning Phase 2 from the 'Unlocking Letters and Sounds' scheme. On this page you will find resources that we use in school to support our teaching of phonics. You can use these resources at home too. 

Phonics Guidance for Parents

Sounds

During each phase the children will learn new sounds. Each letter has a name and a sound. For example, the letter B, the name of this letter is B (said like bee) and the sound of this letter is b (said like b-u-h). Have a look at the link below to understand more about letter names and letter sounds. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCI2mu7URBc&t=26s

Digraphs

During Phase 3 we will learn digraph sounds. Digraphs are when 2 letters are together but only make 1 sound. For example, S and H when together make sh. Phase 3 focuses on these digraphs. If you would like to learn more about digraphs please have a look at the link below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pGuwcr08LE 

Common Exception Words

Common exception words are considered words that cannot be sounded out. For example, we can sound out the word cat by saying each sound c-a-t. We cannot do this with words such as I, go, to as the letters in these words do not make the phonetic sounds. The children will learn these tricky words just by memorising. Please watch the video below to understand more about these words. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQmtOXbf3-0

Letter Formation

To help the children to form their letters correctly we use patters. These can be found on the document below. We use the patters as we practise drawing the letters in the air as well as on paper. You can practise these at home with your children too.