Phonics
Intent
At Leopold Primary School, we believe that every child deserves success from the very start.
We know that the sooner children learn to read, the greater their confidence, independence, and future opportunities. That’s why reading sits at the heart of everything we do.
Through the Read Write Inc. programme, we teach children to read accurately, fluently and with good comprehension, giving them the tools they need to access all areas of learning. Alongside this, we nurture a genuine love of books and reading for pleasure, ensuring that every child develops both the skill and the joy of reading.
Our aims are to:
- Ensure every child becomes an accurate and fluent reader who reads with understanding and enthusiasm.
- Build strong phonics, spelling and handwriting foundations for confident writing.
- Develop a rich vocabulary through story, discussion, and high-quality talk.
- Support all pupils , including those with SEND, to keep up, not catch up, through early intervention and inclusive teaching.
- Empower children to become lifelong readers and writers who love language and learning.
Implementation
The systematic teaching of phonics has the highest priority throughout the Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1.
We follow the Read Write Inc. (RWI) programme - a carefully structured and proven approach that ensures every child learns to read quickly and effectively.
Daily Phonics Lessons
- All children in Reception and Year 1 take part in a daily phonics session (30–45 minutes depending on year group).
- Children are grouped by reading progress so each child is taught at the right level for their stage.
- We reassess every half term to ensure children move through the programme as quickly and successfully as possible.
Expert Teaching
- All staff are fully trained in Read Write Inc. and receive regular coaching and modelling to maintain high-quality, consistent practice across the school.
- Lessons are lively, fast-paced and engaging, ensuring every child participates fully and enjoys their learning.
How We Teach Phonics
Phonics teaching is broken into two key parts:
- Children first learn one way to read and write the 40+ sounds in English, supported by memorable picture cues (e.g. a for apple, f for flower).
- Later, they learn the alternative spellings of the same sounds (for example, ay in play, a-e in cake, and ai in rain).
- We use Fred the Frog to help children blend sounds to read new words - “Fred Talk” makes blending simple and fun.
Reading Practice and Comprehension
- Children read RWI storybooks that match the exact sounds they know - ensuring success without guessing.
- Before reading, they practise tricky “red words”, sound out character names and learn new vocabulary.
Each story is read and discussed across three to five days:
- Focusing on decoding accurately
- Building fluency
- Developing expression and understanding
- Discussing characters, feelings, and themes
By the time children take books home, they can read them confidently and with expression.
Progression and Support
Children move on to Destination Reader once they can read all Read Write Inc. stories fluently.
Those who need additional help receive daily tutoring sessions closely matched to their specific phonics gaps. For a small number of children for whom phonics alone is not effective, we also use Toe by Toe, a structured and highly systematic reading intervention that supports pupils in developing accuracy, fluency and confidence.
We monitor progress regularly to ensure that every intervention session is purposeful and effective, enabling children to keep up, not catch up.
Impact
Through consistent, expert phonics teaching:
- All children learn to read accurately and fluently, building the confidence and motivation to enjoy books.
- Children develop good comprehension, talking confidently about what they read.
- Writing improves because children can spell words and form sentences independently using their phonics knowledge.
- Those who need extra support receive it early, ensuring no child is left behind.
At Leopold Primary School, we know that when children learn to read well, they learn to succeed - and we are committed to giving every child the strongest possible start on their reading journey.
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