edshed quizshed spellingshed phonicsshed mathshed literacyshedplus literacyshed Play Game

PHONICS SHED & THE CURRICULUM

Although decoding words is the main focus, Phonics Shed has been designed to meet all word reading expectations for Key Stage One (KS1) and to support many other expectations from across the KS1 English National Curriculum (NC). It also aligns with many of the relevant Early Learning Goals (ELGs), the new Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), for September 2021. Below you can find detailed information about how we support each statement:

ELGs for Word Reading (from the Statutory Framework for the EYFS: Literacy)

  • Say a sound for each letter in the alphabet and at least 10 digraphs.
    If additional double letters are covered, this will be achievable by the end of Chapter 2 (Ch2) or by the end of Chapter 3 (Ch3) Set 1 if additional doubles are not discussed.
  • Read words consistent with their phonic knowledge by sound-blending.
    The children are taught to blend and segment from Chapter 1 (Ch1) Element 9, using the Phonics Shed strategies ‘Say it, Stretch it, Sound it’ and ‘Sound it, Squash it, Say it’ and accompanying visual cue cards. From that point planning, resources and the supporting word list (including Common Exception Words (CEWs) ensure access to a wide-range of decodable words for them to decode.
  • Read aloud simple sentences and books that are consistent with their phonic knowledge, including some common exception words. One pack of our range of 120 decodable books is included in the package. The decodable scheme matches the Phonics Shed progression and gives children access to fully decodable texts that also include appropriate CEWs. Additionally, the Phonics Shed planning and accompanying resources contain a wide-variety of opportunities to read words, captions, sentences and paragraphs.

Year 1 Word Reading Requirements (from the NC for English):

  • Apply phonic knowledge and skills as the route to decode words.
    The children are taught to blend and segment from Chapter 1 (Ch1) Element 9, using the Phonics Shed strategies ‘Say it, Stretch it, Sound it’ and ‘Sound it, Squash it, Say it’. From that point planning, resources and the supporting word list (including Common Exception Words (CEWs) ensure access to a wide-range of decodable words for them to decode.
  • Respond speedily with the correct sound to graphemes (letters or groups of letters) for all 40+ phonemes, including, where applicable, alternative sounds for graphemes.
    Previously taught grapheme-phoneme correspondences (GPCs) are recapped at the start of every session using our Phonics Shed flashcards. We also have an assessment tool which allows teachers to track which GPCs are known and how confidently the children can identify them.
    Children will be taught at least one grapheme for every phoneme by the end of Ch3 (apart from /zh/ which is covered in Chapter 4b).
    Please see our About page for a full breakdown of the Phonics Shed GPC teaching order.
  • Read accurately by blending sounds in unfamiliar words containing GPCs that have been taught.
    Phonics Shed planning, resources and supporting word list, including Common Exception Words (CEWs), ensure access to a wide range of decodable words. Within every lesson there is at least one opportunity to practice these skills. This is further supported by progressing through the decodable reading scheme.
  • Read common exception words, noting unusual correspondences between spelling and sound and where these occur in the word. Phonics Shed High Frequency Word lists contain both decodable words and partially decodable CEWs. They are organised into an order that corresponds with the progression of GPCs. CEWs are often linked GPCs that they are visually similar to but have an alternative sound for the particular grapheme; these GPCs are then covered later in the scheme and the words then become decodable. By introducing the CEWs before they are fully decodable children will be able to access a wider variety of text due to the high frequency nature of the GPCs.
  • Read words containing taught GPCs and –s, –es, –ing, –ed, –er and –est endings.
    Words with these endings are included regularly as part of the word lists and Spelling Shed, access to which is included as part of Phonics Shed subscriptions, also has specific lessons exploring these suffixes.
  • Read other words of more than one syllable that contain taught GPCs
    Our extensive word lists contain a wide variety of words that become decodable with each new GPC taught. These include everything from CVC words to compound words. These words are also present across the resources that accompany the planning.
  • Read words with contractions and understand that the apostrophe represents the omitted letter(s).
    From Chapter 2 Set 2, when ‘it’s’ is introduced as a High Frequency Word (HFW), the children are taught about contractions whenever a word containing one becomes decodable or is linked to a GPC as a CEW.
  • Read books aloud, accurately, that are consistent with their developing phonic knowledge and that do not require them to use other strategies to work out words.
    The Phonics Shed reading scheme is fully decodable, apart from appropriate CEWs, and matches the progression of the Phonics Shed scheme from Ch1 to 4b. The books also include a recap of key vocabulary and comprehension questions based on the story.
  • Reread these books to build up their fluency and confidence in word reading.
    We currently have 120 books in our decodable scheme, and we have endeavoured to make them varied and engaging for children to encourage them to read them for pleasure as well as necessity.

Year 1 Word Reading Non-statutory guidance:

  • Pupils should revise and consolidate the GPCs and the common exception words taught in reception year. As soon as they can read words comprising the year 1 GPCs accurately and speedily, they should move on to the year 2 programme of study for word reading.
    Phonics Shed planning is fast paced but there is always an option to consolidate the learning using the consolidation plans or by extending the learning to the areas using our handy suggestions. Previously learned GPCs are recapped at the start of every session using flashcards.
  • The number, order and choice of exception words taught will vary according to the phonics programme being used. Ensuring that pupils are aware of the GPCs they contain, however unusual these are, supports spelling later.
    Our HFW lists are chapter-specific and further sorted into the order of progression for GPCs. Words are only introduced once they become decodable, apart from CEWs which are linked to similar graphemes with a different GPC. Knowing these CEWs earlier than they become decodable gives children access to a wider range of texts.
  • Practicing reading unfamiliar words by sounding and blending can provide opportunities not only for pupils to develop confidence in their decoding skills, but also for teachers to explain the meaning and thus develop pupils’ vocabulary.
    Our word lists and resources contain a wide variety of exemplar decodable words, we have made sure to include some more obscure words which will hopefully provoke discussion.
  • Pupils should be taught how to read words with suffixes by being helped to build on the root words that they can read already.
    Our decodable reading scheme books have a list of key vocabulary before the story. Many of these have one or more root words, with the suffixed word adjacent to it to allow children to practice this progression.

Year 2 Word Reading Requirements (from the NC for English):

  • Continue to apply phonic knowledge and skills as the route to decode words until automatic decoding has become embedded and reading is fluent.
    The planning and resources aimed mainly at Year 2 children continue to use the same structure as previous lessons, including recapping previous taught GPCs and the ‘Say it, Stretch it, Sound it’ and ‘Sound it, Squash it’ strategies for blending and segmenting.
  • Read accurately by blending the sounds in words that contain the graphemes taught so far, especially recognising alternative sounds for graphemes.
    Chapter 4 covers alternative GPCs and ensures that they are compared to known GPCs. This includes introducing children to a series of ‘Best Fit’ rules that allows them to make an informed choice when faced with the choice between alternative GPCs.
  • Read accurately words of two or more syllables that contain the same graphemes as above.
    Our extensive word lists contain a wide variety of words that become decodable with each new GPC taught. These include everything from CVC words to compound words. These words are also present across the resources that accompany the planning. As more GPCs become decodable, available words tend to become more complex.
  • Read words containing common suffixes
    Words with suffixes are routinely included in word lists and resources and Spelling Shed, access to which is included in the subscription, also has specific lessons exploring adding suffixes to base words. Additionally, our decodable reading scheme books have a list of key vocabulary before the story. Many of these have one or more root words, with the suffixed word adjacent to it to allow children to practice this progression.
  • Read further common exception words, noting unusual correspondences between spelling and sound and where these occur in the word
    Our HFW lists are chapter-specific and further sorted into the order of progression for GPCs. Words are only introduced once they become decodable, apart from CEWs which are linked to similar graphemes with a different GPC. Knowing these CEWs earlier than they become decodable gives children access to a wider range of texts. As the scheme progresses the frequency of CEWs becomes lower, as more GPCs are known.
  • Read most words quickly and accurately, without overt sounding and blending, when they have been frequently encountered.
    The rationale behind our HFW lists including commonly used decodable words alongside CEWs is simple: the sooner children have access to the common core of the English vocabulary and become secure in their understanding of these words the sooner they will be able to read fluently.
  • Read aloud books closely matched to their improving phonic knowledge, sounding out unfamiliar words accurately, automatically and without undue hesitation.
    Our decodable reading scheme is linked to the Phonics Shed progression with engaging titles from Chapter 1 to 4b.
  • Reread these books to build up their fluency and confidence in word reading.
    We have endeavoured to make the decodable scheme varied and engaging for children to encourage them to read them for pleasure as well as necessity.

Year 2 Word Reading Non-statutory guidance:

  • Pupils should revise and consolidate the GPCs and the common exception words taught in year 1. The exception words taught will vary slightly, depending on the phonics programme being used. As soon as pupils can read words comprising the year 2 GPCs accurately and speedily, they should move on to the years 3 and 4 programme of study for word reading.
    Once children have completed the Phonics Shed scheme, we suggest that they move on to Spelling Shed.
  • When pupils are taught how to read longer words, they should be shown syllable boundaries and how to read each syllable separately before they combine them to read the word.
    Breaking words into syllables is a skill introduced in Chapter 1 which is revisited periodically through the scheme as part of the recap activities in the planning. Multisyllabic words are included in word lists and resources from an early stage to allow children to become adept at dealing with them.
  • Pupils should be taught how to read suffixes by building on the root words that they have already learnt. The whole suffix should be taught as well as the letters that make it up.
    Phonics Shed teaches the sounds for the suffixes and Spelling Shed encourages recognition of the suffix as a whole.
  • Pupils who are still at the early stages of learning to read should have ample practice in reading books that are closely matched to their developing phonic knowledge and knowledge of common exception words. As soon as the decoding of most regular words and common exception words is embedded fully, the range of books that pupils can read independently will expand rapidly. Pupils should have opportunities to exercise choice in selecting books and be taught how to do so.
    We have included lists of high-quality external texts to support the planning which can be used to help children to select their own optional reading material. However, we cannot guarantee that any external text will be fully decodable at any point in the scheme, unlike our decodable scheme.