Read, Write Inc.
At King David Primary School we are embarking on a new phonics adventure with Read Write Inc. We want to offer your child the best possible start to becoming independent readers. Children who read regularly or are read to regularly have the opportunity to open the doors to so many different worlds! More importantly, reading will give your child the tools to become independent life-long learners.
We can achieve this together through:
- Read Write Inc, a program to help your child to read at school
- Encouraging children to develop a love of books by reading to them daily, at home and at school
- Giving children access to a wide range of books at school and at home
We have put together a guide to how the RWI programme works together with some useful links.
Mrs McClellan-Bogue is our Read Write Inc lead teacher, so if you have questions about RWI, contact school who can refer you to her. Please take the time to read the information as it will provide invaluable information as to how you can help and support your child in reading.
What is Read Write Inc?
Read Write Inc (RWI) is a phonics based english programme which helps all children learn to read fluently and at speed so they can focus on developing their skills in comprehension, vocabulary and spelling. The programme is designed for children aged 4-7. However some children will need to access this programme beyond the age of 7 to meet individual needs.
RWI was developed by Ruth Miskin and more information on this can be found at https://ruthmiskin.com/en/find-out-more/parents/.
How will RWI be taught?
Children will be taught to:
- Decode effortlessly
- Spell and handwrite with ease
- Read with fluency and expression
- Comprehend what they read
- Write confidently using oral rehearsal
- Work effectively with a partner to articulate their learning at every step.
All children are assessed regularly by our RWI lead teacher and the reading team.
Reception
In Reception all children will learn how to ‘read’ the sounds in words and how those sounds can be written down.
Reading
The children:
- learn 44 sounds and the corresponding letters/letter groups using simple picture prompts – see below
- learn to read words using Fred talk and sound blending
- read from a range of storybooks and non-fictions books matched to their phonic knowledge
- work well with partners
- develop comprehension skills in stories by answering 'Find It' and 'Prove It' discussion questions
Writing
The children:
- learn to write and form the letters/letter groups which represent the 44 sounds with the help of fun phrases
- learn to write words by using Fred Talk
- learn to build sentences by practising sentences out loud before they write
Talking
The children work in pairs so that they:
- answer every question
- practise every activity with their partner
- take turns in talking and reading to each other
- develop ambitious vocabulary
Year One & Year Two
Children follow the same format as Reception but will work on complex sounds and read books appropriate to their reading level. Daily sessions of RWI phonics last for one hour. Most children should complete the programme by the end of year 2 if not earlier.
Enabling our children to become:
- Confident speakers,
- Fluent and enthusiastic readers,
- Keen writers
Five key principles underpin the teaching in all Read Write Inc. sessions:
Purpose – know the purpose of every activity and share it with the children, so they know the one thing they should be thinking about
Participation – ensure every child participates throughout the lesson. Partnership work is fundamental to learning
Praise – ensure children are praised for effort and learning, not ability
Pace – teach at an effective pace and devote every moment to teaching and learning
Passion – be passionate about teaching so children can be engaged emotionally.
Children will be taught how to read as follows:
Before you start to teach your child, practise saying the sounds below. These are the sounds we use to speak in English.
Fred Talk
We use pure sounds (‘m’ not’ muh’, ’s’ not ‘suh’, etc.) so that your child will be able to blend the sounds into words more easily.
At school we use a puppet called Fred who is an expert on sounding out words! we call it, ‘Fred Talk’. E.g. m-o-p, c-a-t, m-a-n, sh-o-p, b-l-a-ck.
The following video is an example of blending sounds with Fred. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEzfpod5w_Q
The children are taught the sounds in 3 sets.
Step 1:
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.
Set 1 | |
Sound | Rhyme |
m | Down Maisie then over the two mountains. Maisie, mountain, mountain. |
a | Round the apple, down the leaf. |
s | Slide around the snake |
d | Round the dinosaur's back, up his neck and down to his feet. |
t | Down the tower, across the tower, |
i | Down the insects body, dot for the head. |
n | Down Nobby and over the net. |
p | Down the plait, up and over the pirates face. |
g | Round the girls face, down her hair and give her a curl |
o | All around the orange |
c | Curl around the caterpillar |
k | Down the kangaroos body, tail and leg |
u | Down and under the umbrella, up to the top and down to the puddle |
b | Down the laces, over the toe and touch the heel |
f | Down the stem and draw the leaves |
e | Slice into the egg, go over the top, then under the egg |
l | Down the long leg |
h | Down the horse's head to the hooves and over his back |
sh | Slither down the snake, then down the horse's head to the hooves and over his back |
r | Down the robot's back, then up and curl |
j | Down his body, curl and dot |
v | Down a wing, up a wing |
y | Down a horn, up a horn and under the yak's head. |
w | Down, up, down, up the worm. |
th | Down the tower, across the tower, then down the horse’s head to the hooves and over his back |
z | Zig-zag-zig, down the zip. |
ch | Curl around the caterpillar, , then down the horse's head to the hooves and over his back |
qu | Round the queen’s head, up to her crown, down her hair and curl |
x | Cross down the arm and leg and cross the other way |
ng | A thing on a string |
nk | I think I stink |
The Read Write Inc Progression chart:
Please do not use letter names at this early stage.
Click here to hear how to pronounce sounds correctly.
For more support you can also visit:
www.facebook.com/miskin.education
Free e-books for home reading and further support:
http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/Reading/
Children will also use pictures for each sound to help recognise the sound and then form the shape of the sound
Set 1 Parent Booklet
Read Write Inc. Set 1 mini flash cards
Set 1 Speed Sound Session- letter 'm'
https://schools.ruthmiskin.com/training/view/rSvygmoD/q1IESC71
Green words
'Green' words are phonetically decodable words that the children learn to read. They allow children to become fluent readers because regular reading of these words mean that they become familiar and are able to recognise/read them on sight. They can then use their knowledge of these words to read similar words more quickly.
Set 1 Green Word Time Cards
Resources - Green Words set 1 and 2
Resources - Read Write Inc flash cards set 1, set 2 and set 3
Resources - Set 2 Speed Sound Practise Sheets
Set 2 Word List
Set 3 Individual Sound Sheets
Set 3 Word List
Click this link for the complete set of set 3 support sheets.
Additional Sounds
Spelling with Fred Fingers
Your child will learn to spell using their ‘Fred Fingers’. They will be encouraged to ‘push’ the sounds onto their fingers to help them hear the sounds in the word for spelling.
Each finger represents one sound:
c-l-ay – 3 sounds for spelling
f-r-igh-t – 4 sounds for spelling
Alien words
Alien words are ‘nonsense words’ that the children must carefully FRED talk and blend to read the word. This is to show that they can apply their phonic skills to unfamiliar words. ‘Nonsense words’ are an important part of the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check taken at the end of Year 1.
For example: froyg (f-r-oy-g) zewpy (z-ew-p-y)
Simple Speed Sound Chart
Complex Speed Sound Chart
Red Words:
Red words are sometimes known as ‘common exception words’ or ‘tricky’ words. These are words that children will need to learn on sight because they contain parts that are not decodable. For example the word 'the' could be decoded as 'theh', but children must learn the correct pronunciation and spelling. Some of the red words are only tricky until a specific sound is learnt or because people pronounce them differently in different parts of the country.
Red Words
Phonics Screening Materials:
More Phonics Screening Practice
Phonics Screening Practice Paper 1
Phonics Screening Practice Paper 2