Read Write Inc (Phonics)
Our mission is to teach every child to read – and to keep them reading. No exceptions.
What is Read Write Inc.?
Read Write Inc. (RWI) is a systematic phonics programme, which teaches children to read accurately and fluently with good comprehension. RWI allows children to experience success from the very beginning.
RWI at Bawtry Mayflower
At Bawtry Mayflower, we know that the sooner children learn to read, the greater their success at school. This is why we put reading at the heart of what we do. RWI depends upon children learning to read and write sounds effortlessly, so we make it simple and fun.
First, the children learn one way to read the 40+ sounds; pictures and phrases are used to help the children to recognise all of the different sounds. As soon as children know the first five sounds, they begin to use oral blending to blend these sounds into words with the help of ‘Fred the frog’. Once the children have learnt to read the 40+ sounds one way, they then learn to read the same sounds with alternative graphemes. As well as learning to read real words, children will have the opportunity to apply their sound recognition skills to be able to read ‘Nonsense words’. These words feature heavily in the Year One Phonics Screening check in the summer term.
When children can blend independently, they progress on to reading green words. Once children can read green words, they begin to read stories in their RWI sessions. Each storybook is matched to the sounds they can already read, which sets them up for success and helps to build their confidence with reading. It is through the storybooks we teach children red words, which are irregular words that are not phonetically plausible and cannot be sounded out (Fred talked). Children will then read the book several times to help build their fluency and comprehension skills.
All pupils are assessed every 6-8 weeks; this ensures that children are placed in the group where they will make the most progress. Through regular assessment, we are able to identify children who are making progress and those children who are not. Fast track tutoring is then used to support children who are not making expected progress.
RWI Expectations
How you can help at home:
Expose your child to the idea of blending sounds together to make words by breaking down the words of the simple vocabulary you often use at home. For example, “please pass me that c – u – p”, “time for b – e - d”. This will help your child to practise their own oral blending as they can repeat the sounds back to you and then say the word.
Read to them and always discuss the story you are reading to try to build your child’s comprehension skills, inference and understanding.
Practice the sounds they know at home. These are the sounds in the Speed Sound Chart at the start of the storybooks.
Listen to your child read, both their RWI storybook and other storybooks, every day. Make sure that your child brings their RWI Storybook into school every day!
Look out for our RWI Workshops, where you can find out about how we teach phonics so that you are best placed to support your child’s reading journey.
Make sure that they attend school every day, and that they are on time, as this will help your child to make the most progress.
For information and tutorials on how to support your child learning to read go to:
http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/parents/
For further information please read our RWI Policy below.
