Welcome to Introduction Welcome to Jolly Phonics. Jolly Phonics has been developed by practising classroom teachers and provides a systematic method for teaching children to read and write. It is a synthetic phonics programme: The children are taught to read by ‘synthesising’ (which is blending) the letter sounds together. By blending the letter sounds together, the children can work out unknown words themselves, rather than being asked to memorise words. In this presentation, we will look at : The principles of Jolly Phonics. The stages children go through to learn to read and write well and confidently. How providing additional support at home can help children achieve the best results.

Introduction to Jolly Phonics Jolly Phonics uses sounds to teach children to read and write. The children are taught the sounds that letters make. They do not learn the letter names until they know all of the sounds. For example: at = a....t... Not a (ay) t (tee) The sounds are not taught in alphabetical order. We begin with the s a t i p n sounds because we can make lots of 2 and 3 letter words with these. e.g. at it sat tip pin pat

Introduction to Jolly Phonics There are 26 letters in the Alphabet but there are 42 sounds Some sounds sound the same but are written in different ways E.g. go, toe, know, note, coat (same sound, different spelling) Some sounds look the same but make different sounds E.g. The bow of a ship/ The bow in my hair (same spelling, different sound) Over the next two years (P1-P2) your child will be learning to read and write alot of the sounds in the English language

Story, song and action for each sound Primary 1 Jolly Phonics In P1 your child will learn the following single sounds: s a t i p n c k e h r m d g o u l f b j z w v y x Story, song and action for each sound

Vowel sounds- difficult for children e and i For ‘e’ put your chin down. For ‘i’ clench your teeth. Think about sit and set o and u - For ‘o’ keep your mouth round like the sound. For ‘u’ make your mouth long. Think about cot and cut.

Correct pronunciation of the sounds is crucial f- top teeth need to touch bottom lip, blow breath - NOT fuh l- tongue needs to touch roof of the mouth behind the front teeth - NOT la h- mouth open, puff as if out of breath – NOT huh p- lips together, puff air out – NOT puh n- tongue touches roof of mouth- NOT na th- (voiced: this, that, these) (breath: thick, thin, thieves)

3 single sounds with sound buttons 1 digraph and 2 single sounds Digraphs/Blends To help children learn the digraphs and to see them in words we use smiley faces for digraph sounds and sound buttons for single sounds. 3 single sounds with sound buttons E.g. 1 digraph and 2 single sounds

Reading tips using sounds and digraphs Please encourage your child to keep their finger under the words while reading so they can follow the story more accurately. In their reading book your child may find some words difficult as they haven’t learnt all the sounds/digraphs yet. Let your child use their phonic skills as much as possible and then use the book’s illustrations as a clue. E.g. Bowl, blue, rain (P2 sounds)

Primary 2 Jolly Phonics Term 1 We revise all of the sounds taught in P1 Single sounds s a t i p n etc Digraph sounds ch sh ay ee ng Revision of letter formation Revise reading strategies use of reading finger to point to the words use of pictures as clues use of sounding out words finding Tricky Words

Tricky Words Tricky Words are taught in P1 and P2. They are words that cannot be ‘sounded out’. e.g. Try sounding out the= th-e was= w-a-s Your child must learn to read and write these words from memory. Daily revision of these is essential. The Over‐Use of a Phonics Strategy An over-reliance on decoding words results in a lack of reading fluency.

Primary 2 Jolly Phonics The English language in written form is very complicated. 26 letters- 42 sounds. There can be more than one way of writing a sound. E.g. ee ea y In P2 your child is learning about the different ways of writing one sound. Term 2 The children learn the blends eg ch th st sh tr etc.

Writing in P2 By this stage your child has developed their letter formation through sensory experiences such as in the sand, air writing, painting, chalk etc Now they are writing words and sentences and are learning to size the letters correctly. We remind the children of letter sizing using the concept of a house: attic, house, cellar Letter Formation The next part of the lesson involves the second of the basic 5 skills: showing the children the shape of the letter that gives the /s/ sound: Multi-sensory approach A multi-sensory approach is used here too. The children can: feel the shape of the letter in the Finger Phonics books see it written on the board and write it in the air with their finger. (Demonstrate air-writing an ‘s’, facing everyone and making sure you draw the ‘s’ in its mirror image.) Getting it right It is important to get the formation correct from the beginning before any bad habits develop. Gentle guidance or correction given at home makes it easier for the children.

Correct Pencil Grip P1 & P2 Tripod grip ‘Froggy legs’ frog on a log Pencil Hold Tripod grip The ‘tripod’ type of pencil hold makes it easier for children to write. They need to learn that: The pencil goes between the thumb and the first finger. The next finger stops the pencil falling down. The last two fingers are not needed and should be tucked away. ‘Froggy legs’ movement The movement comes from the knuckles. When the pencil is moved in this way, it looks like ‘froggy legs’! It is helpful to encourage your children to use this pencil hold. (If you have time, get everyone to put their first finger and thumb together in the tripod grip and pretend to write with the ‘froggy legs’ movement.)

Correct Pencil Grip- Tips

P1 and P2 How can you help at home? Learn sounds in sound book P1 learn 1 sound per week P2 learn 1 new blended sound per week (T2) Read Tricky Words Point to the words in a random order! Or make your own flash cards and use them instead of the word strips.

How you can help at home Reading books: search for sounds and digraph sounds Encourage the use of reading finger when reading at home. Talk about sounds – in names/surnames of people, places, sign posts etc Build words – cut them up and get your child to put them back together. Play ‘Robots’ and talk in sounds e.g. ‘Let’s go to the p-ar-k ‘G-oo-d b-oy/ g-ir-l!’

How you can help at home Encourage correct pencil grip, letter formation and ‘house rule’ sizing. When writing, encourage your child to ‘have a go’ and praise their efforts, e.g. Mamee- but also show them the correct way to spell a word so that they learn the correct spelling.

Useful websites www.starfall.com http://jollylearning.co.uk/ Jolly jingles on Youtube http://www.letters-and-sounds.com/ http://www.phonicsplay.co.uk/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks1/literacy/phonics/play/ Downloadable apps on tablets and ipads.

We hope you find this information useful!