All children in Year One will take part in a phonics screening check during the week of beginning  Monday 12th June 2023.  This test is nothing to worry about but rather an assessment to confirm that all children have learnt phonic decoding to an age appropriate standard.  The test consists of 40 words that are fully decodable. 20 are real words and 20 are 'alien' (fake) words.   

If your child does not meet the government pass mark, they will resit the test when they are in Y2.  

At The Elms, we assess the children every half term to make sure they are in the correct phonics groups in order to receive teaching at the appropriate level.  If we find that a child needs a little help to keep up, we put various interventions in place as well as 1:1 Fast Track Tutoring.  This is where a child works with an adults for a few minutes everyday on the aspects on phonics they find most difficult. 

I must stress, that all children learn to read at different rates.  Please do not put yourself or your child under any unnecessary stress and do not worry about this test which will assess a little part of their reading journey.