Literacy in Key Stage One

During my time as a teacher in Year One I have found the single thing that makes the most difference to children’s attainment in Literacy is the teaching of phonics.

I have used two different programmes to teach phonics; Jolly Phonics and Letters and Sounds. I found both extremely useful as a teacher. They both have clear progression and targets for children to meet before they move onto the stage. Due to the abundance of books and other resources available I would imagine that it would be easier for a parent to follow the Jolly Phonics programme, the reading books are particularly useful for practising reading to gain familiarity with each new sound learnt.  

Another resource that was excellent in enhancing the teaching of phonics was Education City which is an interactive piece of software that can be used on a computer or an Interactive White Board. Their phonics system is based on the Letters and Sounds programme and has a plethora of games to choose from that both introduce each new sound and provide situations for them to practice the new knowledge they have acquired and consolidate their learning.