Reading and Phonics
At Oasis Academy Hadley we use two programmes to teach reading and phonics.
Phonics
In the Early Years Foundation Stage we use the Letters and Sounds Programme. This is a phonics scheme published by the Department for Education in 2007. It builds children's speaking and listening skills and prepares them for learning to read by developing their phonic knowledge and skills. The programme teaches phonic skills to children starting age of two, with the aim of them becoming fluent readers by age seven.
Home Reading
At Oasis Academy Hadley we use Oxford Reading Tree to support children’s reading at home.
Oxford Reading Tree is one of the best reading programmes in the U.K, it gives children the very best start. With systematic phonics at its heart, Oxford Reading Tree's has well-loved characters, fun stories and covers the new National Curriculum.
Oxford Reading Tree develops three skills.
- Phonics - using systematic phonics that are weaved through each story
- Practising tricky words – Children are introduced to new words in every story that they have to learn.
- Fosters a love of reading - through a huge selection of stories with children's best-loved characters and authors
Families are asked to read for a minimum of 15 minutes each night with their son or daughter at home.
You could also visit the Oxford Reading Tree website.
Once children become confident readers, they can then choose one of the wonderful books from the classroom’ reading areas written by well-known children’s authors.
At this point, children have more choice but this is still carefully monitored by their class teacher to ensure they continue to make progress.
At Oasis Academy Hadley we aim for our children to not only learn a wide, varied vocabulary but also to develop a love of reading.
Academy Learning Resource Centre
Children visit the Learning Resource Centre each week with their class teacher from Reception onwards. Our LRC is more than a traditional library. Children can choose a book to take home each week, use their skills to find non-fiction texts or spend time researching themes and topics on the computers and IT equipment available.