Recent News
February 2023 Update.
If you were unable to attend our recent (January 2023) reading workshop, you can view our a pre-recorded version by clicking the link: 'Reading Beyond Phonics'. This covers how we teach reading in Year 3 and beyond, as well as covering how we use our local library and the Newlands Spring Reading Spine.
We have also recently shared our new Reading Booklets for Years 1 - 6. These can be found at the bottom of the page. An EYFS booklet will be uploaded in the near future.
Phonics and Reading at Newlands Spring Primary and Nursery School
At Newlands Spring Primary and Nursery School we recognise just how important the development of early reading is. To aid children make the best progress in phonics that they can, we use the Little Wandle: Letters and Sounds Revised programme as a basis for our phonics teaching. Little Wandle is a government approved system for systematically helping children to develop the decoding skills needed to become fluent and confident readers. Our own phonics programme at Newlands Spring follows the progression set out by Little Wandle and ensures children make the best start in becoming life long readers. There are numerous useful videos and other resources on the Little Wandle website.
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For reading, we use the Collins Big Cat reading scheme. This starts in EYFS and children follow it all the way through into Year 6. The books in this scheme include a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts which are divided into different stages according to their level of challenge. By moving through the scheme, all children are able to read appropriately challenging books and to develop their reading skills at the pace that is right for them.
We also have our Newlands Spring Reading Spine which we have developed in school. Whilst we know it is crucial that children become skilled decoders and can read at pace independently, we know that building a love of reading and ensuring all children encounter a rich bank of stories before they leave our school is also important. These books represent just some of the stories we read to the children and ensure all the children in our community encounter some of the best children’s fiction, both classic and modern. It also includes a recommended list of books which celebrate inclusiveness, both for use at home and in school; adoption, grief, dealing with anger, deafness, and autism are just some of those topics covered. This is reviewed each year and shared with parents. The reading spine is available at the bottom of this page.
For more detail about Little Wandle, our Big Cat reading scheme, or for how you can best aid your child with reading at home, please do not hesitate to speak to your child’s teacher. You can also access our 'Reading Guide for Parents' at the bottom of this page.
Our Curriculum
Whilst phonics and reading are fundamental skills we teach at Newlands Spring, there is far more to our English curriculum than this alone. If you are interested in seeing the progression of English skills - for reading, writing, and spoken language too - taught throughout the school, you can see a guide to the skills taught for each year group listed below.
Our curriculum related policies for English are listed below
- Phonic and Early Reading Policy (version 2022-1)
- English Policy (version 2022-1)
Furthermore, a series of booklets and workshop presentations below have been produced by the teachers of Newlands Spring to help you support your child at home with their reading, writing and phonics. You can also find our Reading Spine here, which includes a list of recommended reads for each phase.
You can see a sample of some of the written work our pupils produce below.
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Year 6: Persuasive Letters
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Year 5: Greek Myths
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Year 4: List Poem
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Year 2: Non-chronological reports