The intent of Reading at Holy Trinity is to develop confident, fluent and expressive readers. Using the Little Wandle Phonics Letter and Sounds Revised Scheme pupils build progressive knowledge of word reading, language comprehension and fluency. The Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised Scheme uses a systematic, synthetic phonics approach to build on growing knowledge, fostering a lifelong love of reading through evidence-based, daily, and consistent instruction. 

Reading develops pupils’ love of reading and enables them to form opinions, communicate ideas, supporting creativity, wellbeing and cultural understanding. The curriculum is ambitious for all pupils, with careful consideration of SEND through support and additional resources to ensure children are developing all reading skills from the beginning. Reading at Holy Trinity develops pupils’ love and curiosity for reading and the confidence to sustain life-long learning.

Implementation 

 We follow the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised expectations of progress:

Children in Reception are taught to read and spell words using Phase 2 and 3 GPCs, and words with adjacent consonants (Phase 4) with fluency and accuracy. Children in Year 1 review Phase 3 and 4 and are taught to read and spell words using Phase 5 GPCs with fluency and accuracy.

 Any child who needs additional practice is identified by the English Lead and/or class teacher. They then receive daily keep-up support, taught by a fully trained adult. Keep-up lessons match the structure of class teaching, and use the same procedures, resources, and mantras, but in smaller steps with more repetition, so that every child secures their learning.

Reading Practice Sessions

Our children have timetabled reading practice sessions three times a week. These are taught by a fully trained adult to small groups of approximately six children and use books matched to the children’s secure phonic knowledge using the Little Wandle Letters and Sounds revised assessments and book matching grids from the Little Wandle Revised Letters and Sounds Programme. Each reading practice session has a clear focus, so that the demands of the session do not overload the children’s working memory. The reading practice sessions have been designed to focus on three key reading skills: decoding, prosody and comprehension. In Reception these sessions start in Week 4. Reading is monitored by the class teacher, who rotates and works with each group on a regular basis.

 Children who are not yet decoding have daily additional blending practice in small groups, so that they quickly learn to blend and can begin to read books.

Impact

All children make good progress from their starting points.  Pupils demonstrate excitement and curiosity for reading.  Pupils are happy, confident readers, who have developed a love of reading, with the key skills and knowledge necessary for the next stage of their learning. They have high aspirations and are confident in the art of speaking and listening, they are able to successfully use discussion to communicate and further their learning. Children in Year 1 will take the Year One Phonics Screening Check. Any child who does not meet the threshold will retake the check in Year 2.

Curriculum 

Little Wandle Phonics Letters and Sounds Revised Scheme is a systematic synthetic phonics program with daily 30-minute lessons (Reception/Year 1) following a Review, Teach, Practise, Apply, Assess structure. It emphasises fast-paced, high-engagement, "pure" sounds, and includes 3 weekly reading practice sessions focusing on decoding, prosody, and fluency.

Teaching and Learning Approaches and Adaptions 

Little Wandle Phonics Letters and Sounds Revised Scheme offers a structured, flexible approach to phonics for learners with SEND, featuring small-step teaching, visual aids, and specialised resources. Key adaptations include using image banks for non-verbal learners, reduced pace, and multisensory, hands-on materials to support cognitive load. Little Wandle Daily Keep-up sessions are short, 5-10 minute, daily interventions designed to help pupils in Reception and Year 1 master GPCs and blending immediately. These targeted, often one-to-one or small-group, sessions use specific Little Wandle to bridge gaps without stopping core teaching. They are essential for ensuring all children stay on track with their peers. Little Wandle Phonics Letters and Sounds Revised Scheme offers a structured, flexible approach to phonics for learners with SEND, featuring small-step teaching, visual aids, and specialised resources. Key adaptations include using image banks for non-verbal learners, reduced pace, and multisensory, hands-on materials to support cognitive load. Little Wandle Daily Keep-up sessions are short, 5-10 minute, daily interventions designed to help pupils in Reception and Year 1 master GPCs and blending immediately. These targeted, often one-to-one or small-group, sessions use specific Little Wandle resources and teaching to bridge gaps without stopping core teaching. They are essential for ensuring all children stay on track with their peers.