Foundation - Phonological Awareness and Phonics

Age 4 - 6

Early language development plays a central role in the development of literacy skills in the Foundation Stage. The importance of developing good attention and listening skills is central to the development of good receptive and expressive language skills. Pupils with literacy difficulties may have a co-occurring difficulty in Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) or a hearing impairment and they may also have an under-performing working memory, phonological and orthographic processor, so it is imperative that this is taken into consideration when planning lessons.

Teachers should strive to plan for and develop all four levels of phonics knowledge, beginning with phoneme/grapheme correspondence and progressing to phonics teaching at the orthographic level, syllables, onset and rime and irregular whole word.

In the Foundation stage, there will be an emphasis on developing the alphabetic principle which is teaching letter names and sounds. Pupils need to be able to recognise letters with accuracy and speed to support them in learning the sounds associated with them. This is best achieved through systematic and explicit teaching to establish the sound-symbol relationships. Many pupils with specific literacy difficulties will continue to struggle to learn all the letter names and sounds and many will have significant difficulty identifying the vowel sound unless it is attached to a consonant, for example, “an”, “in”, “on”. It is very important that in the first year of school pupils learn the names of all of the letters of the alphabet. The letter name is the only consistent attribute as the shape changes (upper / lower case) and for many letters there is more than one sound. Letter names, sounds and shape/directionality in writing should be taught at the same time.

All letters have four properties: name, sound, shape and feel (the sensation of muscle movements while writing the letter or while producing the sound). The name is the only property that does not change. The name of the letter is the anchor to which the pupil can attach its other properties. Pupils learn the alphabet through exploration of the relationships between letter names, the sounds of the letter names, their visual characteristics, and the motor movements involved in their formation. This results from direct instruction and multiple exposures to print.

Pupils need to practise letter names and alphabet sequences every day as a whole group activity, in the Foundation Stage classrooms. Pupils with literacy difficulties need over learning. Five minutes at the start of each day in the Foundation Stage that is given over to learning the alphabet will pay huge dividends for many pupils. It will support the pupils in memorising the alphabet and especially any pupil who may have working memory difficulties. The routine will build automaticity in saying the alphabet and recalling letter names. Repetition and overlearning are vital to embed the alphabet knowledge in long term memory. Research has established that pupils who know the names of the letters of the alphabet learn letter-sound links more readily.

Sequencing the Alphabet

Teach pupils how to set up the alphabet arc ready for sequencing.

a, z, sit on the arc. Explain ‘a’ comes first (say “a” as in acorn for letter name) and ‘z’ is last.

‘m’, ‘n’ sit on the arc as they are the middle letters in the alphabet.

Confusing letters ‘b’ and ‘d’ top left and ‘p’ and ‘q’ top right

The rest of the letters mixed in the centre:

Plastic letters a, m, n and z are positioned on the rainbow arch, in their appropriate position. The letters b and d are in the top left corner. The letters p and q are positioned in the top right corner. The remaining letter of the alphabet are arranged randomly in the centre of the arch.

Establish one-to-one correspondence linking each sound to a visual symbol in a left to right direction around the alphabet arc using large magnetic letters. It is essential to say each sound as you touch each letter. Point out the vowels. Reinforce the short vowel sounds using visual picture clues above the large alphabet: apple, elephant, igloo, orange, umbrella. Use real objects if possible. Say each letter’s name as you touch it -going around the alphabet arc. Some pupils will need the support of the alphabet melody for longer than others. Below are some activities to reinforce and consolidate learning:

One-to-one correspondence outside using large wooden letters in an arc arrangement and 26 alphabet objects. The pupil matches each object to each letter as they say the letter sounds from a-z
One-to-one correspondence inside using individual alphabet arc letters and objects. Pupil points to each letter as they say the letter sounds from a-z

Using the alphabet arc place the letters in the wrong order to see who can spot the mistake (work within a quartile to avoid confusion)

Explain to the pupils that consonants make one sound and vowels make two sounds. Explain that ‘c’ and ‘g’ make two sounds and they will be learning all about them later. Explain the sneaky letter ‘y’ sometimes wants to be a vowel. There is no need to elaborate or dwell on this at this stage

Use vowel sound objects that the pupil can feel and touch

Use “I spy… find an object that begins with a certain sound

Guide for parents on teaching phonics (grapheme/phoneme knowledge):

Teacher Guidance: Alphabet Arc Activities

Teach letter sounds out of order through a variety of activities always reinforcing those sounds pupils find difficult: b, d, t, g, j, q, v, w, y, e, i, o / u:

EA Guidance Video: Auditory Sequential Memory (3:01mins)

Find and circle or colour all objects that start with, for example, the ‘g’ sound
Letter sound ‘Bingo’
Adult calls out a letter sound and pupil whacks it with fly swat/ runs to it (outside letters) or points to it
Sorting pictures / object representing the letter into hoops, sound trays or tubs.
Letter wands – pick a letter and go on a sound object hunt around the class or school and complete a daily flashcard routine of all the letter

Phonological Awareness Difficulties

Phonological awareness difficulties are difficulties with identifying and sequencing the sounds within a word. This leads to challenges when manipulating, blending and segmenting sounds to read and spell. There may be a difficulty with identifying ‘rhymes’. Phonological awareness can be severely affected by hearing impairment or developmental language difficulties but may also be impacted by working memory or executive function difficulties.

Impact on word recognition, spelling and writing	Recommendations for Reasonable Adjustments
The pupil may find it difficult to learn and retain new grapheme/ phoneme knowledge (determining what sounds are associated with a letter) The pupil may have a difficulty with letter recognition (the ability to recognise letter shapes and associating the particular shape with a letter)	Always begin a lesson with revision of previous learning Provide the pupil with time to make the alphabet arc daily and teach the letter names and the letter sounds: Teacher Guidance: Alphabet Arc Activities Guided Discovery Learning of each new sound: Visual introduction-ask the pupil to read the first three words – ‘bat’, ‘flat’, ‘cat’- encourage them to identify the similarity Ask the pupil to colour code the recurring orthographic pattern Auditory introduction - Listen to these words and tell me what is the same in all the words- ‘bat’, ‘cat’, ‘flat’ - The pupil should identify - ‘at’: EA Guidance Video: Guided Discovery (auditory) (3:10 mins) Follow up auditory discovery with either visual or tactile consolidates, this ensures the teaching of new letter sound is multisensory Use multisensory approaches when introducing a new sound and engage all the senses-visual, auditory and kinaesthetic. This will consolidate learning for the pupil: EA Guidance Video: Introducing the grapheme (1:59 mins) Ensure the correct articulation of each phoneme is introduced, avoiding the schwa sound, the schwa is the common vowel sound. It is found in the unaccented / unstressed syllable of a word. It makes the lazy sound /u/. Using mirrors and photos of the mouth - focus on lip and tongue placement as well as sensations in the throat and with the air For example - “When I say /m/, as in ‘mat’, my lips vibrate... Do you notice that?” “Which picture do you think shows the mouth saying /m/?” “When you say the /h/ sound, what do you feel your breath do?” Initial sounds card routine - go through each new letter –ask the pupil to identify the letter name / sound / picture: Follow a daily Flashcard Routine for overlearning: Image Letter sound, for example /a/ Letter name ‘a’ Representative picture – ‘apple’ or pupil’s own picture: EA Guidance Video: Introduce the flashcard and flashcard routine (1:03 mins) Demonstrate how the letter is formed using the handwriting routine: Pupil traces over the teacher’s model Pupil copies the letter Pupil writes the letter from memory Finally, the pupil writes the letter with eyes closed During each step, the learner should articulate the sound and say the letter names: EA Guidance Video: Handwriting Routine (2:27 mins) Teach Stimulus Response Routine -This repetitive approach consolidates and develops automaticity in learning the new sound: EA Guidance Video: Stimulus Response Routine (1:51 mins) Teacher Guidance: Instructions for the Stimulus Response Routine Image Teacher makes the sound /ă/ Pupil moves around the other three points in a clockwise direction: says ‘a’ (letter name), writes ‘a’ and then says the clue-word ‘apple’ The teacher then starts from step 2 by saying the letter name and the pupil responds by going ‘clockwise’ around the other 3 steps The routine is repeated until all four starting points have been used by the teacher. Once familiarity with the steps has been established, it should become a quick routine to develop automaticity (less than 1 minute) Forming the letter using the cursive script can help with directionality and formation of each letter- introduce the lead in and lead out stroke The activities above are all implemented simultaneously and the alphabet arc is a resource which supports this approach: Teacher Guidance: Alphabet Arc Activities
The pupil may have difficulty discriminating between the vowel sound	Sounds are abstract, so it is helpful to link them to a concrete picture or action. For the vowel sounds it is also advisable to have large vowel picture prompts above the alphabet arc and the same pictures used on a desk prompt for the pupils who need support. The picture prompts or actions should remain the same for Primary 1 and Primary 2 to reduce the load on memory. Picture prompts commonly used are: /a/ apple /e/ elephant /i/ igloo /o/ orange /u/ umbrella Vowel sound objects that the pupils can feel and touch also are particularly useful Sort letters into two cups -one for vowels and one for consonants Identify and circle all the vowels in a grid
Difficulty sequencing the letters alphabetically	Teach using the 4 quartiles - (A - D, E - L, M - R, S - Z) - the mnemonic “All Elephants Make Squirts” can be used to support this in memory Teach the melody to support a pupils with working memory difficulties Put letters in the wrong order on the arc to see who can spot the error or remove one letter from the alphabet arc. Ask the pupil, "What is it?"
The pupil may struggle to remember what a specific letter looks like, HFWS or topic words The pupil may have difficulty in discriminating between final consonant sounds such as /d/, /t/ and /p/ for example, reads “cot” as “cod” The pupil may struggle with identifying letters, such as, ‘b’, ‘d’, ‘p’ and ‘q’, therefore there is confusion over the sound	Have tabletop prompt cards - for the pupil during writing activities: Target sounds Letter names High Frequency Words (HFWs) Topic words Emphasise the change in end sound: Provide a visual representation of the letter Use a mirror to show the position of the mouth Mnemonics will provide a memory prompt on directionality of letters: Printable Resource: Letter Orientation Prompt Ensure these mnemonics are explicitly explained. Do not assume prior knowledge has been linked. English readers, read letters left-right across the page. A pupil may be confused as the ball could sit on either side of the bat. Explain that you draw the bat first and then the ball (left to right). Thumbs up for ‘b’ and ‘d’, thumbs down ‘p’ and ‘q’ Explain that in the alphabet arc Mr ‘b’ comes first and he must face Mr ‘d’ who comes after ‘c’, as he wants to chat’; ‘b’ and ‘d’ stare at each other and poor ‘c’ is stuck in the middle. Then comes Mr ‘p’ who needs to face Mr ‘q’ also to chat. The teacher can model this using his / her thumbs and demonstrate the 2 letters chatting. Make sure to explain the left hand comes first (some pupils will require explicit teaching of methods to identify their left/ right hand): Image
The pupil may have difficulty with the sequencing of sounds in words and identifying the sounds within a word	When the pupil develops some phoneme /grapheme knowledge he / she can begin to segment and blend sounds using onset and rime in phonetically regular words Model how to change the initial and final sounds in a word first, as these will be easier for the pupil: Teacher Guidance: Procedure for Segmenting and Blending a Word Present onset and rime patterns using a consistent colour for the rime and the onset colour can be changed, for example, cat, mat Alongside this use manipulatives, for example, magnetic letters to develop sound / letter links making learning concrete:
The pupil may have difficulty with blending and segmenting sounds	Model how to blend and segment known sounds: Teacher Guidance: Procedure for Segmenting and Blending a Word Use different resources such as: Magnetic letters Alphabet cards Whiteboard and markers Sound boxes (sometimes called phoneme frames or Elkonin boxes) Manipulate sounds in words, for example, use magnetic letters to change ‘spit’ into ‘spat’. Ask the pupil to remove the ‘p’ from ‘spit’ what is the word For some pupils segmenting a word into phonemes may be very difficult, therefore continue to teach word patterns: Teach letter names and sounds Short vowels (a, e, i, o, u) Consonant digraphs, that is, two or more letters that come together and make one sound, for example - /sh/, /ch/, /th/ Short vowels (a, e, I, o, u) Blends (fl, gl, cl, sp, st, sn, sl, gr, cr, dr…) Encourage the pupil to apply this knowledge when reading Simultaneous Oral Spelling Instructions EA Guidance Video: Simultaneous Oral Spelling (SOS) (4:39 mins)
The pupil may have a difficulty with counting syllables in a word	Teach syllables through games (syllable activities are available in the Initial Contact Portal) A syllable is a beat in a word that can be heard and felt (put your hand under your chin to feel it as you speak) Model strategies which can be used to identify syllables in a word: Chin bumps Clapping Stamp / kick it out Model, guide then ask the pupil to change a syllable from a two-syllable word, for example, say ‘bookcase’ now say it again but do not say ‘case’
The pupil may have a difficulty with identifying ‘rhymes’ and ‘alliteration’ The pupil may struggle to produce words that rhyme or have the same beginning sound	Introduce musical and rhyme-based activities or sing songs with actions to recognise rhyme When reading a rhyming story, ask the pupil to put his / her hands on head or thumbs up when rhyming words are heard Develop awareness of rhyming patterns in words Provide access to audiobooks or eBooks
The pupil may have difficulty retaining new concepts and they often appear to have been forgotten by the next day The pupil may have difficulty remembering new words, which can impact on vocabulary development and overall language skills	Teach word families - words that end in the same rime - et, ip, ug or have the same initial blend such as bl or cr. This supports more efficient storage of orthographic knowledge of letter patterns in long-term memory Organised storage makes retrieval of the information easier. It also supports working memory by chunking the word into 2 parts (onset and rime) as opposed to 3 individual sounds. Encourage and support the pupil to read cat as a whole word, not c/a/t
Pupil finds it difficult to apply new leaning of concepts to reading and spelling tasks	Provide opportunities for the pupil to explore reading and spelling rimes in isolation Change the vowel but keep the final consonant the same, for example, ab/eb/ib/ob/ub or ap/ep/ip/op/up The Dictation Routine enables a pupil to read and spell words in structure. The pupil can practise the newly acquired phonics skills. Structured sentences contain only words that are phonetically regular which the pupil has been working with and sight words that the pupil knows. This allows for success: Teacher dictates the sentence Pupil repeats the sentence Teacher dictates the sentence again (to ensure accuracy and correct pronunciation) Pupil repeats the sentence Pupil writes the sentence Pupil checks the sentences using a COPS mnemonic: Printable Resource: COPS Proof-Reading for Dictated Sentences Printable Resource: COPs Proof - Reading Prompt EA Guidance Video: Dictation Routine (9:02 mins) Teacher Guidance: Dictation Routine
The pupil is unable to spot differences in beginning sounds	Activities working on alliteration - read out a selection of words and ask the pupil to spot the odd one out - sit, sip, cat, sun Read and spell phonetically regular words, such as, it, in, at, can Encourage and develop quick recall of these words

Working Memory Difficulties

Working memory difficulties may make the blending of more than two phonemes beyond the capacity of 5–7-year-old pupils. Phonics teaching at the onset and rime level, facilitates the development of orthographic knowledge because pupils learn to recognise on sight, orthographic patterns, that is clusters of letters representing clusters of phonemes.

Impact on word recognition, spelling and writing	Recommendations for Reasonable Adjustments
Difficulty learning the alphabet - both letter names and sounds Difficulties with storage and retrieval of letter/sound knowledge	Overlearning and repetition of new learning ensures knowledge is secure The alphabet arc is a resource which supports the learning of alphabetic knowledge: Teacher Guidance: Alphabet Arc Activities Provide opportunities for daily letter / sound review - use a cumulative set of cards and flip through them quickly as a warm up. Ask the pupil to give the letter name / sound and picture for each: EA Guidance Video: Introduce the flashcard and flashcard routine (1:03 mins) Create a letter path on the floor and have the pupil walk the path as he / she says the words Motor-skill link - ask the pupil to write the letter as he / she says the sound. This can reinforce the letter / sound connection Have an anchor to support the learning of phonemes, for example, a visual of each letter with a pictures or action so it is not so abstract Embedded picture mnemonics may help form memorable links between letters and sounds. Letters can be drawn to resemble characters shaped like the letter with a name whose initial sound is symbolised by that letter, for example, ‘s’ drawn as a snake, ‘c’ as a cat, ‘m’ as a monster
Unable to remember alphabetical order	Sing the alphabet as a warm up to the lesson. Slow down as you sing, L, M, N, O, P. Point to the alphabet chart as you sing the song and listen quietly at parts to see how well the pupil knows the alphabet Play missing letter games - use the alphabet arc. Ask the pupil to close his / her eyes and remove selected letters. Then ask can the pupil to find what letters are missing Use a set of alphabet cards, turn one over at a time and ask the pupil to identify the letter before and the letter after Shuffle a set of alphabet cards and ask the pupil to put them back into order as quickly as possible
The pupil finds it difficult to recognise the vowel sounds	Use the alphabet arc to show words containing new vowel sound attached to a consonant, for example - ‘at’ or ‘it’ Vowel sound objects that the pupil can feel and touch also support memory, for example, have an apple on the desk when working with the vowel ‘a’ in words, or a pupil’s umbrella when working with the vowel ‘u’ Vowel actions can be effective in supporting memory: Vowel ‘a’ - move your hand from left to right in front of your body like you are holding an apple and say ‘apple’ like /aaapple/ Vowel ‘e’ - move your hand along the edge of the table and say ‘edge’ like this /eeedge/ Vowel ‘i’ - scratch the back of your hand and say ‘itch’ like /iiiiitch/ Vowel ‘o’ - move your hand from left to right in front of your head while you wiggle your fingers and say ‘octopus’ like /oooctopus/ Vowel ‘u’ - move your pointer finger up while saying ‘up’ /uuup/
The pupil may be unable to remember what specific letters look like, HFWs or topic words Often unable to visually discriminate between ‘b’, ’d', ’p’, ’q’	Have tabletop prompt cards -for the pupil during writing activities: Target sounds Letter names High Frequency Words (HFWs) Topic words Separate tricky letters - (b, d, p and q) Mnemonics will provide a memory prompt on directionality of letters: Printable Resource: Letter Orientation Prompt Ensure these mnemonics are explicitly explained. Do not assume prior knowledge has been linked. English readers, read letters left-right across the page. A pupil may be confused as the ball could sit on either side of the bat. Explain that you draw the bat first and then the ball (left to right). Thumbs up for ‘b’ and ‘d’, thumbs down ‘p’ and ‘q’ Explain that in the alphabet arc Mr ‘b’ comes first and he must face Mr ‘d’ who comes after ‘c’, as he wants to chat’; ‘b’ and ‘d’ stare at each other and poor ‘c’ is stuck in the middle. Then comes Mr ‘p’ who needs to face Mr ‘q’ also to chat. The teacher can model this using his / her thumbs and demonstrate the 2 letters chatting: Image Support with cursive handwriting: Image
The pupil may have a difficulty holding several sounds in his / her short-term memory (auditory sequential memory) in order to complete an activity	Introduce auditory sequential memory activities: EA Guidance Video: Auditory Sequential Memory (3:01mins) The teacher prepares a set of cards containing letter strings, for example, A, F, K Model strategies which may help: Say the letters over and over Write them in the air with his / her finger Say them in a rhyme Memory training starts with 3 letters and builds to 7: The teacher says the letter string, presenting the letters at one second interval The pupil repeats the letter string several times and then takes the letters out of the alphabet arc The teacher checks for accuracy
Difficulty with holding memory of a letter sequence or word in short- term memory (visual sequential memory) in order to complete an activity	Visual sequential memory routine: EA Guidance Video: Visual Sequential Memory (2:20 mins) Use the alphabet arc and letter strings on a small card (starting with 2 letters and progressing to 5): The teacher selects cards and asks the pupil to memorise them - a, d, f, r The letters are put back in the pack The learner must select the same letters and check against the original model Strategies which help: Build a picture in the mind’s eye Imagine the letters on a wall or coat hooks Remember them in 2 groups - a, d and f, r EA Guidance Video: Visual Sequential Memory (2:20 mins)
The pupil may have difficulty remembering the multiple mappings for phonemes	A pupil with working memory difficulties will find storage of multiple mappings very difficult and will learn best through repetitive learning using word patterns. The repetitive approach to learning helps develop a memory trace for the pupil
The pupil may find it difficult to retain and spell HFWs	Create a HFW path on the floor and have the pupil dance around, then stop on the word the teacher has said, when the music stops Use multiple channels to learn HFWs - say the word, write the word, form the word using cursive handwriting Use Read, Build and Write mats: The teacher shows the word to the pupil The pupil says the word The pupil builds the word using magnetic letters The pupil writes the word (cursive handwriting can help develop a grapho-motor memory of the word) Using I do, we do, you do approach, allow the pupil opportunities to verbalise the word in his / her own sentence: Show pupil flashcard with HFW Teacher writes sentence on reverse of that flashcard Pupil draws a related picture above the sentence Revisit this word and any new words regularly: EA Guidance Video: Introduce the flashcard and flashcard routine (1:03 mins)
The pupil may have a difficulty blending due to inefficient storage of sounds in long-term memory The pupil may struggle to unitise sounds	Develop the pupil’s awareness of onset and rime which reduces the load on short-term memory and supports a pupil with working memory or orthographic processing difficulties Develop the pupil’s whole word recognition and gradually draw attention to changing the word by altering the initial and then the end sound Provide opportunities for reading of continuous text (in structure) and encourage discussion of text, generalising and scanning for key information: EA Guidance Video: Reading Consolidation Exercise (4:45 mins) Use pictures for matching or producing rhyming words A helpful strategy is to work from anchor words, for example, ‘at’, ‘an’, ‘it’ and link new learning to prior knowledge of these words. As the pupil develops familiarity with word patterns, he / she will begin to recognise them in reading Provide opportunities for Guided Discovery Learning - display the words or say the words - can the pupil spot patterns: EA Guidance Video: Guided Discovery (auditory) (3:10 mins) Provide lots of opportunities for multisensory approaches, engage multiple senses to enhance learning and memory. Incorporate visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learning into each activity Provide visuals to support memory-alphabet arc visual or desk strips and anchor charts showing word families: Teacher and Pupil Printable: Anchor Chart
The pupil may struggle to maintain attention The pupil may struggle to apply new learning to reading activities	Ensure you have the pupil’s attention before speaking Keep instructions simple Introduce shared reading with big books to model new learning as the books are visually attractive with large print Provide opportunities for reading of continuous text (in structure) and encourage discussion of text, generalising and scanning for key information: EA Guidance Video: Reading Consolidation Exercise (4:45 mins) Use pictures for matching or producing rhyming words A helpful strategy is to work from anchor words, for example, ‘at’, ‘an’, ‘it’ and link new learning to prior knowledge of these words. As the pupil develops familiarity with word patterns, he / she will begin to recognise them in reading Provide opportunities for Guided Discovery Learning - display the words or say the words - can the pupil spot patterns: EA Guidance Video: Guided Discovery (auditory) (3:10 mins) Provide lots of opportunities for multisensory approaches, engage multiple senses to enhance learning and memory. Incorporate visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learning into each activity Provide visuals to support memory - alphabet arc visual or desk strips and anchor charts showing word patterns: Teacher and Pupil Printable: Anchor Chart

Auditory Discrimination Difficulties

Difficulties with hearing the differences between similar sounding phonemes. Pupils may have difficulty discriminating between sounds such as ‘b’ and ‘p’, ‘m’ and ‘n’. The pupil may frequently mishear or misunderstand verbal instructions leading to confusion and frustration in the classroom. He / she may have difficulty recognising and producing rhyming words or identifying patterns in words that have similar sounds.

Impact on whole word recognition, spelling and writing	Recommendations for Reasonable Adjustments
The pupil may have difficulty concentrating when a lesson is being introduced He / she may be easily distracted by anything happening in the classroom	Encourage active listening - provide explicit instruction on how to focus attention, maintain eye contact and actively process auditory information Minimise background noise to help the pupil focus on the speaker
The pupil may have difficulty discriminating between vowel sounds Vowel sounds are not pronounced correctly and therefore decoding is incorrect, for example, the pupil may read ‘jug’ for ‘jog’	Vowel sounds are often best heard when anchored to the rime of a word, for example, ‘at’ in the word ‘hat’ Use word analogy to show a word that he / she may recognise, such as, ‘hug’ then show ‘jug’ alongside
The pupil may find if difficulty to discriminate between consonant sounds (for example, b and p, t and d, m and n) He / she may read words incorrectly, such as, ‘cot’ for ‘cod’	Using mirrors and photos of the mouth - focus on lip and tongue placement as well as sensations in the throat and with the air Encourage the pupil to look across the word to the word ending and explicitly discuss the sound that the letter makes
The pupil may be unable to remember individual sounds in words if it goes beyond two sounds and this in turn makes it difficult to manipulate or blend	Use a voice recorder to listen to the sounds - the teacher can record his / her model and then the learner can record his / her attempt - his aids memory and the pupil can check for accuracy
The pupil may be unsure what a syllable is Difficulties with counting syllables in a word The pupil may find it difficult to distinguish between whole words, onset rimes, syllables, and phonemes	Teach the rules for spelling syllables: A syllable is a beat in a word that can be heard and felt (put your hand under your chin to feel it as you speak) There is a syllable for every vowel sound Each syllable spells itself Focus at this early stage on closed syllable / short vowel words, such as ‘cat’ and then progress to open syllable / long vowel words Teach open syllable / long vowel words ‘go’, ’no’, ’so’, ‘me’, ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘we’, ‘by’ and ‘my’ Provide visual aids - pictures illustrating syllable divides ‘football’, ‘carpark’ Use assistive listening devices - such as FM systems or personal amplification devices to enhance the pupil’s ability to hear vowel/consonant songs Provide easy to remember jingles which help to reinforce learning Count syllables through games and be aware of the strategies which help identify a syllable (a beat in a word that can be heard and felt by putting your hand under your chin to feel it as you speak): Chin Bumps Clap, stamp, kick it out
Difficulty recognising rhyme	Rhyming activities develop the pupil’s recognition of words that rhyme, and words that do not. These activities should be done orally and visually Read a rhyming story, ask the pupil to put his / her hands on his / her head or thumbs up when a rhyming word is heard Picture Sorts - show a pair of pictures for example - car / tar. Say one of the words and the pupil point to the correct one Cut up picture pairs, put one set in a bag and the other on a table. Take turns picking a picture from the bag and saying the word. The other person must point to the matching picture he / she sees Prompt the pupil to clap, stomp or tap the syllables, rhyme and split up the units in a word Introduce musical and rhyme-based activities Read stories that use alliteration and stress sounds as you read

Slow Processing Speed

Processing speed refers to the ability to process information efficiently and accurately, lack of automaticity when recalling grapheme / phoneme knowledge leads to slow laboured decoding and encoding of sounds when reading and spelling. It requires a lot of mental energy and is stressful and exhausting for the pupil. New concepts may require repetitive consolidation until they become secure.

Impact on whole word recognition, spelling and writing	Recommendations for Reasonable Adjustments
Takes longer to process the spoken word The pupil may take longer to process stored vocabulary He / she may find it difficult to maintain attention and may become distracted during tasks that require sustained attention He / she may be overwhelmed by the amount of information, he / she needs to process	Provide clear instructions both verbally and visually Avoid lengthy explanations or multiple instructions Break instructions down into simple sequential steps and provide repeated reinforcement as needed Always allow extra processing time Provide a count-down timer to attempt to maintain focus and concentration Prompt when you recognise that the pupil is struggling to recall information
The pupil may have inefficient access to stored information so writing and spelling are impacted due to retrieval difficulties The pupil may default constantly to sounding out every phoneme in a word and be unable to use any other strategies to help	Scaffold and develop decoding skills (knowledge of letter sound and letter patterns) Teach whole words daily using flashcards (only introduce 4 to 5 words each week if the pupil is struggling to learn these words and repeat often to consolidate in memory) Teach spelling rules: Vowels can make different sounds depending on where they are placed in a word If a consonant is after the vowel, the vowel usually makes a short sound, for example: cat, shop, ship In the absence of a consonant the vowel usually makes a long vowel sound, for example: to, so, we, be
The pupil may forget the instructions given and as a result is unable to begin a task	Visual aids can scaffold comprehension and memory retention, such as, charts and diagrams of key ideas Provide post-its on the table of the key steps Teach the pupil how to ask for help (to avoid any embarrassment allow the pupil to use a visual cue to gain attention): Printable Resource: Traffic Lights (Help Indicator)

Impact on whole word recognition, spelling and writing

Recommendations for Reasonable Adjustments

Takes longer to process the spoken word

The pupil may take longer to process stored vocabulary

He / she may find it difficult to maintain attention and may become distracted during tasks that require sustained attention

He / she may be overwhelmed by the amount of information, he / she needs to process

Provide clear instructions both verbally and visually
Avoid lengthy explanations or multiple instructions
Break instructions down into simple sequential steps and provide repeated reinforcement as needed
Always allow extra processing time
Provide a count-down timer to attempt to maintain focus and concentration
Prompt when you recognise that the pupil is struggling to recall information

The pupil may have inefficient access to stored information so writing and spelling are impacted due to retrieval difficulties

The pupil may default constantly to sounding out every phoneme in a word and be unable to use any other strategies to help

Scaffold and develop decoding skills (knowledge of letter sound and letter patterns)
Teach whole words daily using flashcards (only introduce 4 to 5 words each week if the pupil is struggling to learn these words and repeat often to consolidate in memory)
Teach spelling rules:
- Vowels can make different sounds depending on where they are placed in a word
- If a consonant is after the vowel, the vowel usually makes a short sound, for example: cat, shop, ship
- In the absence of a consonant the vowel usually makes a long vowel sound, for example: to, so, we, be

The pupil may forget the instructions given and as a result is unable to begin a task

Visual aids can scaffold comprehension and memory retention, such as, charts and diagrams of key ideas
Provide post-its on the table of the key steps
Teach the pupil how to ask for help (to avoid any embarrassment allow the pupil to use a visual cue to gain attention):

Printable Resource: Traffic Lights (Help Indicator)

Orthographic Processing Difficulties

Orthographic processing difficulties are difficulties recognising patterns in written words that represent clusters of phonemes blended and recognised as one unit. Pupils with literacy difficulties struggle to learn words implicitly from reading therefore they need to be explicitly taught word patterns.

Impact on whole word recognition, spelling and writing	Recommendations for Reasonable Adjustments
The pupil may be reading words laboriously sound by sound He / she may have poor reading fluency	The pupil needs to develop automaticity through following a cumulative, repetitive, structured, multisensory phonics programme. This needs to begin with explicit instruction on letter-sound correspondence and progress to onset and rime patterns. Focus on the rime: Set out letters - ‘a’ and ‘t’ The pupil says the word /at/ The teacher can add a ‘m’ (onset) before the ‘at’ The pupil can practise blending /mat/ Continue to vary the onset while the pupil says that word Change the colour of the onset but maintain a consistent colour for the rime Onset and rime and the teaching of initial blends and final blends will develop a pupil’s orthographic knowledge of letter clusters. It will support more efficient storage of information in long-term memory. This organised storage makes retrieval of information easier Teach reading fluency by providing opportunities for re-reading text or choral reading: Teacher Guidance: Reading Fluency The pupil can create his / her own read aloud books or a short story using fluency and expression to deliver to peers The pupil can listen to a sentence read without expression and discuss correct intonation and punctuation required
The pupil may have difficulty recognising spelling patterns / word patterns He / she may have difficulty identifying and manipulating sounds in words	Provide activities to enable the pupil to practise blending and segmenting the sounds in common rimes: a rimes: ab, ad, ag, am, an, ap, at e rimes: eb, ed, eg, en, ep, et i rimes: ib, id, ig, im, in, ip, it o rimes: ob, od, og, om, on, op, ot u rimes: ub, ud, ug, um, un, up, Words containing rime patterns can be displayed on the classroom wall or on a printable Use multisensory approaches that engage the pupil in visual, auditory and kinaesthetic activities: Tracing letters in sand Tracing his / her finger over sandpaper letters Playing letter-sound games Use ‘Picturize’ or ‘Clicker Grids’ on the Clicker 8 App to help the pupil to build words and sentences, support his / her writing and reduce working memory demands
The pupil may have difficulty recalling high frequency words and irregular spelling words Difficulty recognising and applying common spelling patterns and rules	Use visual cues and prompts to support letter / word recognition and formation, such as, alphabet charts, flash cards which show the letter name/ sound or word and associated picture Repetitive learning of HFWs Teach HFWs using Look, Visualise, Say, Cover, Write and Check (LVSCWC) Method - this strategy strengthens the visual, auditory and kinaesthetic channels Provide opportunities for the pupil to practise spelling words using word study activities that focus on the patterns and rules of the English language, for example, the hard ‘c’ in ‘cat’ and the soft ‘c’ in cell Use mnemonics or memory aids to help a pupil remember spelling patterns or rules such as, the phrase ‘i’ before ‘e’, except after ‘c’ can help the pupil remember the spelling rule for these letter combinations Use mnemonics for phonetically irregular words, such as: said - Sally Anne is dancing: After highlighting the tricky bit (as above) provide the mnemonic sentence and read with the pupil Ask the pupil to colour highlight the first letter of each word in the mnemonic. Ask the pupil to name the letters they have highlighted Give the pupil an opportunity to say the mnemonic as they write the first letter of each word in the mnemonic. Finish by telling the pupil, “think the mnemonic, but name each letter as you write the word”: Printable Resources: Spelling Mnemonics Use Read, Build and Write mats: The teacher shows the word to the pupil The pupil says the word The pupil builds the word using magnetic letters The pupil writes the word (cursive handwriting can help develop a grapho-motor memory of the word) Word building activities - use magnetic letters to help the pupil identify patterns. This can also be developed by Guided Discovery learning Techniques. The pupil looks for a common pattern or listens for a similar pattern in words read or displayed: EA Guidance Video: Discovery (auditory) (3:10) Using I do, we do, you do approach, allow the pupil opportunities to verbalise the word in his / her own sentence: Show pupil flashcard with HFW Teacher writes sentence on reverse of that flashcard Pupil draws a related picture above the sentence

Impact on whole word recognition, spelling and writing

Recommendations for Reasonable Adjustments

The pupil may be reading words laboriously sound by sound

He / she may have poor reading fluency

The pupil needs to develop automaticity through following a cumulative, repetitive, structured, multisensory phonics programme. This needs to begin with explicit instruction on letter-sound correspondence and progress to onset and rime patterns. Focus on the rime:
- Set out letters - ‘a’ and ‘t’
- The pupil says the word /at/
- The teacher can add a ‘m’ (onset) before the ‘at’
- The pupil can practise blending /mat/
- Continue to vary the onset while the pupil says that word
- Change the colour of the onset but maintain a consistent colour for the rime
Onset and rime and the teaching of initial blends and final blends will develop a pupil’s orthographic knowledge of letter clusters. It will support more efficient storage of information in long-term memory. This organised storage makes retrieval of information easier
Teach reading fluency by providing opportunities for re-reading text or choral reading:

Teacher Guidance: Reading Fluency

The pupil can create his / her own read aloud books or a short story using fluency and expression to deliver to peers
The pupil can listen to a sentence read without expression and discuss correct intonation and punctuation required

The pupil may have difficulty recognising spelling patterns / word patterns

He / she may have difficulty identifying and manipulating sounds in words

Provide activities to enable the pupil to practise blending and segmenting the sounds in common rimes:
- a rimes: ab, ad, ag, am, an, ap, at
- e rimes: eb, ed, eg, en, ep, et
- i rimes: ib, id, ig, im, in, ip, it
- o rimes: ob, od, og, om, on, op, ot
- u rimes: ub, ud, ug, um, un, up,
Words containing rime patterns can be displayed on the classroom wall or on a printable
Use multisensory approaches that engage the pupil in visual, auditory and kinaesthetic activities:
- Tracing letters in sand
- Tracing his / her finger over sandpaper letters
- Playing letter-sound games
Use ‘Picturize’ or ‘Clicker Grids’ on the Clicker 8 App to help the pupil to build words and sentences, support his / her writing and reduce working memory demands

The pupil may have difficulty recalling high frequency words and irregular spelling words

Difficulty recognising and applying common spelling patterns and rules

Use visual cues and prompts to support letter / word recognition and formation, such as, alphabet charts, flash cards which show the letter name/ sound or word and associated picture
Repetitive learning of HFWs
Teach HFWs using Look, Visualise, Say, Cover, Write and Check (LVSCWC) Method - this strategy strengthens the visual, auditory and kinaesthetic channels
Provide opportunities for the pupil to practise spelling words using word study activities that focus on the patterns and rules of the English language, for example, the hard ‘c’ in ‘cat’ and the soft ‘c’ in cell
Use mnemonics or memory aids to help a pupil remember spelling patterns or rules such as, the phrase ‘i’ before ‘e’, except after ‘c’ can help the pupil remember the spelling rule for these letter combinations
Use mnemonics for phonetically irregular words, such as: said - Sally Anne is dancing:
- After highlighting the tricky bit (as above) provide the mnemonic sentence and read with the pupil
- Ask the pupil to colour highlight the first letter of each word in the mnemonic. Ask the pupil to name the letters they have highlighted
- Give the pupil an opportunity to say the mnemonic as they write the first letter of each word in the mnemonic. Finish by telling the pupil, “think the mnemonic, but name each letter as you write the word”:
  Printable Resources: Spelling Mnemonics
Use Read, Build and Write mats:
- The teacher shows the word to the pupil
- The pupil says the word
- The pupil builds the word using magnetic letters
- The pupil writes the word (cursive handwriting can help develop a grapho-motor memory of the word)
Word building activities - use magnetic letters to help the pupil identify patterns. This can also be developed by Guided Discovery learning Techniques. The pupil looks for a common pattern or listens for a similar pattern in words read or displayed:
EA Guidance Video: Discovery (auditory) (3:10)
Using I do, we do, you do approach, allow the pupil opportunities to verbalise the word in his / her own sentence:
- Show pupil flashcard with HFW
- Teacher writes sentence on reverse of that flashcard
- Pupil draws a related picture above the sentence

Assistive Technology

Teach your Monster to read is a free game to play on the laptop or desktop. It covers letter to sound knowledge
Starfall ABC
Wordshark Programme
Nessy

Signposting for Free Professional Learning Modules

The following professional learning modules may be helpful for additional information regarding the strategies recommended in this chapter. They are provided by the Literacy and Language and Communication Services and are available through the Children and Young People's Services Professional Learning Programme, which is hosted on the EA website. The access code to the courses is updated each year and shared with your Principal in September:

Bibliography and References

Language and Communication Service

Department of Education: A resource for schools to support children who have or may have Special Educational Needs

BDA Dyslexia Good Practice Guide Ed 2 2018

Alloway, T.P. & Alloway, R.G. (2015). ‘Understanding Working Memory’ (2nd Edn). Sage.

Burgoyne, K., Gardner, R., Whitely, H., Snowing, M.J. and Hulme, C. (2018) ‘Evaluation of a parent delivered early language enrichment programme. Evidence from a randomised controlled trial’ Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 59, 545-555

Georgiou, G.K., Martinez, D., Vieira, A.P.A. & Guo, K. (2021) ‘Is orthographic knowledge a strength or a weakness in individuals with dyslexia? Evidence from a meta-analysis’. Annals of Dyslexia, 71:5–27 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11881-021-00220-6

Hayiou-Thomas, M.E., Carroll, J.M., Leavett, R., Hulme., C. and Snowling, M.J. (2017) ‘When does speech sound disorder matter for literacy? The role of disordered speech errors, co-occurring language impairment and family risk of dyslexia. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry’ 58, 197-205

Koutsouris, Norwich & Bessudnov (2021), ‘Interpreting RCT, process evaluation and casestudy evidence in evaluating the Integrated Group Reading (IGR) programme: a teacher-led, classroom-based intervention for Year 2 and 3 pupils struggling to read. Educational review.’ VOL. 73, NO. 3, 346–373. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2018.1557597Routledge

Kelly, K. & Phillips, S. ‘Teaching Literacy to Learners with Dyslexia- A Multisensory Approach’ (2022) Sage

Lavan, G. & Talcott, J. B (2021). ‘Brook’s what works for literacy difficulties?’ https://www.theschoolpsychologyservice.com/wpcontent/uploads/2020/11/The-CSP-6th-Ed.pdf

McMurray, S. (2020). ‘Learning to spell for children 5-8 years of age: the importance of an integrated approach to ensure the development of phonic, orthographic and morphemic knowledge at compatible levels’. Dyslexia, 26:4, 442-458 https://doi.org/10.1002/dys.1663

McMurray, S (2022) ‘Why systematic synthetic phonics (SSP) alone cannot meet the needs of all children’. The Dyslexia Handbook 2022, 124-126 Reading: England. BDA

Squires, K. E. and Wolter, J. A. (2016) ‘The Effects of Orthographic Pattern Intervention on Spelling Performance of Students with Reading Disabilities: A Best Evidence Synthesis’. Remedial and Special Education, 37(6), pp. 357-369.

Wolter, J. A., & Dilworth, V. (2013). ‘The effects of a multilinguistic morphological awareness approach for improving language and literacy’. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 47(1), 76–85.

Wyse, D. & Bradbury, A. (2022) ‘Reading wars or reading reconciliation? A critical examination of robust research evidence, curriculum policy and teachers' practices for teaching phonics and reading’. Review of Education. 10 (1), Article e3314. 10.1002/rev3.3314.

Foundation - Phonological Awareness and Phonics

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