Letter And Sounds Planning & Organisation

[Guest]

Hi there

 

Please, please can someone help me to get my head around letters and sounds.

I understand the pace and to be honest taught from jolly phonics last year doing a sound a day. We did 10 mins whole class every day differentiated as the children progres.

 

What I am having probs with is I had a visit from my early years advisor before the summer hols saying that each group should have a daily ten minutes teaching and that on my planning I should be showing how I am using the teach, practise and apply model!!! I currently teach in a mixed YR/Y1 class, I have organised the ch by ability into their phonics groups. Does each group need an activity every day? Is this phoncis currently peoples literacy planning. I just feel that my day could easily become swamped with phonics which is only one aspect of the EYFS. what about numeracy/ kuw / psed / observations etc etc?? Really struggling to see how I can teach 4 groups a day, differentiated activities with only 2 staff. how do you then provide each group with follow acitivites in the continuous curriculum differentiated four ways!!!!!!!!!!!! really am confused!!!! HELP HELP

[Susan]

Im not in the classroom at the moment so may be completely off track but I dont think you can! AT least not at the moment and while you are feeling so stressed.

 

In a mixed age class, you will probably need to split your class into 2 groups I think, your reception children wil be starting at the beginning and you may have some year 1s to join them. Your yr1 children could be in another group. If you do this at a time when you will always have support you can share the work with your TA, each of you taking a group and rotating the groups between you perhaps weekly so that you keep track of where the children are?

On your planning surely you can indicate Revise/recap and introduce "a" and the activity you will do. Your highest attainers will benefit from supporting the others if you pair them and you will be able to stretch them also.

 

Start small and build it up as you and the children work together to establish what works best.

 

There was some excellent planning available in the TES resource bank which might help to get your head around it all. Lots of schools are also being encouraged to work across year groups (we were in the LEA I was working in last term), so that as a school you have a phonics session and children move to appropriate groups.

[Guest tinkerbell]

Lotte you are not alone!

I also teach r/yr1 and have them in 4 groups.I have a TA too.

The TES as Susan says has some super planning based on Letters and sounds and guides you through the phases using jolly phonics actions.

At the moment I do a whole r 10 mins whilst the yr1 are 'Waking up shaking up' and then I do the sound cards say just before lunch or home time.today I then read Olivers vegetables and brought my own out of a bag to see if we knew the names.The yr1 then went to write labels for the veg.We did sounding out the words.

Later in the afternoon I played 'I went shopping and bought a ....'bringing something out of my bag and 2 groups of the reception played this each child getting something out of he bag and remembering its name.The TA will play this game tomorrow in circle time.

The children cut out pictures of vegetables this afternoon and we will use them in a collage.

 

Tinkerbellx

[catma]

Some of our schools just put RTPA on their literacy planner e.g. like this (just using initials).

 

R(eview): revise PGC /s/a/

T(each): PGC /t/ - use objects in bag

P(ractice): swop shop using /s/a/t/ objects

A(pply): write/read silly sentences with /s/ words alliteration

 

others have a separate planner for the week but that's their choice.

 

Cx

[Marion]

That sounds very sensible Catma. I've seen some very detailed planning out there which personally I couldn't follow.

[queline]

I am in exactly the same position - mixed FS and Yr 1 class. I am lucky enough to have two fantastic TAs and have mixed my children into 3 ability groups, after doing some initial recapping with everyone am starting at the differing phases for each group, with each of us teaching a different phase and building up. This means we can start making resource banks for each phase as we go. Maybe you could split yours into two and differentiate the level of the activities in the phases for your children? It has taken me this term so far to come up with this idea... really struggled with getting my head around letters and sounds!! We're working from each phase and then recording what we do for the 15 min session on a Letters and Sounds 'Log' daily, so I can see where each group is at. Hope that makes sense!! xx

[Guest]

Hi

Just to say welcome to the forum,queline. You'll soon be addicted to the site!!

 

Anita

[Guest]

Hi

 

I've never replied to a post before, so I hope this helps !

 

I was on the pilot programme last year and recently went on a update course. On the course they recommended leaving the children in mixed ability groups, because they found this helped the lower ability children.

 

I would say one plan for both you and your TA. I have recently been referring to the letters and sounds book for ideas and have copied the relevent pages for my TA. She finds the information in the book really easy to follow. I do a 15 minute quick session in the afternoons.

As you are a mixed class, I could show you my plans I did in the summer term if this would help you? They were done using the review, teach, practise, apply model.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Caroline

[Susan]

Hi Caroline and welcome.

I am sure anything you are wiling and able to share would be appreciated.

[Guest]

Don't know if this link will work otherwise type in letters and sounds e-bay. Brilliant resource with all the weekly plans set out and they are really easy to follow and very good!

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Phonics-Planning-for...1QQcmdZViewItem

[JacquieL]

There is some good stuff on TES Resources for those looking for stuff for Letters and Sounds it is FREE, and very adaptable, as any planning would need to be adapted to meet individual needs.