Sorry Letters Again!

[Guest]

Ok I have been using Letters and Sounds Phase 1 with my nursery children, I use the games and it is all delivered through play and interest of the children. HOwever I have been feeling under pressure by some (parents and one member of staff) to do more sounds stuff - and so I bowed to pressure and began this week doing letters of the week, this week being a and b and we talked a lot about it during the session, i worked with one of my key children to ascertain his understanding.....I had put a poster on the door explaining to parents that we would be doing this 'sound' stuff and after the session today two parents asked my WHY? they were not happy for their children to be being taught this yet (bearing in mind their children are 3 years old).

 

I reflected on the conversation and thought what the hell am I doing I don't want to be sat 1-2-1 doing this sound work, I woudl prefer to do it at circle time or in small groups.....I am disappointed in myself that I had gone back on what I believe in and was acting like a reception teacher today...but just to check - how much sound work are you all doing in nursery.....I believe we do it all the time, throughout the session - the letters and sounds activities are done daily with mainly whole groups.

 

 

Restore my faith, or am I not doing enough? I believe in what we do....I guess I was having a lapse in my principles....we have some parents who have taught their children to write and are starting reading!

Edited February 1, 2010 by Guest

[Panders]

I don't make a big fuss about it, it is done throughout the session, the odd game once or twice per week, for those children who really are beginning to understand what letters are and the sounds they make, particularly in their names. Once a week or so, I do alphabet express game, partly a cd from Sticky Kids, but once we have sung their alphabet song, and chuffed about the room a little singing it, I hae some letter cards and the children make an action to a letter, so if i hold up an M, the children might suggest marching, so we all march, then move on to another card. Have no idea if this is enough or too much, but no complaints so far!

[Guest]

Thats just how I feel....I don't want it to be a big deal.....I would rather the children learnt the names of the birds feeding on the bird table...or how to put their coats on.....or just played! Thanks

[Guest]

Oh it took us a long time to get the parents on board with L&S and I'm sure we will have some more who need additional support to understand it. I would say stick to your guns and ride it out. Once L&S becomes what you do, you will find parents in the future do not disagree with it as much (it's how it worked with us) but if any parents are aware the setting used to do it differently they may continue to dispute your professionalism. Until you get them out of the setting because their child moves on (not because you throw them out though you might feel like it some days!) someone will always hark back to what used to happen - I'm assuming this is what happened in the past.

 

Hope this all makes sense - I'm so cold I think I might be rambling! But take heart you are not alone and stick to what you know is right.

[Guest]

we would do the work as a whole group or throughout the session as someone else said on this thread..........

 

If there were children who were obviously ready for a more intense input I think we would try to work on it with them though x

[emmajess]

As a reception teacher, can I just say that if you really wanted to push your more able ones you could focus more on the oral blending and oral segmenting games in phase 1. Maybe other reception teachers haven't found this, but I find this is the trickiest thing - harder than teaching the letters and sounds themselves, so the more of the recommended games you can do to get them to orally blend and segment before they come in to reception would be really helpful. It's in phase 1 and I think most children find it quite challenging while still at pre-school and beginning in reception.

Stick to your guns, do workshops etc for parents showing them 'the government's advice' on how to teach letters and sounds to pre-school children - blind them with science!! Explaining that this isn't just how you fancy teaching it at the moment but a recommended and widely used programme might help. Really labour the point of the benefit of the different aspects to phase 1 and how they really lay the foundations for solid phonics learning, and that rushing children through these would be detrimental. If parents say that they didn't have all that in their day, you can talk about how there used to be a richer tradition of nursery rhyme singing etc at homes, prams faced forwards etc and how that helped and how we're ensuring all children have the basics before they are taken to the next step. It might work...?

[Susan]

As a reception teacher, can I just say that if you really wanted to push your more able ones you could focus more on the oral blending and oral segmenting games in phase 1. Maybe other reception teachers haven't found this, but I find this is the trickiest thing - harder than teaching the letters and sounds themselves, so the more of the recommended games you can do to get them to orally blend and segment before they come in to reception would be really helpful. It's in phase 1 and I think most children find it quite challenging while still at pre-school and beginning in reception.

 

Excellent advice, Emma. Thats really important.

 

Shirel, if you are going to introduce any phonemes/ sounds please follow the recommended order in Letters and Sounds phase 2, although this really is reception work, and not alphabetical order.

[Guest]

I think you are right, I would definitely not be doing one to one sound work with 3 year olds. If you do find you have a small group who are showing interest in how sounds and letters are linked then you could have a small group fun sound game for them to help develop this, however I agree with what someone else has said about the segmenting and blending being the area more children struggle with. The more you can get them to do this in phase one the better.

 

Also completely agree with Susan if you do introduce any sounds please please start with the letter sets from Letters and Sounds. I think set one is s, a, t and p, if only because one they get to reception this is the order they will most likely be taught them in and if they know one sound from set 1, one from set 3 and two from set 5 or whatever the reception teacher is going to have a harder time assessing and grouping them for phonics which won't benefit the children at all.