Letter Formation And Jolly Phonics

[Guest]

Hi all,

When you introduce new sounds with jolly phonics do you also practise the letter formation for that sound. If so do yoiu judt do it with air writing or actual pens and whiteboards etc.. or do you leave more formal letter formation for the Summer term?

[Susan]

My last school was predominantly EAL and I concentrated on the sounds at first, introducing the letters in families later and concentrating on pre writing skills beforehand. In a school where I have done a lot of supply, they introduce the letter formation alongside the sound and it works well but these children are not EAL.

The recommended pattern seems to be look, say, write.

[Guest]

We practice as the children learn them. We use big painting/marker pens on paper, with water outside, roller letters, making out of playdough (rolled first and the letter bent the way it is formed), air/back/floor writing with finger, written on interactive whiteboard, written on paper on back of 'colouring sheet' in JP handbook , usually we write in yellow felt pen and children write on top. We try to use a variety of ways on different days.

[Guest]

Is Jolly phonics a big thing in schools?, as we are thinking of doing it at nursery if it is going to be used widely in schools....

 

Dawn

[Guest]

Since the Rose report it is the suggested way of teaching reading. Our children love it as it is such an intreactive way of learning sounds

[Marion]

Is Jolly phonics a big thing in schools?, as we are thinking of doing it at nursery if it is going to be used widely in schools....

 

Dawn

 

 

I have used Jolly phonics for over 10 years in school so its not something new. The recommendation at that time was NOT to use it in nursery in a too structured way. I now use PiPs and Playing with Sounds using the Jolly Phonics actions and resources and find it works well.

[redbase]

Lola

We do air writing and model the letter formation for the children to see. Also when we are doing guided writing we will demonstrate and show children who we feel are ready to do the correct formation. We don't do formal handwriting until the summer term and this is done with a mixture of whole class and guided group work.

Trudie

[Guest]

We learn the letter formation as we learn the sound. We tell the story that goes with the Jolly Phonics sound and then the children all have a little book we make up ourselves. In the book each sound has a page, one side has pictures some of which start with the sound of the day, they have to circle or colour the pictures that start with the sound. The children also have to overwrite the handwriting of that letter (we have modelled before, air writing, flip chart etc) and they have an opportunity to 'have a go writing' without overwriting, we also use a cursive script which is a challenge but by the end of Reception most are producing some great writing and by year 2 many are joining fluently. My TA's and I focus on a group each during the actual writing sessions, to ensure correct formation etc. Have been doing it this way for a couple of years now and |i find the children are making better phoneme/grapheme connections in their writing which is typically poor at our school.

[Guest]

i use the jolly phonics alongside sandpaper letters because they give the children a sensory impression of what the letter feels like which indirectly prepares them for later writing this way they can link the sound and letter shape together