Phonics Guidance for Parents

Set 2 and Set 3 Speed Sounds Year 1 and Year 2. The set 2 sounds are primarily taught at the end of Reception, and then Set 3 sounds are taught in Year 1 and Year 2.

By the end of Year 1, pupils are expected to recognise all Set 1, Set 2 and Set 3 sounds by sight.

Before your son/daughter can start to read, s/he needs to learn to:

• Say the sound that is represented by each letter or groups of letters. These are called ‘speed sounds’.

• Know how to blend the sounds together in a word to read it e.g. s-t-r-ee-t = street; p-l-ay = play. This is called ‘sound-blending’.

What are Speed Sounds?

In phonics the individual sounds are called ‘speed sounds’. This is because we want your son/daughter to read them effortlessly. In Nursery and Reception, your son/daughter will learn to read the Set 1 sounds by sight. They will also learn how to blend them together to read words e.g. c-a-t = cat. In Year 1 and Year 2, they will then move onto learning to Set 2 and Set 3 sounds.

To begin phonics, we learn a sound a day. We use pure sounds so that your son/daughter will be able to blend the sounds into words more easily.

Sound pictures are used to help your son/daughter learn these sounds quickly. Each sound is also accompanied by a rhyme to help them remember the sound and remind them of the correct spelling.