Letters and Sounds

Ways you can support your children at home: talking and listening
  • Make time to listen to your child talking – as you meet them from their setting or school, as you walk, or travel home by car, in the supermarket as you shop, at meal times, bath times, and bedtimes – any time!
  • Switch off the TV, radio and mobile phones – and really listen! Show that you are interested in what they are talking about – look at your child, smile, nod your head, ask a question or make a response to show that you really have been listening.
  • Make a collection of different toy creatures – for example, a duck, a snake, an alien, say the sound it might make as you play together, for example, ‘quack-quack’, ‘ssssssss’, ‘yuk-yuk’, and encourage your child to copy you.
  • Listen at home – switch off the TV and listen to the sounds, both inside and outside the home.
  • Can your child tell you what sounds they heard, in the order in which they heard them?
  • Play-a-tune – and follow me! Make or buy some simple shakers, drums and beaters, then play a simple tune and ask your child to copy. Have fun!
  • Use puppets and toys to make up stories or retell known ones. Record your child telling the story and play it back to them.
Term Documentation
‘Letters & Sounds’ is the government programme for teaching phonics and high frequency words.
It is split into 6 phases with the different phases being covered in different years in Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1.
  • Phase 1– Nursery / Reception
  • Phase 2– Reception
  • Phase 3– Reception
  • Phase 4– Reception / Year 1
This booklet will give you an idea of what is expected at each level.