This is where everything begins — listening to the sounds of the woods, learning that letters make sounds, and putting those sounds together to read your very first words. We follow the Letters & Sounds framework through Phases 1 to 4.
Phase 1 · Listening
Tuning the ear
Before children read letters, they learn to hear. Phase 1 is all about playful listening — what sounds the woods make, how words rhyme, how a name starts.
Aspect 1 · Environmental sounds
Sit quietly. What can you hear? A leaf? A door? A bird?
Aspect 2 · Body percussion
Clap, stamp, tap. Loud, quiet, fast, slow.
Aspect 3 · Rhythm & rhyme
Cat / hat / mat. Bedtime rhymes and clapped songs.
Aspect 4 · Alliteration
Silly Sam saw seven slugs. First sounds in names.
Aspect 5 · Voice sounds
Whisper, shout, sing. Sssss like a snake. Mmmm like jam.
Aspect 6 · Oral blending
"I spy a c-a-t." Children say cat. The first sounding-out.
Try it tonight
Robot talk. Say everyday objects in a robot voice: "Pass me the c-u-p." Your child gets to translate. Two minutes, no resources, brilliant practice.
Phase 2 · First letters
The first 19 sounds
Children meet single letters in five small sets, then start blending two- and three-letter words. Tap a sound to hear it.
Set 1
Set 2
Set 3
Set 4
Set 5
First words to read
at
sat
pat
tap
sap
it
is
sit
pit
tip
and
man
mum
dad
sad
got
dog
cat
kid
cot
back
kick
peck
tuck
red
hen
bug
buff
doll
kiss
Tricky words (Phase 2)
the
to
I
no
go
into
Classroom moment
Sound buttons. Write a word like map. Add a dot under each sound: m·a·p. Push each button as you say the sound, then sweep your finger along to blend.
Phase 3 · Digraphs
When two letters make one sound
Children meet the rest of the alphabet, then learn that letters can pair up: sh, ch, ai, oa… A digraph is two letters, one sound.
New single letters
Consonant digraphs
Vowel digraphs & trigraphs
Words to read
chip
chop
much
rich
shop
fish
thin
that
ring
song
rain
wait
feet
seen
night
boat
coat
moon
food
book
park
fork
burn
cow
coin
hear
chair
sure
letter
Tricky words (Phase 3)
he
she
we
me
be
was
my
you
they
her
all
are
Forager's game
Sound hunt. Pick a digraph (say sh). Walk around the classroom or the kitchen and spot it: shoe, shelf, brush. Keep a tally. Winner gets to choose tomorrow's sound.
Phase 4 · Blending bigger
Stretching to longer words
No new sounds in Phase 4 — just longer, busier words. Children practise reading and writing words with adjacent consonants (tr-, -st, -mp) and two-syllable words.
CCVC and CVCC patterns
frog
tree
spot
plum
brick
swim
sting
train
stamp
tent
hand
nest
milk
fast
bump
jump
pond
belt
melt
lost
Two-syllable words
sunset
laptop
pocket
rabbit
kitten
chicken
hiccup
cobweb
helmet
bedroom
Tricky words (Phase 4)
said
so
have
like
some
come
were
there
little
one
do
when
out
what
Bedtime activity
Chunk it. Cover half a long word with your thumb. Read sun, then slide your thumb to reveal set. Two little words make one big one.
Ready to leave the clearing? Year 1 children take a path up to The Fledglings' Hollow for Phase 5.