Literacy

In New Oaks we follow the Jolly Phonics reading and phonic scheme. We deliver phonic refresh and recap lessons daily as well as longer structured sessions twice per week. All pupils have been assessed and pupils in our key stage 2 ASD classes are streamlined by ability. This is to ensure all pupils are accessing the scheme at the correct level and are being challenged appropriately.

At New Oaks, we feel that it is important for all of our students to have the opportunity to read and be read to. We feel passionately about reading and the benefits it brings to our students. We teach phonics through a multisensory approach to ensure that it is inclusive for all pupils. Some may access reading through sensory stories and others by decoding the text themselves.  This is why teaching Phonics is so important. It helps our students understand how a word is made up and how to decode a word in order to enjoy reading.

We have adapted the Jolly Phonics scheme to include two additional strands, Sensory and pre-phonics. This allows all pupils to be able to take part and progress through the scheme. We have identified that although phonics supports understanding with regard to decoding and spelling, it does not support the pupil’s comprehension. In order to help our pupils comprehend what they are reading, we also have two literacy lessons per week which focus on a specific text which is linked to our current school topic.