Teaching Phonics in Birmingham in Years 1–2

Quick answer: Teach phonics in Birmingham in Years 1–2 through short, daily, systematic sessions: review known sounds, teach one new grapheme, blend and segment, then read and write words and sentences. Prepare for the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check with pseudo-word practice. The Grade 2 Phonics & Phonological Awareness pack consolidates blends, vowels and digraphs in Year 2.

Phonics is the foundation of everything else in KS1. In England every Year 1 pupil takes the Phonics Screening Check in June, and pupils who do not meet the expected standard retake it in Year 2. In Birmingham, England's most populous local authority area, that means a very large number of six-year-olds sitting the same short check each summer.

Most schools teach phonics through a systematic synthetic phonics programme. Additional practice resources should follow the order of your programme, not replace it. They are most useful for consolidation, catch-up groups and home practice.

What should pupils learn in phonics in Years 1 and 2?

Across Years 1 and 2, pupils move from blending simple words to reading fluently and spelling with growing accuracy. The main content is below.

• Year 1: all 40-plus phonemes and their common graphemes, including digraphs such as sh, ch, th, ai, ee and oa
• Year 1: blend sounds to read CVC, CCVC and CVCC words, such as ship, frog and hand
• Year 1: read common exception words, such as said, the and was
• Year 1: split digraphs, such as a-e in cake and i-e in bike
• Year 2: alternative spellings of the same sound, such as ai, ay and a-e
• Year 2: segment words into syllables, add suffixes such as -ing and -ed, and read with growing fluency

What does a good daily phonics session look like?

A 20 to 30 minute session in the same order every day keeps pace high and lets pupils focus on the content, not the routine.

1. Revisit: flash cards of known graphemes for quick recall.
2. Teach: introduce one new grapheme with its sound and a picture cue.
3. Practise: blend to read five to eight words with the new grapheme.
4. Practise: segment to spell three to five words on whiteboards.
5. Apply: read a short sentence containing the grapheme, such as "The goat is in the boat."
6. Apply: write a dictated sentence.
7. Review: check who needs same-day keep-up support.

In Year 2, the Grade 2 Phonics & Phonological Awareness pack works well for the practise and apply steps. It targets syllable segmentation, consonant blends, long and short vowels, digraphs and early morphological awareness through word sorts, matching games and read-and-write tasks. It is listed as Grade 2, roughly Year 3, so use it for Year 2 consolidation and for older pupils who need catch-up.

How should I prepare pupils for the Phonics Screening Check?

The check asks each pupil to read 40 words aloud to a teacher, one to one. Some are real words and some are pseudo-words, which test decoding because pupils cannot recognise them by sight.

Include pseudo-words in normal lessons from early in Year 1, so they feel routine. Words such as "chom", "blart" and "splod" check whether pupils blend every sound. Watch for pupils who turn a pseudo-word into a real one, such as reading "strom" as "storm"; they are guessing, not decoding.

What mistakes do pupils make in early phonics?

• Adding an "uh" to sounds, such as "cuh-a-tuh" for cat, which makes blending harder.
• Reading a digraph as two sounds, such as s-h instead of sh.
• Guessing from the first letter or the picture instead of decoding the whole word.
• Spelling a sound with the first grapheme they learned, such as "rane" for rain.

Model pure sounds every time and correct gently on the spot. For digraphs, use the phrase "two letters, one sound" and underline the pair when writing.

How do I support EAL pupils in phonics?

Birmingham is a young and diverse city, and many Year 1 classes include pupils learning English as an additional language. Systematic phonics helps them, because decoding does not depend on already knowing a word. The gap tends to be vocabulary: a pupil may read "shed" perfectly without knowing what a shed is.

Add a picture or a quick gesture to every real word you read, and teach a few words from each session as vocabulary. Short, repetitive stories help pupils practise decoding and meaning together. More local ideas are on our Birmingham teaching resources page.

Which resources support phonics in Years 1 and 2?

To link phonics to writing, the Grade 1 Phonics Writing Prompts combine sound practice with short creative writing, covering short vowels, CVC words and early digraphs. For early reading practice, Daisy the Brave Little Duck is a story with simple sentences, repetition and comprehension questions. The Phase 1–6 phonics collection has more practice packs.

Phonics in Birmingham: at a glance

Frequently asked questions

When is the Phonics Screening Check?

The Phonics Screening Check takes place in June of Year 1. Each pupil reads 40 words aloud to a teacher, a mix of real words and pseudo-words. Pupils who do not meet the expected standard take the check again at the end of Year 2.

Why does the check include pseudo-words?

Pseudo-words test decoding rather than memory. Because pupils cannot have seen them before, they must blend each sound to read them. Practising pseudo-words in normal lessons from early in Year 1 makes them familiar and shows which pupils are guessing.

Can I use a Grade 2 phonics pack in Year 2?

Yes. A US Grade 2 pack sits roughly at UK Year 3, but its content on blends, long and short vowels and digraphs overlaps closely with Year 2 phonics. It suits consolidation, retake preparation and catch-up groups, alongside your school's main phonics programme.

How long should a phonics session be in Year 1?

Around 20 to 30 minutes a day works for most Year 1 classes. Keep the same order of revisit, teach, practise and apply every day, and add short keep-up sessions the same afternoon for pupils who struggled.

Related reading

• Birmingham teaching resources: selected units and subjects
• Teaching History in Birmingham in Years 1–4
• Teaching RE in Birmingham at KS3 (Years 7–9)