This week, a little girl excitedly asked her teacher "When do I get to do my phonics screaming?"  which of course was not only adorable and hilarious but it got me thinking- Phonics leads and Year 1 teachers all over the country have probably felt like phonics screaming over the past few weeks and then the week flies by in a flash!  If you are feeling like that, don't worry. We spend the academic year building up to this week and then once it is complete there is a sense of relief because it is all absolutely fine and year on year the children beam as they skip away from their ten minutes of showing off their decoding skills... Often asking to do it again! I, myself, actually love phonics screening week. Every year, I get that warm, positive feeling of pride! Previously, it was of all of the little 5 and 6 year olds I had taught and how far they have come in such a short time at school. They likely joined the school in Reception not knowing what any of those strange symbols represented and now they are not only recognising the symbols and the sounds they represent but they are blending them together and actually reading! Lots of them fluently too! In recent years, not only am I proud of the individual children and their achievements and progress but also of all of our partners schools (current and previous). This week, my email inbox has been full of partner schools sharing their successes and their own feelings of pride. There have been happy dances happening everywhere and it definitely hasn't been because of the weather! 

Now that the phonics screening check is complete- what's next? Firstly, breathe, celebrate and do your happy dance! Then it is time to reflect... What went well this year? Why did it go well? What have we learnt from this year that can help us next year? Were children not as confident with alien words? Do these need to be introduced earlier? Did split digraphs need lots of reteaching? Maybe these could be added to normal classroom practice where possible. Were interventions happening frequently enough to have an impact? What steps are needed to ensure they do? There are some things we can do in the summer term to help to make the next academic year run even more smoothly. 

Firstly, I would start with looking at Y1 and 2 children who did not pass this year- how can we continue to support them next year to ensure they make accelerated progress and develop their decoding and reading skills as soon as possible. Then, I would begin to look at the Reception children- who will need additional support in Year 1 to help get them on track? Create a plan with EY, Year 1 and SLT on how to support these children in the next academic year. Finally, I would add dates to the calendar now for when Year 1 teachers and leadership can meet to talk about the progress of the children and what further support they might need- more heads are better than one! 

No more Phonics SCREAMING now... well, until 2025!