A lot of people are finding the Little Wandle website a nightmare to navigate. So I made my own resources to help the school I teach at. The first was a sound mat. Phase 2 and 3 are on the same sheet and I folded it it half so the children had an A5 sheet on their table to help them with the sounds. Little Wandle’s version are A4 and I think this is too big for children to use. This I have done for our Reception classes. We have also agreed to start using them at the start of Year 1. Have a look at the Little Wandle sound mat phase 2,3&5 that we are using for the rest of the school. I have also added the A4 version, which I have printed back to back and laminated. I did the same with the A3 version as a classroom display to aid guided writing sessions etc. Hope it helps.

Little Wandle produces some amazing readers. The fact that we are teaching children in Reception what they used to learn in Year 2 by itself shows how fast the pace is. However, this pace is unrelenting and some children really struggle, even if they are involved with interventions every single day, they still need extra support. I produced sheets that I place on my writing table that allow children to practice sentence writing and add a picture to match them. Then I thought that some children need a little more scaffolding so I produced these sheets to help those children practice a certain sound. I also added letter formation practice, knowing full well that four year olds do find this hard. So these sheets include the picture and sounds matching Little Wandle, a picture box for children to draw something (I normally ask them to make this match what they write), a line to practice letter formation and a few lines to write an independent sentence. They have worked really well in encourage children to write independently and of course revise the sounds they are not sure of.

A lot of people are finding the Little Wandle website a nightmare to navigate. So I made my own resources to help the school I teach at. The first was a sound mat. Phase 2 and 3 and phase 5 are on the same sheet and I folded it it half so the children had an A5 sheet on their table to help them with the sounds. Little Wandle’s version are A4 and I think this is too big for children to use. There is a version that is just phase 2&3 that I have made but we have also agreed to start using this sound mat at the start of Year 1. I have also added the A4 version, which I have printed back to back and laminated. I did the same with the A3 version as a classroom display to aid guided writing sessions etc. Hope it helps.

Each one of these sheets are made up of letters in the weeks teaching order. So for example, the first week has s,a,t,p. Each letter sheet has each of these letters on the sheet and the idea in my class is for children to use bingo dabbers to dot each one of the correct letter they are trying to find. Once it is all coloured in, each sheet roughly makes the shape of the letter they are looking for as another way to enforce the recognition of that letter. The sheets include individual A4 pages for each letter - s,a,t,p,i,n,m,d,g,o,c,k,ck,e,u,r,h,f,b,l.

Little Wandle is amazing at helping the top children read fluently. I am finding though, even with the extra interventions daily, that some children just cannot keep up with the pace of the scheme. I made these boards to support children for phase 2. Each separate grapheme has six different boards. On one side of the board has one of six different words, that mostly match the words read in the planning (some were just impossible to find a matching picture) and then each of these sides has six identical pictures. These pictures match to one of the words the child will read. They can then use a peg to place it over this - using pegs helps with fine motor. The second side of the board has a sentence, which uses the word on the previous side. This sentence will match to one of the three pictures under it. Again children can use a peg to indicate which is accurate - a little comprehension work with fine motor skills. I folded each print out in half and then laminated them so children can use them over and over again.

For each sheet there is a large letter with a dot and arrow, which shows the children where to start writing the letter. There are then four pictures which are the same pictures in the planning for initial sounds, which the children can use to colour in. There is then an opportunity for the children to ‘write over’ the yellow letters at the bottom of the page, to help with handwriting. The portrait colouring pages are individual letters per page with the four pictures matching that on the planning for ‘what’s in the box’. They include s,a,t,p,i,n,m,d,o,c,k,ck,e,u,r,h,f,b,l. Each has opportunity to form the letter. The landscape colouring pages are in weeks. Each page has the weeks learning on with one picture thats included in ‘what’s in the box’ activity hidden behind the letter. - s,a,t,p - i,n,m,d - g,o,c,k - ck,e,u,r - h,f,b,l Hope it helps.

Each of these sheets are designed for the children in Reception to access independently. Each has a copy of the friezes in the middle so children are aware of the sounds they are searching for. They then have six pictures. Four of these are the four ‘whats in the box’ pictures that are indicated on the planning. The other two are mixed up from the others letters that week. The idea is for children to use pegs and place them on the four pictures they believe have the initial sound that matches the frieze. The only exception for this are the diagraphs where they would be looking for the end sounds, or both (like ch,sh,th). I have included the end of phase 2 within these sheets. Diagraphs ch,sh,th,ng and nk, do not have specific planning for ‘whats in the box game’ but I have included them in these sheets as I am in no doubt some of my children will need the reinforcement of doing an activity like this. Hope it helps.

These peg boards have been made for children to access independently - they use a peg to indicate which word, out of three rhyming words available, matches the picture shown. The pegs have an added bonus of aiding their fine motor skills and its a great way to see if they are reading accurately. I have been made aware recently that Microsoft office does not support publisher any more. With this in mind, I have added a PDF version of the resource that you can use.

When initially learning to write sentences, a child must remember a lot so it is important for us to scaffold their learning. One way we can achieve this is to provide sentence starters. This not only enhances their sentence writing it also gives them somewhere to start in their thought processes and allows them to be creative with their writing. Starting off is sometimes the hardest part of the writing process! These boards are designed for writing just a sentence in my class as an independent activity but of course, they can be used for story writing etc given the correct input.

When learning to read and write, children need the opportunity to explore with letters and sounds. This resource has been made to allow children to move letters, manipulating them and hopefully reading them as they go a long in order to make simple CVC words. You will need something to write the letter sounds on, in my case I used milk bottle tops and this allows the children to move them around but with the picture they can relate the written word to what they can see. A must at the early stages of reading.

These are designed to be used independently in my class. The children use pegs to match the correct picture to the word they read. The pegs aid fine motor skills as an added bonus, but it does show if they do understand what they are reading.

Teaching through book talk is the best way to help children learn new vocabulary and aid their development in learning the spoken word. We use a lot of books in our setting to help children. One thing I did notice though, is that there are not many phonic resources you can buy that will help children. There is a lot of basic things of course but they are all limited. This resource I made is a brilliant way to help children who are starting to learn to read basic words. The child needs to read the word in the middle and then there are eight pictures around it to see which one matches (very very important as reading can be a ‘silent’ activity when a child begins to read so they need to know it is relatable to something.) I used pegs for the children to show which picture was the correct one (again this was to help with fine motor control and strengthen their grips). They pegged one picture before coming to me and telling me what they have read by sounding it out and then saying the word. Cut the resource out. Fold the picture and the backing on itself and laminate these together so its back to back. The pegs are something you will have to provide but once you have them, you are all ready to go.

Children have everything they need within this resource - the picture to look at to make a word and then the individual letters (or diagraphs) attached to the card via a split pin. Children are then able to move the letters around to experiment with ways of making the word.

Children have everything they need within this resource - the picture to look at to make a word and then the individual letters attached to the card via a split pin. Children are then able to move the letters around to experiment with ways of making the word.

Sound mats are priceless when helping young children to remember the sounds they need to write in words. A quick reminder of how the sound is formed is usually all it takes for the child to carry on with their work instead of being stuck. I have included the A3 version, which I use as part of a display, the A4 version, which I don’t actually use but I have in the past for visually impaired children so they have a larger copy and the A5 version. Both the A4 and A5 versions I like to laminate back to back so they are both together for the children. Tricky words are also included on each. I also tend to place ‘me’ and ‘my’ together as this is something children do tend to get mixed up with.

These boards include one simple sentence with sound buttons on decodable words with three pictures from the book. The idea is that the child should place a peg on the correct picture that matches the sentence. A very simple comprehension exercise that they could do completely independently. The pegs add a bonus that it aids their fine motor skills at the same time.

I have created these resources due to having a very creative class. The idea here is to read the sentence given and then draw a picture that matches. This aids comprehension skills as well as fine motor skills to aid writing after. A win win. The children loved the rewards they would receive once they have completed three or more. Teaching through book talk is the best way to help children learn new vocabulary and aid their development in learning the spoken word. We use a lot of books in our setting to help children. One thing I did notice though, is that there are not many phonic resources you can buy that will help children. There is a lot of basic things of course but they are all limited. Is it me, or is one of the hardest things to do when teaching children to learn, is to find sentences they can access to read on a given topic. And of course, if they can read them, they can start to write them soon after too. So I hope this resource helps you as it did my class.

Little Wandle is amazing at helping the top children read fluently. I am finding though, even with the extra interventions daily, that some children just cannot keep up with the pace of the scheme. I made these boards to support children for phase 3. Each separate grapheme has six different boards. On one side of the board has one of six different words, that mostly match the words read in the planning (some were just impossible to find a matching picture) and then each of these sides has six identical pictures. These pictures match to one of the words the child will read. They can then use a peg to place it over this - using pegs helps with fine motor. The second side of the board has a sentence, which uses the word on the previous side. This sentence will match to one of the three pictures under it. Again children can use a peg to indicate which is accurate - a little comprehension work with fine motor skills. I folded each print out in half and then laminated them so children can use them over and over again.

Children love Alphablocks and they are brilliant at helping young kids learn to read. I have found using these instantly recognisable characters in class help children on their initial journey of learning to read. In this game, that children can access independently on the board, children have the word family ‘in’ or ‘ig’ or ‘ip’ endings already shown on screen. This is surrounded by five pictures, so when an Alphablock friend joins the ‘in’ or ‘ig’ or ‘ip’ to make a word, the child needs to read this and click on the correct picture that matches the word. The game indicates if they make the right choice but also if they have done it wrong. They cannot move to the next picture until they click on the correct initial sound. At the end of the game it then cycles back to the beginning so you do not have to keep getting up to restart it too. Its a lovely addition to your enhanced learning environment during literacy lessons or phonics activities.

Children love Alphablocks and they are brilliant at helping young kids learn to read. I have found using these instantly recognisable characters in class help children on their initial journey of learning to read. In this game, that children can access independently on the board, children have the word family ‘en’ or ‘et’ endings already shown on screen. This is surrounded by five pictures, so when an Alphablock friend joins the ‘en’ or ‘et’ to make a word, the child needs to read this and click on the correct picture that matches the word. The game indicates if they make the right choice but also if they have done it wrong. They cannot move to the next picture until they click on the correct initial sound. At the end of the game it then cycles back to the beginning so you do not have to keep getting up to restart it too. Its a lovely addition to your enhanced learning environment during literacy lessons or phonics activities.