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Phase 4 phonics is an exciting time for children as they begin to blend and segment longer words and become more confident readers. It is usually taught towards the end of Reception and/or at the beginning of Year 1. As a parent or teacher, you can help your child develop their phonics skills by continuing to incorporate fun and engaging activities into their learning. In this blog post, we look at what is taught in phase 4 phonics and share some exciting activities for home or school! What is Taught in Phase 4 Phonics? Phase 4 phonics is the next step after mastering phase 3 and is taught over at least 4-6 weeks. During this phase, children will learn to blend and segment longer words with adjacent consonants, such as 'crisp' and 'toast'. Along with this, they will also learn to read and spell words with two syllables. The focus is on consolidating the knowledge they have gained in the previous phases and applying it to more complex words. Many new tricky words are also introduced in phase 4 phonics. 10 Fun Activities for Phase 4 Phonics 1. Musical Blending Write sounds on stickers. Stick the stickers on drums or a xylophone to make a word. Hit each sound and say it aloud. Blend to read the word. 2. Frog Hopping Phonics Frog Hopping Phonics will have your child blending to read phase 4 words in no time! All you need is a toy frog or the printable frog from the pack. Say the sounds as the frog hops across the lily pads. Blend to read the phase 4 phonics words. The perfect hands-on activity for beginner or struggling readers. 3. Finger Torch Blending Write a phase 4 phonics word on paper or card, with or without sound buttons under each phoneme. Shine a finger torch on each sound, saying them aloud. Blend to read the word. This activity is even more fun in the dark! If you don’t have a finger torch, just use a normal torch. 4. Phase 4 Phonics Games Teach the 20 phase 4 ‘Letters and Sounds’ high-frequency words with these fun games and activities. Simply laminate, cut out and have fun! A great addition to your phonics provision! The games and activities have a bright summery theme, as phase 4 phonics is generally taught during British summertime. 5. Spin and Read/Spell Make reading and spelling tricky words more fun with a spinner! Make a spinner using a circle of card, a split pin and a paper clip. Write tricky words on the spinner and then ask children to read or spell the word they land on. 6. Drive and Decode Phonics Teach children to read phase 4 words (including high-frequency words) with this fun phonics blending pack! Children should say the sounds as they drive their toy car past the trees and then blend them together to read the word. A must-have for children who love cars! Ideal for your continuous provision or as a fun activity to use at home. 7. Foil Spellings Fed up with asking children to write their spellings out on paper? Make things more fun by creating some tricky word art! Provide some foil and paints to make those spellings really stand out. 8. Swat that Fly Who said phonics was boring? Here's an engaging and active Swat That Fly game for teaching phase 4 phonics. Your class will learn their phase 4 high-frequency words in no time! Call out a word and see who can be the first to swat the correct fly. The perfect LOW-PREP activity for your small groups! 9. Phonics Phone Message •Make a hole in the bottom of two cups and thread string though to make a telephone.  Knot the string to stop it from slipping through the cups. •One child chooses an object in front of them and says the word down the phone. •The other child listens and breaks the word down into its phonemes.  They write them down to spell the word. 10. Car Park Phonics FUN phonics car park mats for teaching children to blend to read words with adjacent consonants.  Your class will revise the phase 2 and 3 letters and sounds, plus blend to read phase 4 words (including high-frequency words) as they park their toy cars!  Perfect for active, hands-on learning. In conclusion, phase 4 phonics is an exciting time for children as they develop their reading and spelling skills. By incorporating fun and engaging activities into their learning, you can help your child consolidate their knowledge and become more confident readers. Try out these activities and see the progress your child makes! Take a look at the following blog posts: Tricky words, simple activities Hands-on resources for teaching phonics Check out these awesome learning resources: Phase 4 phonics printable readers Phase 4 phonics games and activities Phase 4 phonics early reader books* (click on the images): *As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Have you ever thought about making extra money through a teacher side hustle? Imagine having an additional income each month or even earning enough to eventually leave teaching. If you want to discover more, then here are 5 ways to get started: 1. TPT (Teachers Pay Teachers) This is a fab teacher side hustle! It can take a while to gain traction, but you can earn serious money by selling on TPT. I've personally sold over 11,000 resources and have over a thousand reviews on there. Don't just take my word for it, take a look at the No Worksheets Allowed TPT store! Teachers worldwide sell their lesson plans, worksheets and digital resources through this popular marketplace. You'll need to polish your products, create covers and write a description, but why not make some money from your tried and tested resources? Visit TPT University for more information about creating and posting products, marketing, copyright, etc. 2. Amazon KDP Have you always wanted to write a book but worry that it will never get published? Self-publish it then and become an author today! Check out my Amazon author page to see my collection of books - I've now sold over 2000 copies! With no initial outlay, you can sell eBooks and paperbacks through Amazon KDP and the process is relatively easy. Whether it's a novel, a children's book or a workbook, just upload your work and it will be printed on demand when someone buys it! Printing costs will be subtracted from your royalties, meaning there are no upfront costs for you. What's more, you'll earn up to 70% royalty on sales and can set the price of your book yourself. Visit KDP Help Centre to learn more and to decide if this is the side hustle for you. 3. Etsy Teacher Side Hustle Etsy is a well-known marketplace where you can sell your handmade goods, vintage items, craft supplies and digital downloads. If you've got a hobby that you think you could earn some money from, then Etsy has a huge audience of buyers just waiting to snap up your goods! Digital downloads, in particular, are a great way to make money from home and have few upfront costs or inventory issues. 4. Tutoring Tutoring is an obvious way for teachers to make some extra money. Did you know you can either tutor in person, or you can tutor online from the comfort of your own home? If you choose the former option, you can join a company or set up on your own. To tutor online, there are several different routes. For example, MyTutor offers one-to-one online tuition from KS2 to GCSE and A-Level. All you'll need is a laptop and Wi-Fi. You could also work around your busy schedule by providing courses for adults. If you like to be flexible and want to share your knowledge of travel, fitness, IT, make-up, etc. (the list is endless!), then Teachable or Udemy might be the perfect way for you to earn a passive income. Simply plan your curriculum, record and upload your video, and then launch your course! 5. Second-Hand Items Why not sell your unwanted stuff online? Clothes, books, furniture and games are always popular choices with buyers and it's a great way to off-load your clutter! There are many second-hand online selling platforms, for example, eBay and Vinted. When selling second-hand items, you'll need to write an honest detailed description, research the right price to sell your item and take clear photos with close-ups. Hopefully, you've learnt some useful ways to start earning extra money. Whether you choose to start today or wait until the summer holidays is up to you! Let me know how you plan to spend your extra cash and make sure that you add your ideas in the comments below! You might also enjoy these popular blog posts: Phase 3 Phonics: The Lazy Teacher's Guide Counting in 2s, 5s and 10s: 10 Awesome Activities Bingo Dabber Activities for Children

Are you tearing your hair out because your child is struggling to learn to blend sounds? Do you feel like they aren't moving forwards with their phonics? Are you struggling to keep your patience when they sound out b-i-g, yet say 'cat'? This is more common than you might think, and I can guarantee that your child isn't the only one struggling to blend! Here we take a look at how to blast off with blending! What is blending? Blending is when children say the sounds which make up a word and then merge them together until they can hear what the word is, e.g. s-u-n = sun. Blending is really important in learning to read. My child knows their sounds but still can't blend If your child can confidently look at a written letter and say its sound but is unable to then blend to read words, we need to do a bit more work on oral blending. In other words, develop their ability to hear the sounds in spoken words. Give these blending ideas a go: When you're out for a walk or in the car, you should sound out things which you can see. Say the sounds and then say the word, so that your child can hear you modelling how to blend. When they start to gain confidence with oral blending, you could then play a game of I Spy, for example, I spy a sh-o-p. Alternatively, you could play a game at home: place 3 objects out at a time and then sound out one of the words. Ask your child if they can work out which word you're blending to say. Another idea is to go on a scavenger hunt. Hide objects such as a pen, sock and hat around the room and then sound out one of the words. Can your little one blend the sounds and hunt for the correct item? My child can't blend to read written words If your child can already orally blend, that's fantastic - they're already well on their way to blending to read words! Here are three handy tips for you to follow next: Start by asking your child to blend to read 2 letter words: use vowel-consonant words such as 'it' and 'on'. When they can confidently do this, move on to blending words which contain 3 sounds. Encourage your child to say the first sound the loudest: sometimes children sound a word out, blend it together and then miss off the first sound in the word. An example would be sounding out t-i-n but then saying 'in'. By saying the first sound louder, children usually start blending with it. Ask your child to say the sounds faster: say each sound in the word slowly to start with and then get faster each time. Eventually the sounds will be so close together that your child will hear the word which they make! How can I make blending fun? As you know, I'm a huge fan of making learning fun! Here are some simple ideas for you to try, using items which you hopefully already have to hand: Puppet problems Use magnetic letters to make a word. Place pom-pom sound buttons underneath the word. Make the puppet press the sound buttons and say the sounds. Blend to read the word, making deliberate mistakes. Can your child correct the puppet and blend to read the word? Train Tracks Write sounds on stickers. Stick the sounds onto the train track to make a word. Move a toy train along the track and say each sound aloud. Blend to read the word. Blending slides Draw a slide on a piece of paper or whiteboard. Write sounds or add magnetic letters to make a word. Send a toy down the slide and say each sound aloud. Blend to read the word. What next? The No Worksheets Allowed shop contains a wide variety of engaging phonics games and activities to help children learn to blend. The activities outlined above and many more can be found in my phonics book. ‘Blast-Off with Blending’ is available in paperback and eBook versions and has over 500 sales to date! Blast Off with Blending makes learning to read fun for children, yet low prep for you! The phonics blending activities are highly engaging and can quickly be put into practice. This hands-on way of learning to read ensures faster progress in phonics! Unlock the power of reading with this phonics blending activity book! Designed for young learners who need extra support with blending, this book contains fun and engaging activities that focus on two-letter words. From cutting and sticking to using a bingo dabber, your child will enjoy hands-on learning that boosts their confidence and helps them master the art of blending!

Do you have a child who struggles with handwriting? Are they bored of handwriting sheets? Forget writing over letters on a worksheet and try these engaging activities instead! What is expected of children's handwriting? The early learning goals state that children in reception should: write recognisable letters, most of which are correctly formed. The year one English curriculum objectives state that children should: sit correctly at a table, holding a pencil comfortably and correctly begin to form lower-case letters in the correct direction, starting and finishing in the right place form capital letters form digits 0-9 understand which letters belong to which handwriting 'families' Initially, letter formation will be introduced alongside each letter and sound in phonics. Handwriting will then move towards learning to correctly write the letters in each letter family. These are letters which have similar shapes and directions of movement. How should a child hold their pencil? The most efficient grip is called the 'dynamic tripod grip'. This is where the child holds their pencil between the thumb and index finger, with the pencil supported on the middle finger. This grip allows for the pencil to be held firmly, whilst also allowing the child to write freely with no restrictions to movement. If a child in reception or year one still has a tendency to hold a pencil in their fist or with four fingers, you could ask them to hold a pom-pom underneath their ring and little finger. When they go to pick up their pencil, they will now only be able to use their thumb and two fingers! How can I help with handwriting? Before setting children off with the activities shown below, ensure that you have taught the correct formation of the focus letter first. This will really help with handwriting in the long run. You can do this by demonstrating on a whiteboard. Model how to sit correctly, show children an efficient pen(cil) grip, where to start the letter and how to form it. You should then ask them to practise the letter so that you can check for correct formation. Children could: write the letter in the air with a finger trace the letter on a friend's back or on the floor form the letter on a whiteboard When you are confident that they are writing the letter using the correct formation, you can give these activities a go: Rainbow Scratch Cards Rainbow scratch card handwriting is a really engaging way to teach letter formation. If you want to make your own rainbow scratch cards simply use crayons to create rainbow colours on a piece of paper, then paint over with a 3:1 mixture of paint and dish soap and allow to dry! As children write on the black surface, it gets scratched away and reveals the rainbow colours underneath. Reusable Wallets Place your letter formation sheet inside a reusable wallet. Children absolutely love writing with a pen and being able to rub it out with a little board rubber. What's more, they can practice writing their letters over and over again! Rice Writing Fill a tray with uncooked rice. You can dye the rice if you like, or if you're lazy like me, just add a piece of brightly coloured paper or card underneath! As children form their letters in the rice, they will reveal the colour underneath. I made my sensory activity in a small plastic case so that it can be closed and used again at a later date. The great thing about using sensory materials like rice is that children can really 'feel' the letters. You could also use flour or damp sand for this activity. Letter Mats Make your own handwriting mats for children to drive a car around or save time and buy alphabet tracing mats and number tracing mats from the No Worksheets Allowed shop. Simply choose a card and trace over the letter or number with a small toy car or a dry wipe pen! This activity is so much fun that children won't even realise they're learning! Laminate the cards or place them in reusable wallets for longevity. Loose Parts Handwriting This is a great way to practise handwriting without actually writing. With this activity, children will learn about the shape of the letter and also develop their fine motor skills. Choose a selection of loose parts for them to arrange inside the letter. You can tidy the loose parts away and use the activity again and again! Cotton Bud/Q Tip Tracing Trace over letters without using a boring worksheet! You should write the letters in chalk for your child to write over, using a cotton bud dipped in water. Watch the letters magically disappear! A variation on this activity is writing letters with paintbrushes dipped in water outside. This allows the children to have more of a gross motor workout too! Shaving Foam Letters Combine handwriting with sensory play by using shaving foam. Squirt a blob of shaving foam onto a tray and ask children to smooth over it with their hands. They can then form their letters in the foam. If little ones make a mistake, it's fine because they can simply rub over the foam and start again! This activity is pretty quick and easy to wash up afterwards too, unlike paint! Feather Pencils If you want your class to get some work recorded in their books, why not make it a bit more exciting by using feather pencils? Just tape a feather to a pencil and hey presto, you have a quill! You can also slip a bit of history into the lesson by explaining that people used to write with a quill and ink. Sticker Handwriting Children love writing on stickers, so why not practise handwriting on them? They can write the letter in different colours and then wear the sticker to show off their handwriting all day! Bingo Dabber Letters This is another engaging way for children to get a feel for the shape of a letter, without actually having to write it. Bingo dabbers are a win-win resource because children adore them whilst you don't have the mess of paint. They're great for developing postural control and hand-eye coordination too. You can buy bingo dabber activity books from Amazon if this looks like something that your little one would love. What Next? 1. You might also enjoy reading these blog posts: DIY Fine Motor Activities for EYFS The Ultimate Guide to Letters and Sounds Curious About Loose Parts Play? 2. Shop handwriting resources and more:

What's so tricky about tricky words? Tricky words are also known as common exception or irregular words. They're used often in reading and writing but contain letter-sound correspondences which children have yet to learn. For example, in the tricky word ‘was’ the ‘a’ corresponds to the phoneme /o/, which children who are just beginning to learn to read would not be familiar with. Let's have a look at how we can make tricky words a little less tricky... How do I teach tricky words? With tricky words, you need to focus on the sounds which children know first and then look carefully at the tricky part. Highlight the tricky part of the word using a different coloured pen or a highlighter. Alternatively, you could underline the irregular part. If there are other tricky words with the same pattern, then it makes sense to teach these at the same time, e.g. he, she, we, be or would, should, could. You could encourage the child to draw a picture in the tricky part of the word, to make it easier to remember. Tricky word activities Here's a selection of phonics activities to help children to learn to read and spell the common exception words. Use them as independent or group activities or set them up in your continuous provision. Tricky word making Children can build tricky words using visuals such as: Alphabet stickers on colourful paper By cutting letters out of comics and assembling them to make tricky word collages By typing them out on a real or cardboard keyboard With blocks that have graphemes written on them Tricky word art Make tricky word art by: Doing rainbow writing – use felt pens or crayons to write over the word in lots of different colours Writing the tricky word in white crayon and then using watercolour paints to reveal it Writing the irregular word on a big piece of paper and decorating with feathers, felt and other collage materials Painting tricky words on foil Tricky word writing Make writing tricky words more fun by: Making a spinner using a circle of card, a split pin and a paper clip. Write tricky words on the spinner and then spell the word which you land on Seeing how many times you can write the common exception word before a sand timer runs out Using a wooden stylus to write them on scratchy notes (matte black surface which scratches off to reveal a rainbow background) Using chalk to write them on the ground What next? 1. If you would like to find out more information about phonics, then check out these blog posts: What the Best Teachers Know About Letters and Sounds Fun with Phase 2 Phonics The Lazy Teacher's Guide to Phase 3 Phonics Phonics Segmenting: The Essential Guide Phonics: 10 Activities for Your Continuous Provision 2. The following phonics books are available to buy from Amazon: 3. Customers love the phonics downloads in the No Worksheets Allowed shop: Phase 2 phonics resources Phase 3 phonics resources Phase 4 phonics resources Phase 5 phonics resources

It has been the trend over the last few years to have a beige classroom. That's meant hessian-backed displays, natural resources and taupe-painted walls. A calming, peaceful and tranquil environment is definitely something that we teachers aim for but is there really anything wrong with a pop of colour? Research has shown that a monotone environment can cause anxiety, restlessness and irritation. As the new school year approaches and your thoughts turn to setting up your classroom, what if you didn't have to go beige? The Psychology of Colour in the Classroom Did you know that how you use colour in the classroom can positively (or negatively) impact on the learning and behaviour of your pupils? Colours can grab children's attention and even help with memory. In his 2016 paper, Abdolreza Gilavand investigates the impact of colour on learning. It's certainly something to keep in mind when setting up your dream classroom! Here we discover how different colours can affect children's mood and academic success: Red - attention-grabbing, energising, creates excitement and alertness Yellow - encourages creativity and positive feelings and improves attention Orange - lifts mood and encourages communication Blue - relaxing, calming and improves concentration Brown - reduces fatigue and makes children feel safe Green - calming, can improve memory, peaceful and induces learning Off-white - improves attention and positive feelings How to Inject Colour into Your Classroom Clearly, too much colour in your classroom could overstimulate and overwhelm your pupils (and you). Nobody wants a play centre for a classroom. You definitely want to achieve a balance between neutral and bold colours. In addition, your school budget will probably not stretch to a full room refurb right now! Here are some easy and affordable ways for you to instantly inject some colour into your classroom: Soft furnishings - add colourful cushions, throws, drapes and rugs to your reading area, home corner and carpet area Hang prisms to reflect rainbows all over your walls Brighten up your room with plants and flowers Paint a cupboard, alcove or chair in a strong colour Have colourful baskets, trays and stationary organisers dotted around the room Back your display boards in hessian but use an attention-grabbing colour as a border Go for bold-coloured exercise books or folders Print on pastel-coloured paper to decrease eye strain, or use coloured overlays instead Using Colour in Your Continuous Provision With all that we have learnt in mind, here are some suggestions for you to try in the different areas of your continuous provision: Use splashes of red in your writing, role play and music areas to energise pupils and to help keep them motivated and alert Welcome children into your reading area with blue tones, to aid concentration and to ensure that they feel relaxed Inspire pupils and spark their creativity with yellow hues in your art, construction and investigation areas Make children feel safe and secure when they explore the home corner, with soft browns, natural materials and neutral colours Consider using off-white and greens to induce learning in your maths area How about adding warm orange accents to underused areas of provision - orange can attract attention and lift mood. Be careful if you have a particularly lively class though, as orange can overstimulate! What Shall I Do Next in My Classroom? As time goes on, you may notice that different colours evoke different responses from your pupils. Don't be afraid to change things or scrap ideas which aren't working. As you get to know your class, you might find yourself introducing more red, orange and yellow to inject a bit more energy! On the other hand, you might be heading down a more blue, green and brown route if you have a 'spirited' class! Let us know what works for you in the comments below. Grab these boho floral days and months flashcards from the freebies section of our website Kit your classroom out with these hands-on learning activities You may also be interested in the following blog posts: Subitising in Maths - What on Earth is That? Bingo Dabber Activities for Children

Do you tend to keep literacy inside the classroom? How much thought do you give to planning outdoor literacy activities? Here, we take a look at the benefits of outdoor literacy learning for children in the early years. The good news is that you don't need to spend a great deal on resources to create a range of fun, meaningful and engaging activities! The Benefits of Outdoor Literacy Learning The statutory framework for the early years, states that, 'Providers must provide access to an outdoor play area or, if that is not possible, ensure that outdoor activities are planned and taken on a daily basis (unless circumstances make this inappropriate, for example unsafe weather conditions).' Another important early year's document, Development Matters, also highlights its importance, stating that, 'A well-planned learning environment, indoors and outside, is an important aspect of pedagogy.' Research shows that outdoor literacy learning can: promote a sense of well-being and have a calming effect. promote language and communication skills - some children find it easier to communicate outdoors because they can use an 'outdoor' voice and they feel freer and more relaxed. have a positive effect on physical health, as children generally have more space to be active whilst learning outdoors. help children to learn about the world around them whilst taking part in literacy activities. This research into the benefits of outdoor learning in the early years, by the National Literacy Trust, highlights further important points which you may find interesting. EYFS Literacy Outdoors: Learning Activities These outdoor literacy activities for Reception and the early years are perfect for you to use at home or in your setting! Most take very little time to set up, using resources which you probably already have to hand. You'll be taking EYFS literacy outdoors in no time! Reading Set up a reading tent so that children can look at books together, even if it's drizzling outside! Make a reading area using logs or hay bales, for groups to sit on and share books. Find quiet nooks and crannies in your outdoor area and add cushions to create individual spaces for children to read. Put out a selection of fiction and non-fiction texts, comics, laminated nursery rhymes and poems, etc. Books about nature, gardening and the weather are perfect! Provide puppets and cuddly toys, so that children can use them to retell stories. Alternatively, they might want to read a book to the toys. Have a role-play box containing hats, scarves, glasses and more. Read to little ones (or big kids!) outside and provide blankets and hot chocolate to make the experience feel magical. Allow the children to take pictures or film each other retelling stories, reciting a poem outdoors or following instructions to plant seeds. Set up a stage using decking, wooden crates or just a rug! Writing Provide plenty of opportunities for little ones to develop their gross motor skills. The large muscles in the upper body are important for the postural control required for writing. Sweeping up leaves, dancing with a ribbon and cleaning windows are all great activities to try! In addition to their gross motor skills, children will also need to develop their fine motor skills so that they can grip a pencil and have the stamina needed for writing. Planting flowers, squeezing wet sponges and painting rocks are all activities which can help to develop the fine motor skills. Lay out large rolls of paper or open out old cardboard boxes to practise mark-making or writing words and sentences on. Make a mud kitchen recipe book together. Laminate it so that it can be used again and again! Provide clip boards so that children can write lists of things that they see, a poem about nature or a story about a butterfly! Encourage children to write their own signs for your outdoor space, on pieces of wood. Make maps of your immediate outdoor area or the local area - add pictures, symbols and a key. Ensure that children have access to a range of writing materials; including chalks, pencils, pens, crayons, charcoal, pastels, paints and more! Phonics Go on a sound walk around the local area. Listen for loud and soft/high and low sounds. Can the children identify what is making the sounds? Play instruments outdoors - compare the different sounds which they make. Sing songs and rhymes - why not dance using pom poms and ribbons too? Look for things which rhyme in the environment, for example a cat and a hat, or a dog and a log. Make up silly rhymes together! Write your focus letters/sounds on skittles, depending on which phase you are studying. Children can say the sounds out loud as they bowl the skittles over. Encourage children to practise mark-making or forming letters using a paintbrush dipped in water, chalks on different surfaces or using a stick in a patch of mud. Write your focus letters/sounds/words on the wall - children can shoot a bow and arrow at each one and say them out loud. Go on a letter and word hunt in the local area. Children could make their own cardboard tube binoculars to search for signs, logos and street names. Use chalk to write words on the wall. Children could fire a water pistol along each sound and then blend the sounds together to read the word. Write words on the ground, with spaces between each of the sounds. Children can bounce a ball on the sounds and blend them together to read the words. Provide an easel, a blackboard or a whiteboard on the wall to practise segmenting (stretching words out and breaking it into sounds) or spelling tricky words. Phonics Activities Books for Teaching Children These phonics books for Reception contain awesome indoor and outdoor activities! Click on the images to take you to them! Hands-On Learning Resources for 3-7 Year Olds You will find a fantastic range of hands-on learning resources in the No Worksheets Allowed Amazon store! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you have any further ideas for literacy learning in the outdoors, don't forget to add them to the comments below!

Are you a parent worried about your child starting primary school? It's understandable to feel anxious about this big change but there's no need to fear it. In this blog post, we'll discuss what school readiness really means, what a school-ready child looks like and share some practical ways to prepare your child for their first big day in Reception class. Let's ease your worries and get excited about this new chapter in your child's life! What is School Readiness? School readiness is a phrase which is often used in preschool settings but what does it really mean? Here you'll find out what a 'school-ready' child looks like and discover some practical ways to prepare your child for that all-important big day in September. It's worth remembering that there can be a HUGE difference between a child who has only recently turned four and a child who will turn five in their first few weeks at school. A turbulent couple of years during the global pandemic will also mean that your child probably spent a lot of time at home as a baby. Schools are VERY aware of this and will adapt and ensure that they meet the children at the various stages that they are at! Childhood isn't a race and early years professionals are more than used to differentiating their provision to ensure appropriate levels of challenge for all. Just like preschool, learning through play is still the main approach in Reception. What Can a School-Ready Child Do? Examples of school readiness are a child who is: able to dress and undress independently (although help may be needed with tricky buttons and pesky socks!). able to put on and take off their coat, plus try to do and undo the zip. able to use cutlery to eat lunch - it's worth noting that all children from Reception to Year Two are entitled to a free school meal. curious about learning, who asks and answers questions. able to use the toilet and wash their hands independently. able to take turns and make friends. able to follow simple rules and instructions. healthy and active. able to cope in a group of children. able to sit and listen for short periods of time, i.e. 5 minutes. able to tidy away toys! able to participate in music and storytelling activities. If your child can't yet do some of these things, don't worry! Your child's teacher will work with you and your child to help them to meet these targets. What is Not Expected? Children don't have to recognise all of their letters and numbers. They also definitely don't need to be able to read books! Please let your child be little and let them play! After all, 'Play is the work of childhood,' Jean Piaget. What Activities Can I Try at Home? You're probably already doing lots of wonderful things with your child! Here are some more easy and budget-friendly activities which you can try: Visit the library and take out a book: look at the front cover and guess what the story might be about, talk about where the story starts and ends, use the pictures to tell the story and retell the story using puppets or masks. You could even make your own! Go on a shape hunt around the house and outdoors: talk about what the shapes look like. How many sides and corners do they have? Make shape patterns and pictures. Do something fun outdoors: make an obstacle course, build a den or create a bug hotel. All of these activities involve teamwork and lots of discussion, promoting your child's language development! Practice counting: blow bubbles outdoors – how many can you pop? Who can pop the most? Can you pop more the next time? Make a model using 3/4/5 pieces of construction kit. Thread and count beads onto a piece of string. Click for more fun counting and number recognition activities to do with your child. Be creative: draw or paint a picture, make a model, create a collage or do some printing! Practice cutting and using an appropriate amount of glue or paint. Talk about the colours and textures with your child. Get physical: visit a park or play area, play in the garden, practice rolling/throwing and catching/kicking a large ball. Activities which develop your child's fine motor skills will help to get them ready for many tasks in school, such as writing, drawing, using scissors, turning the pages of a book, construction and using a computer mouse or keyboard. Small-world play is a wonderful way to develop children’s imagination, creativity and storytelling skills. This blog post provides examples of how you can create your own small-world setups. Help to develop your child's speaking and listening skills. Phase One of Letters and Sounds lays the foundations for the phonic work which starts in Phase 2 at school. Go on a sound walk, talk about the loud/soft, high/low sounds made when you play instruments, do action songs and read rhyming books together. If you do want to introduce letters to your child, begin with the SOUNDS, rather than placing too much emphasis on the letter names. Make sure that the sounds (phonemes) are pronounced correctly by children and adults! Sometimes people add /uh/ on the end of a sound (for example, /m/ becomes muh). There are clips online demonstrating the correct pronunciation. Here you will find hands-on activities for teaching letters and sounds. Starting Primary School - What Happens Next? The summer before your child starts school, you'll probably be invited to a new intake parents' information evening. Your child should have at least one settling-in session at school and the teacher might visit them at their preschool setting. Some schools also offer a home visit. Don't be afraid to inform your child's new teacher of any particular needs or requirements which your child may have. Remember that childhood isn't a race. Just choose one or two things from the 'school-ready' checklist to focus on at a time. Above all, enjoy this EXCITING new stage of their development! Images from Pixabay This ENGAGING preschool activity book is ideal for helping preschool children to prepare for starting school! Teach your child how to count, rhyme, hear initial sounds, name shapes, to cut and stick and more with these FUN activities. The book also contains tons of top tips and extra hands-on activity ideas for you to try! You will find a great selection of fun learning resources here, all aimed at helping your child to learn through play. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Did you know that fine motor skills are important for school children? Fine motor skills refer to the ability to make movements using the small muscles. They're needed for tons of activities in school; from writing, drawing and using scissors to turning the pages of a book, construction and using a computer mouse or keyboard! In addition, fine motor skills are required for many self-care tasks. Examples include getting dressed (doing buttons, zips and laces), brushing teeth, opening a lunchbox and using cutlery to eat. Well-developed fine motor skills enable children to become more independent. They can help children to complete a task quickly and efficiently. These skills are learnt and developed in stages as a child grows. You can click here for some resources which are designed to help with fine motor skills. * Here's some tried and tested ways to work out these all-important small muscles: Cutting Learning to cut takes a lot of time and practice. Children need good hand-eye coordination and hand strength to be able to use scissors. They should be encouraged to keep their thumb up by doing a 'thumbs up' before starting. Start off with thicker materials first, such as straws and card, as these are easier to cut. Once your child has progressed past single snips, encourage them to turn the card, rather than the hand which they are cutting with and to follow simple patterns. Pegs/Tweezers Regular clothes pegs and jumbo tweezers are great for improving hand strength. They also help children to develop their hand-eye coordination. As your child's hand strength improves, they can try smaller tweezers. Mark Making Mark making is the step before writing. The skills learnt during mark making contribute to your child's ability to hold and use a pencil, to draw and to colour. Mark making should be fun and multi-sensory. Use anything from damp sand to shaving foam, glitter to chalks to practise making lines, swirls, dots and other shapes, before progressing to letter formation. Playdough Playdough is fantastic for strengthening the fine motor muscles. Children should roll, flatten, pinch and use cutters. Using clay or thicker modelling materials will increase the difficulty and work the muscles harder! Hole Punching Hole punch activities are great for developing the smaller muscles in the hands, fingers and wrists. There are a variety of hole punchers out there, including double hole punchers, single hole punch pliers, mini punchers and even ones which punch out fun shapes! Threading A good pincer grip means that the thumb and pointer finger touch, just like when doing an 'OK' sign. Threading is an ideal way to improve the pincer grip. You could use a stopwatch or sand timer to challenge children to thread x number of objects in one minute. Your child could thread beads, buttons or pasta tubes onto string. Encourage them to pick up the objects using the thumb and index finger. Alternatively, children can thread a pipe cleaner through the holes in a colander! Loose Parts Loose parts or tinker trays are very popular at the moment. They are basically collections of 'loose parts', such as buttons, sequins, twigs and glass beads. In addition to encouraging creativity, they are also wonderful for developing fine motor skills. Picking up small items such sequins, beads, feathers and gems will help children to strengthen their pincer grip. Flicking Children can line up polystyrene balls and flick them into a net (a small tub will do). They should flick the balls with each finger and alternate hands. Can they flick the balls faster? Alternatives to balls include scrunched up pieces of paper or marbles (although you should think about safety and the age of the child when introducing small items). Posting In this activity, children post items through a slot, one at a time. They should be encouraged to use their thumb and one finger. There are a huge range of toys available which focus on this skill, or you can easily make your own! Just cut slots in cardboard boxes and decorate with pens and stickers! Your child can then post lolly pop sticks, pieces of card or counters through the holes. Fine Motor Activities - What Next? If you love the activities shown here, make sure that you check out these other hands-on learning ideas too: Developing Creativity with Loose Parts Learning to Count and Recognise Numbers Fun Activities for Learning Letters and Sounds This preschool activity book is wonderful for children who are about to start school. It's jam-packed with fun age-appropriate activities, including those designed to develop fine motor skills! Click on the image to find out more. Bingo dabbers are amazing fun for little (and big) kids! This activity book is the ideal way to develop fine motor skills, with as little mess as possible! It's like painting without the need to cover your dining table and clean up afterwards! Click on the image to take you to Amazon, where you can buy this activity book. * As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Want to make multiplication fun but don't know how? Discover our selection of engaging activities for teaching multiplication. Using resources or items which are easily sourced, your kids will soon be on the way to mastering their tables! Arrays Using arrays is a great visual way to begin to teach multiplication. Children can easily see that multiplication is the same as repeated addition. Children can use a muffin tin, an ice cube tray or Connect 4 as a frame and make their arrays with pom poms, counters or marbles. Another great way to show an array is to choose a domino and then multiply the two numbers using a matchstick array. When working out multiplications, children should be taught that it doesn't matter what order the numbers are in. Fact Fluency Twister is a fun way to learn multiplication facts. Simply write the tables which you are focusing on, on pieces of paper or sticky notes and tape/stick them to the circles. Play the game as you usually would but solve the tables as you go! For example, if your right hand lands on red, you must work out the multiplication on the circle which you place your hand. Spinners are super easy to make! Use a compass to draw a circle on card or draw around something circular. Cut the circle out and then split it into 12 parts. Write the numbers 1-12 in each section. Next, take a paper clip and put the point of a pencil through one end. Decide which table you are practising and then flick the spinner. If you are working on the 2 times tables and the spinner lands on number 5, you would solve 5x2. Roll n Solve is a great game for children to play on their own or with a partner. You need to create a grid and fill each box with the multiplications which you are currently teaching. In the top row, add spots to represent each of the faces of a die. Children then roll a die and solve all of the multiplications in the corresponding column. A FREE copy of this activity can be found here in the No Worksheets Allowed shop. 12-sided dice are perfect for learning multiplication facts. You need two dice and you might want to put them in a clear container, as shown in the clip. This will help with stray dice! Children shake the dice and solve the multiplication which is created! This is another version of a spinner activity. Create a spinner using the instructions above, choose which table to practice and make a grid showing the answers. Children spin the spinner and cover the answer using counters, gems, cubes, etc. If you haven't got the time to create your own resources, customers love the variety of engaging hands-on multiplication activities in our shop. Fun Multiplication - What Next? A great selection of multiplication resources can be found here! * These cut-and-stick activity books offer a fun approach to practising and building confidence with multiplication facts. Click on the images to take a closer look! *As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Are you new to teaching? Not got a clue about phonics? Overwhelmed by too much information? Here are 10 easy tips to help you to instantly start teaching phonics! Where Do I Start? In schools, the 42 main sounds are taught during phonics lessons - not just the 26 letters of the alphabet! Not sure where to start? It's a good idea to listen to the correct pronunciation of each sound, as this will ultimately help your child to learn to read and spell! A Phonics Guide to Learning Letters and Sounds Initially, it's best to introduce the letter sounds rather than placing too much focus on their names. This makes blending to read simple 2 or 3-letter words far easier. As children progress with their phonics, they'll start to learn that some sounds can contain 2 or more letters, for example, ‘ch’ or ‘ai’. They will then need to learn the letter names. Make sure that the sounds (phonemes) are pronounced correctly by children and adults! Sometimes people add /uh/ on the end of a sound (for example, /m/ becomes muh). If you're a parent or guardian, check with your child’s teacher if you're unsure how to pronounce the letter sounds. There are also phonics clips online demonstrating the correct pronunciation. Introduce new sounds alongside objects and pictures which begin with that sound. Also, encourage children to listen out for the sound in the middle or at the end of words during phonics sessions. Ask children to look in a mirror whilst saying the sounds so they can focus on the shape their mouth should be making. It is more important to learn lowercase letters first rather than capitals. This is because most early books consist mainly of lowercase letters! You can introduce the capital letters at the same time but focus more on the lowercase letter. When you do start to teach capitals, ensure that children realise that capital letters make the same sounds as their lowercase version! It's a common misconception that the capital letter is the ‘name’ and the lowercase letter is the ‘sound’! Letter names can be taught during phonics sessions using the alphabet song. Point to an alphabet display as you sing. Always demonstrate how to correctly form each letter. If you're a parent/guardian, ask your child’s school to give you a sheet showing how they teach children to form each letter. Different schools use different approaches to teach handwriting. Bad habits are very difficult to break! Teach phonics daily; little and often is key. Vary the activities and keep them fun! Make phonics learning hands-on and engaging! There are tons of awesome phonics activities here. Letter and Sound Recognition Activities Football Flick You Will Need Polystyrene balls Pen Mini goal, e.g. from 'Finger Football', or a tub/small box Instructions •Write a sound on each of the balls. •Line the balls up ready for penalties! •Flick the ball into the net, saying the sound. Hole Punch You Will Need Strips of paper/card Pen Mini hole punchers Instructions •Write letters on the strips of paper. •Call out a letter (or children can pick one from a bag). •Children punch holes underneath that letter on their strips of paper. Trucks and Rocks You Will Need Toy trucks Rocks Pen Instructions •Write your focus sounds on rocks. •Children dig or scoop up the rocks and put them into their trucks. •Can they tell you the letter sounds? Dig for Letters You Will Need Sand Magnetic letters Spades, trowels, etc. Instructions •Bury magnetic letters in the sand. •Children hunt for the letters and say the sounds as they collect them. •They can also make the imprint of letters in damp sand. Phonics Resources Customers love the hands-on resources in the No Worksheets Allowed shop! There's a great selection of activities to teach children their letter sounds. The phonics activity guide, 'Lift Off with Letters' offers a wonderful assortment of fun and engaging ways to teach phonemes and graphemes! Take a look at the clip below for a sneak peek! If you enjoyed these activities, make sure that you also check out these blog posts: Learning to Count and Recognise Numbers Fun with Phase 2 Phonics

Over the years, I've had many chats with parents about engaging reluctant readers. Initially, this was as a teacher and then as a mum of three boys of my own. There seems to be more than a sprinkling of reluctant readers out there and it’s probably fair to say that many of us have torn our hair out at times trying to get a child to sit down to read! Often, we issue consequences - No playtime if you don't read! You can only go on the Xbox if you read your book! According to the author James Patterson, 'There's no such thing as a kid who hates reading. There are kids who love reading, and kids who are reading the wrong books.' So, how can you inspire children to read books? How can you instil a love of reading? Engaging Reluctant Readers Here are a few proven ideas for you to try. Try to create an incentive for your child to read: Find books which relate to their interests. Shops and libraries are full of books which appeal to all tastes and hobbies; be it Pokémon, football, unicorns or dinosaurs! Try non-fiction books: quite often, these appeal more to reluctant readers, as they can easily dip in and out of them. Let your child use a finger torch/head torch/normal torch to read. Build a den or set up a small tent for them to read in. Create a reading nook. Find a quiet corner and add cushions, a beanbag and a cosy blanket. Allow them to read ‘late’ in bed as a treat- what child doesn't love being able to stay up late?! Give them topics to research on the iPad/tablet. Incorporate reading into school homework by finding the answers or information using child-friendly websites. Try audiobooks: listening to books still exposes children to the language of books such as similes and adjectives. Not a cheap choice but you could try an e-reader. This can be a good option for older children as they can control the type of font, print size and brightness of the background. Try comic-style books- when my middle son was younger, he couldn't stand books that only contained text. However, he loved comic-style books and devoured them in a matter of days! Buy a comic as a treat (when did they become so expensive!!) during the half-term break or when you go away on holiday. Sit and read your own books to show that YOU enjoy reading. Share your excitement for the new book you've just got, talk about how you can't wait to read your book when you've finished work, etc. Read to your child - it doesn’t matter how old they are, they'll still love to cuddle up and listen to a story! Try paired reading where you read the book together or take turns to read a page. Don't leave your child guessing at a word for too long, to keep the flow going. Leave books, comics and leaflets lying around everywhere, in the hope that they might pick one up and read it! If you are getting a pet or your child wants to take up a new hobby - buy or borrow a book about it first. Encourage them to read the book and explain why the pet/hobby is a great idea! Finally, don’t give up! It’s only in the past few years that my now twelve-year-old has discovered books which he likes. As Roald Dahl said, 'If you are going to get anywhere in life you have to read a lot of books.' With that in mind, I’ve created a list of recommended books for 7-11-year-old boys. They are all books which my boys have (shock horror) LOVED. These early reader books are perfect for early or struggling readers. Click on the images to take a closer look on Amazon: 🔗 Contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you have any recommendations for girls' books or tips to engage reluctant readers, share them in the comments below!