Our data showed that we needed a renewed focus on the teaching of phonics and early reading. We knew that what we were doing already was not consistent across the school and did not have the impact on learners that we wanted. We needed to develop a whole-school, systematic approach to the teaching of phonics. We discovered Monster Phonics and jumped at it!
One of the key things we wanted from an SSP programme was a core training programme that would help staff develop a consistent language and a consistent approach to the teaching of phonics and early reading. We wanted training that was research based and addressed the pedagogy and key concepts of teaching synthetic phonics. We needed our staff to feel supported by literacy experts, be able to ask questions and develop confidence as they rolled out the programme. This is exactly what we got with the Monster Phonics training package – free as part of our membership.
Quite simply, our learners LOVE Monster Phonics. It has brought a real buzz and renewed energy to the teaching of phonics. All the children look forward to Monster Phonics sessions, to the point that they question if they haven’t had a Monster Phonics experience in their day! We hear them singing the songs in the playground, we see the children’s delight as they interact with the books and characters throughout their day and we hear discussions with peers where they apply their phonic knowledge independently.
Staff now use a common language in their teaching of phonics and early reading. Monster Phonics SSP has given them new strategies and approaches and helped them to track pupil progress in a consistent and meaningful way. The pace of the scheme is challenging with high expectations, but persistence has seen children becoming more confident in their reading and picking up things with increasing speed and recall. Parents have told us their children talk about the Monsters, sing their songs, discuss their back stories and many have commented on how they feel their child has flourished and has new ways of tackling reading, writing and spelling.
The impact on standards across the school has been fantastic. We created effect size data using the pilot project measures of expected ‘sound’ and ‘word’ knowledge and these showed that, at a minimum, the Year 2 cohort made an additional 11 months of progress – an effect size of 0.92. The greatest progress was seen in Reception children with effect sizes of 2.54 (sounds) and 1.04 (words).
Monster Phonics has a multisensory approach, and this has been hugely important for our children. The use of colour coding, in particular, is something that has had a massive impact on children’s ability to develop their phonics knowledge and become more independent. The use of lively and engaging characters gives the ‘hook’ that helps catch and maintain the children’s interest. The provision of an easy to use but extremely comprehensive website which incorporates training, resources, assessment and a fully-aligned decodable reading scheme is another huge factor in Monster Phonics’ success.
