MSL – Phonics & Spelling
Our whole school starts with our phonics lessons, where students are explicitly taught the letter sounds to develop reading skills. Based on modern evidence and research into learning and neuroscience, our phonics program sets students up for a life of successful reading, writing, speaking, and listening, and thinking.
Every student is working at their targeted level, with every classroom supported by an extra adult trained for small group work. Every day, as part of our MSL sessions, students practise and extend their spelling through our daily phonics lessons.
Across our whole school, we have a wide array of high-quality and engaging books that are decodable, which allow our students to practise their ever growing letter and sound knowledge. Within Foundation to Year 3 we now have a wide range of rich texts for students to take home and practise/show off their skills with their family.
Engaging Reading & Writing
At Aldercourt we create engaging and fun experiences to build vocabulary and hook our students into writing for authentic purposes and audiences. Our aim is to get students motivated and wanting to write for a real purpose – not just because a teacher says so. Teachers support students in developing writing skills through a systematic approach that breaks down different text types.
We further develop reading skills through reading workshops which includes the use of rich texts, vocabulary building, guided reading and comprehension activities. Ongoing assessments ensure students are working in small groups at their level at all times. Our incredibly dedicated staff work closely in teams to review and check on students’ progress and extend their their skills and knowledge. This provides a deep understanding of the features of these texts and supports them to write their own pieces during units of learning.