Phase 1 Phonics Resources and Activities for Early Years

What is Phase 1 Phonics?

Phase 1 phonics is the foundation for teaching children to read and write using synthetic phonics. It is introduced in nursery and Reception and focuses on developing children’s listening, speaking, and sound discrimination skills. Through engaging activities, children learn to identify sounds, develop phonemic awareness, and build essential oral language skills that prepare them for Phase 2 phonics.

What is taught in Phase 1 Phonics?

Phase 1 phonics is divided into key areas that help children tune into sounds and develop early phonics skills. Activities include:

• Listening to and repeating sounds: Children learn to identify environmental sounds, such as animal noises, vehicles, and musical instruments.
• Rhyming words: Using activities like Silly Soup rhyming games, children learn to recognise and produce rhyming words.
• Segmenting and blending: Children break words into sounds (c-a-t for cat) using oral blending and segmenting cards.
• Exploring environmental sounds: Identifying and categorising different sounds from daily life.
• Instrumental sounds: Recognising and matching sounds from musical instruments.
• Developing oral vocabulary: Engaging in conversations and new word exposure through play-based learning.

Phase 1 Phonics – Aspect 1: Environmental Sounds

Environmental sounds play a key role in early phonics, helping children to listen carefully and distinguish between different sounds.

• Listening games: Children listen for and identify familiar sounds such as birds chirping or cars passing.
• Sound matching: Matching real-world sounds with objects or images.
• Listening walks: Exploring different environments to identify and describe sounds.
• Loud vs. soft sounds: Understanding how sound changes with volume and distance.

Phase 1 Phonics – Aspect 2: Instrumental Sounds

This phase introduces children to musical instrument sounds, helping them to refine their listening skills.

• Identifying instrument sounds: Listening to and recognising sounds from instruments like pianos, guitars, and tambourines.
• Sound matching: Pairing instrument sounds with pictures.
• Exploring instruments: Hands-on experiences with different instruments.
• Understanding pitch and volume: Learning the difference between high and low sounds and soft vs. loud sounds.

Phase 1 Phonics Resources and Activities

Explore a range of play-based phonics activities to help children develop strong listening and speaking skills. Our engaging Phase 1 phonics resources include:

• Phase 1 voice sounds bingo game – A fun way to identify vocal sounds and develop phonemic awareness.
• Phase 1 sound trumpet activity – A hands-on game that encourages children to explore and amplify sounds.
• Listening walks and sound sorting activities to improve sound discrimination.

These Phase 1 phonics resources help children build a strong foundation for early reading and writing, ensuring they are ready for the next stage of phonics learning.