We know how crucial it is for your child to enjoy their first literacy experience, so using their own personal PiLT Writing book ensures that your child gently takes those early steps with pleasure. They begin with their own personal experiences of family and home.

The programme closely links with a range of Early Learning Goals, which are found in the front of the book, next to the “I can steps for reading and writing.” Thus, you can be assured that you are supporting your child correctly, moving through the sequenced steps, complementing what they would be following at school.

It is also crucial that your child hears sounds in simple words and can blend and link to letters. So there are phase 2 decodable books based on letters and sounds, attached to the PiLT book. There are also opportunities to watch myself and team, modelling online how to use the wonderful and engaging “Ransom Reading Stars” books. At the back of the PiLT book there is an organised phonic record section to guide you, and should complement your essential school’s chosen phonic scheme. The decodable words are organised into rhyming patterns, so your child can hear the patterns in words, which may also link to simple poems they will encounter. Additionally, there is also an Alphabet chart at the back of the book to support children recognising letter order, and capitals, and eventually letter names. Finally there is a simple word bank, to which they would then progress and learn to use after securing those important sounds and words.

I am also passionate about giving children the opportunity to express their ideas and make connections, with their own lives as well as making links between books. So book packs, have been arranged, based on their content, from a range of decodables and colour book band texts. This approach will enable children to expand and apply new vocabulary in meaningful sentences. They can then see and hear how the new words they have learnt, go together into different patterned phrases, which will strengthen their fluency and understanding. These essential words for speaking are generally based on most phonic programmes, but there are a few additional very important words such as “Here” or “Look” that are needed to make sense of where those essential decodable words are to be found in a child’s natural spoken words and writing. These words are outlined with colour band colours,

starting with pink Level 1, black Level 2, red Level 3-5.There are harder words if your child is moving quickly through the programme. These words have small smiley faces that the children can colour in once they have mastered them. There are also additional copies of words with no smiley faces that can be cut up and used to play a range of games like snap or pairs. Inside the book there is paper divided with lines, so the children can begin to write in between them. As they gradually move through the programme, they learn to cope with more narrow lines, which they can later learn to focus writing on. The main intention at the early stages is that the child is not distracted from the content of their message and ideas.

The themes covered, such as “Myself and Play”,“My Sand and Water Play”, “My Farm Play” and “My Jungle Play” have been linked to your child’ s play for pleasure. There are opportunities for you to observe capture and record what your child is saying. Eventually, as you go through the programme’s different themes, your child will apply their improving phonic and word knowledge, to simple phrases, words and sounds, which they might write alongside pictures and photos. You will then have a record of your child’s imaginative journey as they learn to enrich their spoken messages and responses, (Oracy) as well as read and write with confidence and pleasure.

I look forward to welcoming you and your child on this “Playing in Literacy Themes” (PiLT) journey.

Do book up on our events training and purchase the PiLT starter pack from our shop.