Raising standards in KS1 and Special Needs: helping every child to succeed.
I have taught systematic phonics to all ages and abilities for over 30 years. My teaching degree was in Environmental Studies and I hate to see science reduced to box-ticking when there is so much to discover about the wonderful world we live in.
So, I produce Phonic resources that meet the real needs of children and teachers, along with science resources to engage children in learning about the natural world.
Raising standards in KS1 and Special Needs: helping every child to succeed.
I have taught systematic phonics to all ages and abilities for over 30 years. My teaching degree was in Environmental Studies and I hate to see science reduced to box-ticking when there is so much to discover about the wonderful world we live in.
So, I produce Phonic resources that meet the real needs of children and teachers, along with science resources to engage children in learning about the natural world.
10 birds to colour.
Hand-drawn originals.
Suitable for ages 5 +.
Help children to learn:
to identify different birds,
to appreciate their differing colourings and structures
to sort birds
Ideas for use:
Colouring for early finishers - much Science can be learned from colouring birds, so this would not be a ‘busy’ activity.
Once a bird has been coloured, more could be found out about it. This could lead to research, factual writing, as well as Science work as the bird’s characteristics are studied.
If different children take a different bird, then they can share what they have learned and comparisons can be made.
Not for use as Clip Art.
This 34- page Y1 teaching resource pack, based on Blackbirds, will help children to use the local environment throughout the year to explore and answer questions about animals in their habitat. It can be used to teach both science and English: reading and writing non-fiction.
Contains:
Two lesson outlines (but material for more)
3 differentiated factual reading pages (print A 3 and fold into A4, or print 2x A4)
The story of Blackbirds nesting (4 A4 pages with text and drawings)
1 page mini black and white pictures of the nesting story for ordering/writing about)
2 colouring pages
3 differentiated Blackbird Facts worksheets
4 differentiated reading comprehension sheets (based on the factual reading pages and matched in ability
2 differentiated writing sheets for factual writing
5 Photographs
Helps children to ask questions and find answers, first through observation and then from other sources. Learn about
colour/identification
what Blackbirds eat
where they live,
how they move and
nesting behaviour.
The pack will:
Help you to fully embrace the non-statutory guidance for the Year 1 National Curriculum for Science as well as teaching the statutory requirements.
Bring Science alive and help you to deliver excellent lessons based on squirrels in the local environment.
Use with our 41-slide Blackbird PowerPoint!
Get more hints and tips about teaching your lesson at KS1 Nature:
https://ks1nature.weebly.com/science-lessons/blackbirds-a-complete-lesson-for-ks1
Designed to appeal to the Y1 child, gently introducing key vocabulary.
Written by an Environmental Education, Early Years specialist (ages 3 to 8) who understands how children learn.
Year 1: Science curriculum covered:
• identify and name a variety of common animals, including birds.
• describe and compare the structure of a variety of common animals (including birds).
Identify and name a variety of common animals that are …omnivores.
Once the Blackbird has been studied you can compare it to other birds, or even other animals in the local environment.
See our Squirrel Resources fro Y1 here:
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-12742537
Brought to you by KS1 Nature: Helping teachers teach science, naturally, through the local environment.
These phonic-linked, letter formation sheets for EYFS/special needs children have been developed to accompany the learning of the initial sounds, to help the child who does not yet have the ability to write unaided begin to become familiar with letter shapes and correct letter formation.
The letters fade as the child progresses along the line, helping him/her to feel as if s/he is writing unaided.
The physical act of writing letters while learning initial sounds is important because the movement of the hand to write, alongside seeing the letters and saying their sounds helps to make the learning process multi-sensory, which in turn ensures that more children, including those with special needs, become successful readers and writers.
The sheets are placed in alphabetical order, but can be used in any order, according to the phonic scheme you are using.
Do ensure that the child has plenty of free drawing practice alongside the use of these sheets so that the child develops sufficient pencil control to move on to independent writing.
Tes paid licence
A factual easy reader all about water for those just beginning to take off in reading independently. Satisfying children’s thirst for knowledge with beautiful photos and clear factual information. Presented simply with clear text and a large font.
Ideal for use when studying a topic on weather/water cycle.
Where does water come from?
Different forms of water
What does water do?
How do we use water?
Use for guided reading sessions or for reading comprehension work.
Suitable for upper KS1 and early KS2 and reluctant/struggling readers.
Here is a chaffinch to oclour.
Learn about birds for KS1.
Develop art skills and learn bird ID all in one - combining science and art!
Great for home or school use.
Copy the picture as carefully as you can, with pens, pencils or paint!
Learn more about Chaffinches at:
https://ks1nature.weebly.com/tipsideasfreebies/the-chaffinch-for-ks1
And download our free phonics reading book:
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/ks1-reading-book-free-download-the-chaffinch-12284513
An phonetic easy reader aout Owls for those beginning to read longer simple texts - with words that can be sounded out using phonic knowledge and only a few most common sight words.
Learn about Owls through a simple story. Learn Science at the same time!
See more at([ KS1 Nature]https://ks1nature.weebly.com/)
‘Air’ satisfies children’s thirst for knowledge with beautiful photos and clear factual information. Presented simply with clear text and a large font.
Ideal for use when studying a topic on weather.
Headings include:
What is air?
Why do we need air?
Other uses of air
The second book in a series of factual readers for those just beginning to take off in reading independently. See the others:
Clouds
Water
Frogs
Suitable for individual or guided reading activities.
Suitable for upper KS1, lower KS2 and struggling/reluctant readers of any age.
An easy phonic reader about spring flowers for those beginning to read longer simple texts - with words that can be sounded out using phonic knowledge and only a few most common sight words.
Learn about garden flowers through a simple story. Learn Science at the same time!
See more at [KS1 Nature]https://ks1nature.weebly.com/)
An easy phonic reader about conkers for those beginning to read longer simple texts - with words that can be sounded out using phonic knowledge and only a few most common sight words.
Follow the journey of the Horse-Chestnut tree through the seasons.
Ideal for use in autumn when conkers can be found - but can be used throughout the year.
Learn Science at the same time!
See more at([ KS1 Nature]https://ks1nature.weebly.com/)
28 slides. This presentation presents the text of the Early Reader Series 1: Clouds for the purposes of guided reading activities. However it can be used on its own.
It covers:
How clouds are formed
Why clouds float
How clouds move
The three main types of clouds: cirrus, cumulus and stratus
It includes several slides of different cloud formations to stimulate scientific/geographical/language/art observations.
It can also be used alongside our Clouds Project Pack for KS1 available through TES.
How to teach phonics effectively is a resource to help schools improve their delivery of phonics, through which ever programme they choose.
The author has 30 years experience of teaching phonics, both in a main stream school, where she had responsibility for the teaching of phonics throughout the whole school and with individual, special needs children.
She draws on her experience of helping both parents and teachers to use phonics to best effect.
Teach the sound ‘ck’ with our little phonics workbook - the next in a popular series. Suitable for Reception and special needs children.
For use with any scheme, but find dictations at Reading Made Simple.
See also:
Initial sounds
CVC words
or in one file for ease of use.
Please leave a review if you find this resource helpful. If not, let me know how I can improve it! Thank you!
3 differentiated worksheets to teach KS1 children to label the parts of a tree when they are visible in winter.
4 parts taught: branches, trunk, crown and twigs.
See our blogpost for more help to teach children to identify trees by their structure in winter. Become a Nature explorer yourself too!
https://ks1nature.weebly.com/free-science-lessons/trees-in-winter-for-kids
A bright, 26 slide PowerPoint/video to help children to learn the initial sounds.
One slide per lesson.
Can the children find the objects that start with the given sound?
Can they find the odd ones out (there are two on each slide that do not begin with the given sound).
What sound do these begin with? (They will be sounds already learned, except for ‘Aa’.)
Good for revision and to help those having trouble hearing initial sounds.
Great for home learning.
Pause the video/Power Point as necessary to give your child time to answer.
A ck phonics workbook to build upon skills learnt in Reception. Introducing ‘ck’ words in the past tense adding ‘ed’ and words such as ‘pocket’ and ‘rocket’.
Activities include:
passage to read and questions to answer
study of verbs as action words
past tense verbs made by adding ‘ed’.
rhyming words
The complete lesson can be viewed here and is compatible with most other phonics programmes including Read, Write, inc. and Letters and Sounds used in most Primary schools.
This book is the second level of our 'ck’ Level 1 book.
Help children read and spell a wider range of ‘oo’ words (comprehension passage and questions included)
Help teach to/two/too
Learn more about past tense verbs: adding ‘ed’ to words that do not change and run/ran, sit/sat etc…
To be used with level 2 of Reading Made Simple, but can be used with any programme. Level 2 ‘oo’ builds upon the work done in Level 1 ‘ck’. These books build upon each progressively, so providing a robust scheme of work for spelling and for the less able reader. Suitable for children who have covered all of the Phase 5 sounds for reading at least.
The words are all phonetic with no nasty surprises, but as all schemes differ, please ensure that your children have all the necessary phonics skill to read the text before starting the exercises.
Reading Made Simple: systematic, progressive and truly phonetic - for all abilities and ages.
A pack of simple games to help teach children the initial sounds.
Everything provided.
Games can be played by 2 players, or an adult with a child. They are great for sending home to reinforce work done in class, or for use by teaching assistants.
They can also be enlarged and used for whole class/group teaching activities.
Several games are suggested, but you can make up your own using the given materials!
If you can enlarge them to A3 it would make them more suitable for really tiny fingers.
Three bright, colourful Phonics Initial sounds mats for EYFS and Reception. Great for home or school use. Send home to parents for use as a chart or they can be laminated and made into a place mat.
Encourage children to become familiar with the letters - their shapes, names and the sounds they represent.
The pack contains 3 charts:
A chart of upper and lower case letters
Pictures are placed near their initial sound as a reference.
Pictures placed away from their corresponding letter so that they can be found and matched
Have you seen my ‘Bumper Pack of Alphabet Games’.
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-11998349
Or my Sound-it-out Initial sounds Worksheets for parents
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-12030249
and for teachers:
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-11998488
An A5 booklet containing 21 fun, pre-writing patterns for the young learner or special needs child. Take animals and insects for a walk, finish trees, copy patterns and more.
Sure to delight young children as they start to use a pencil.
This document has been set to print as a booklet - please set your printer to flip on the short edge.
A pack of display items for a study of the butterfly life-cycle.
Includes:
Butterfly life-cycle word mat/poster
A long banner ( 11 A4 pages)which can be either pinned or strung on a string
1 A4 page with title ‘Butterflies’
Butterfly life-cycle flow chart: 1 A4 page each for eggs, caterpillars, chrysalis, butterfly and an arrow to print 4 times
4 initial sounds cards for stages in lifecycle: e/egg; c/caterpillar;c/chrysalis;b/buttefly
4 words and pictures cards for stages in the life-cycle
4 picture cards of stages of the life-cycle with matching word cards: can be used to make games, or for display.
5 strip vocabulary words with pictures
6 Photos
Find lesson notes and worksheets/activities for an amazing lesson/s on the butterfly life-cycle here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-12679170