Level 0: CVC Words Course
For young children learning to read, this is a complete, highly structured CVC reading course for learners of all abilities.
It can help every child, but it is especially useful for a child with a known special need who needs a slower pace built in. Children with no known needs can move through at their own pace.
The built-in structure helps children make steady progress: learn to blend, then practise the vocabulary they will meet in the stories, then read the stories, giving them the best chance to succeed and build fluency.
- A secure start for beginners
- A fresh start for learners who have struggled
This resource provides a complete, carefully sequenced course for teaching CVC word reading and spelling, from the very first sounds through to reading 15 fully decodable stories independently.
Give children the structure they need to succeed from the start. We don’t always know how much structure a child will need until it’s too late! This programme is designed to give every child a good phonics foundation to prevent failure.
Why this course is different
Many phonics programmes teach a set of sounds and then move straight into blending words. That works for some children, but not for all of them. Children who haven’t yet got fast, secure recall of the sounds, or who can’t yet hear the first sound in a word, find blending very hard. Some begin to guess, or to memorise whole words by sight, because it feels easier than blending.
This course takes a different route.
- Sounds first. Children need to know the letter sounds and be able to hear the initial sound in a word before they start. The sound activities in every step keep recall fresh for as long as each child needs.
- A very small set of letters at a time. At each step, children blend using only the few letters they have been taught, so every word on the page is one they can work out.
- The range of words grows slowly. Each new sound opens up a few more words. That gives children plenty of time to learn to blend before they meet a wider range of words.
- Less temptation to learn words by sight. When the words come from a small, familiar set of letters, blending is the easiest way to read them, so children don’t need to guess or memorise.
As a result, children learn to blend securely before they are asked to read longer lists, stories, or unfamiliar words.
What you get
You get the whole sequence in one affordable pack:
- 162 sound-and-blending activities in six small steps. Sounds are introduced a few at a time, starting with s, t, p, m, a. Every worksheet uses only the sounds the child has already been taught. Each step includes sound recognition and instant-recall practice, letter formation, and blending with letter cards. Children then read and spell words by matching them to pictures, filling in missing letters, sorting by vowel sound, changing one sound at a time, and reading word chains, tracks and ladders. Picture and word cards for each step let you use the same pictures in many ways.
- 84 story-preparation activities to practise the words and skills needed before each story
- 15 fully decodable stories in one 72-page A4 book
- A step-by-step teaching manual for children who need a slower pace
The stories use only CVC words plus four high-frequency words (a, the, is and of), so children are not expected to guess unfamiliar words.
This resource is also useful for children who need extra time and practice with CVC words, including struggling readers, intervention pupils, children with additional learning needs, and home-educated children of all abilities.
It has been tried and tested on real children.
You can use it alongside any phonics programme.
