Phonics Test Year 1 Query

[NigellaEllaElla]

DS is doing the "Test" next week. I did a few flash card words with him last night and just have a query.

He sounds out the word but if it has a "y" at the end he sounds it as "yu" as in the letter name, not sound. (Not sure yu is best way of explaining it but can't think of alternative) rather than "ee" but then still says the word correctly.

So for "Happy" he might say "H a p p yu - Happy"

Because he is saying "yu" not "ee" when sounding will this count as a fail even though he knows the word correctly?

Bloody stupid test. He's a really good reader for his age, possibly a little too good cause I don't think it will do him any favours in a test like this!

Thanks in advance for your help.

[learnandsay]

The YMN phonics screening check.

[meditrina]

"Thanks, I did wonder how easy it would be for a sight reader to pass."

I don't think a sight reader could pass, as none of the novel words would have been seen before, so they cannot have learned them.

[HarumScarum]

Thanks, I did wonder how easy it would be for a sight reader to pass.

Surely someone who had been taught by Look and Say but become a good reader (by which I mean able to tackle words they have not seen before adequately) has intuited the rules of phonics themselves anyway? This is me. I would have no trouble with the alien words at all, nor would I have found it hard at six because I was fortunate enough to find it easy to work out what the rules were. If you have been taught by Look and Say but have not become a good reader, as defined above, then of course you would fail. And you would fail because you can't read. Someone who can recognise some words, even quite a lot of them, can't read any more than I can say I speak German if I only know a hundred words in German. Neither level of knowledge is fit for purpose.

[learnandsay]

I think that's precisely the question, although I'm not sure how many mumsnetters are going to admit that they failed the mumsnet phonics screening test. Maybe we should print it out and spring it on people in pubs, parks and doctors' waiting rooms.

[mrz]

"Surely someone who had been taught by Look and Say but become a good reader (by which I mean able to tackle words they have not seen before adequately) has intuited the rules of phonics themselves anyway?"

exactly! or they would have to ask someone every time they encountered a new word then learn it by sight which is clearly not what happens.

[IsabelleRinging]

Exactly mrz, even those of us who were taught in the 70s using Peter and Jane books use phonics. Children often learn things in a 'top down' way and work out the code for themselves. It doesn't mean they are not using phonics. Look and say works for lots of children as a basic introduction to reading, and most will work out the phonetic code themselves. However, teaching phonics first works even better for most. Nobody can read without phonics though.