Phonics in Nursery

In Nursery, Phase 1 phonics is woven naturally into daily routines and play-based learning, rather than being taught as formal lessons. It is the first stage of phonics teaching and focuses on developing children’s early listening and speaking skills, rather than reading letters or written words. Through engaging and meaningful experiences, our aim is to build strong foundations in communication, attention, and language, preparing children for later phonics learning.

The key focus of Phase 1 is helping children become aware of sounds in the environment and in spoken language. This includes listening carefully, recognising different sounds, and beginning to understand how sounds can be used and combined.

Phase 1 is organised into key areas, including:

• Environmental sounds (e.g. everyday noises)
• Instrumental sounds (exploring musical sounds)
• Body percussion (clapping, tapping, stamping)
• Rhythm and rhyme
• Alliteration (words that start with the same sound)
• Voice sounds
• Oral blending and segmenting (hearing and joining sounds in words)

We create a rich sound environment where children are encouraged to notice and talk about the sounds they hear around them, both indoors and outdoors. This might include listening walks, identifying everyday noises, or exploring sounds in the environment such as vehicles, animals, or weather.

Children regularly take part in singing, rhymes, and storytelling, which help them develop an awareness of rhythm, rhyme, and patterns in language. Repetition and familiar songs support memory and confidence, while encouraging children to join in and use new vocabulary.

We provide lots of opportunities for exploring sounds through play, such as using musical instruments, clapping patterns, and experimenting with body percussion. These activities help children to tune into differences in sound, volume, and rhythm.

Adults model and encourage language-rich interactions, supporting children to listen carefully, take turns in conversation, and express their ideas. We introduce activities that develop alliteration (e.g. silly sound games) and begin to support children in hearing the sounds within words through oral blending and segmenting in fun, playful ways.

Overall, in Nursery, Phase 1 phonics is delivered through practical, engaging experiences that build strong foundations in listening and language, preparing children confidently for later phonics learning.

Phonics In Nursery