WHAT IS THE PHONICS SCREENING TEST?

The Phonics Screening Test is a short assessment given to all children in Year 1. The test seeks to check whether children have learned to decode written words using their phonic skills to a required level.
The test is compulsory in all state schools and is given to pupils towards the end of Year 1, usually during the 2nd or 3rd week of June. If pupils have not reached the expected level, they will be tested again in Year 2.

WHO WILL CONDUCT THE TEST?

A teacher who is well known to the child (but not necessarily the class teacher) will carry out the test.

WHAT DOES THE TEST INVOLVE?

The test is carried out on a one to one basis with each child and is administered in a quiet room to allow the children to concentrate fully. They will be asked to read 40 words aloud. Some will be simple and familiar, some more complex and there will also be a selection of ‘non’ or alien words. These are fake words that are used solely to test the child’s ability to use their phonics knowledge (rather than relying on word recognition) to break down unfamiliar words into recognisable sounds and blend them together to read the word.  Alien words are used during the test because they are new to all the children and therefore, no bias is given to children with a good vocabulary knowledge or visual memory of words.

This use of decoding is an essential skill when learning to read as it gives the children confidence to tackle words they have not encountered before in a systematic and methodical way and greatly reduces the inclination to ‘guess’ what the word might be.

HOW LONG WILL THE TEST TAKE? 
The test should take between 5 – 10 minutes to administer however,  there is no time limit and each child will be supported to work through the words at a pace which is most suitable to their individual needs.

HOW WILL I KNOW IF MY CHILD HAS PASSED THE TEST?

We will inform parents of their child’s results towards the end of the summer term.  Results will be included in your child’s end of year report.

Websites such as PhonicsPlay.com have a great selection of interactive games such as Obb and Bob and Dragons Den which focus on real/alien word reading.