HomeRead HomeLearn’s Structured Phonics Programme for Early Readers

With over 17 years of experience teaching young learners and experience teaching ESL students, I understand that learning to read must be systematic, supportive, and confidence-building. The HRHL Structured Phonics Programme has been carefully designed to achieve exactly that.

This structured, step-by-step online reading programme uses a systematic phonics approach to build strong foundations in reading and writing. The programme consists of three progressive levels, each containing 10 lesson sets. Every lesson builds directly on previously mastered skills, making it essential to follow the sequence carefully.

LEVEL 1 (Grade R/1): Building Foundations

Children begin by learning individual letter sounds (phonemes), not alphabet names. For example, they learn the sound /m/ rather than the name “em.” This supports accurate blending and decoding later on.

Stories and picture-based activities allow children to:
• Look at images carefully
• Say the target sound aloud
• Connect the sound to meaning (e.g., /m/ for monkey)

At this stage, children are not expected to read written words independently. Word lists are provided for teacher guidance only.

Phonemic Awareness Development

Special attention is given to hearing beginning sounds in words (e.g., yapping, yelping, yelling). This strengthens phonemic awareness, a critical predictor of reading success.

Multi-Sensory Approach

Children learn through:
• Hearing – listening and repeating sounds
• Seeing – recognising letter shapes
• Doing – forming and writing letters

This multi-sensory integration strengthens memory and supports long-term retention.

Correct Letter Formation

Letters are grouped by formation patterns. Children write on large blank paper using pencils, crayons, or felt-tip pens. Large, confident writing is encouraged. Neatness is not the focus at this stage.

The goal is correct formation and confidence, not perfection.

LEVEL 2 (Grade 2)

Learners are introduced to more complex sound combinations, alternative spellings, split digraphs, and high-frequency words that may not follow standard phonetic rules.

LEVEL 3 (Grade 3)

Learners explore alternative pronunciations and advanced sound combinations while increasing fluency and vocabulary, including real-world themes such as occupations.

This programme combines structure, repetition, multi-sensory learning, and gradual progression to ensure literacy success and confident reading development.