This is a phonics assessment and tracking tool for use from Reception, to the end of Year 2. It has been specifically designed to be used and work alongside the 2007 Letters & Sounds documents. I am a teacher myself, and my original idea was just to design something that would make my assessing easier and my teaching more focused and child-centred. After showing it to others, I have taken on board suggestions and requests and developed my initial idea, the fruition of which you can use today. The staff in my school have already found it fundamental in highlighting children in need of both support and extension. Not only does it highlight individual children’s needs, but it shows you which areas are in need of additional focus as a class or cohort. It provides a wealth of data for analysis: it compares girls against boys and it tracks sound confidence and progression through the ‘Phases of Phonics’ from entry to Reception to the end of Year 2. All you have to do is enter the names of the children, and the term in which they become confident with a certain sound or phase and everything else is done for you automatically: numbers are compiled, data is analysed and graphs are generated. It really is that easy… honestly.

Assessment can be a laborious task at the best of times, and it’s imperative that if we invest so much time and effort into assessing the children, we get something out of it. It has to inform our planning and teaching. We have to know where we’re taking the children next. We have to know who needs stretching and who needs support. This Fonycs Assessment Tracker does all the hard work for you.