Professor Siraj-Blatchford says, 'Artificially "teaching" synthetic phonics in large groups of four-year-olds will ultimately be anti-literacy development' (News, 6 April). Surely this is what is happening at the moment in reception with classes of 30 children. Let's teach it in early years settings, in natural environments, in the ratio of 1:8 or less. Are they really saying one method only? I don't think so. They are saying give all children the chance to learn 'little and often' over time in the setting, instead of having it drummed into them by a teacher with a whole class, little highly qualified help and downward pressures of target-setting by a head with more than an eye on SATS results!
Professor Siraj-Blatchford says, 'Artificially "teaching" synthetic phonics in large groups of four-year-olds will ultimately be anti-literacy development' (News, 6 April). Surely this is what is happening at the moment in reception with classes of 30 children.
Let's teach it in early years settings, in natural environments, in the ratio of 1:8 or less. Are they really saying one method only? I don't think so. They are saying give all children the chance to learn 'little and often' over time in the setting, instead of having it drummed into them by a teacher with a whole class, little highly qualified help and downward pressures of target-setting by a head with more than an eye on SATS results!
Jenny Hazel, pre-school manager, Peterborough
