Autumn 2021 phonics screening: how to administer the check
You're required to administer a past version of the phonics screening check to year 2 pupils who missed the year 1 summer check because of coronavirus. Be clear on your responsibilities, including how to report the results to your local authority.
Contents
This article is based on the DfE's latest guidance on administering the phonics screening check to year 2 pupils in the second half of the autumn term. It's a statutory requirement to administer the test and it applies to all maintained schools, academies, free schools and maintained nursery schools with eligible pupils.
What is it and who needs to take it this autumn
It's a short assessment to make sure all pupils have learned phonic decoding to an appropriate standard. It contains:
- 40 words divided into 2 sections of 20 words
- A mixture of real words and pseudo-words (nonsense or fake words). Pseudo-words are accompanied by a picture of an imaginary creature
This is explained in guidance on the structure of the check from the Standards and Testing Agency (STA).
This will mostly be incoming year 2 pupils who missed the summer