Code-Breakers: Hamilton's Phonics Scheme

Code Breakers is a synthetic phonics programme that teaches phoneme-to-grapheme correspondences (PGCs) in a systematic, child-friendly fashion. It covers all the pre-requisite skills for reading – sequencing, sound identification, reproduction and discrimination. The programme is based on extensive research on the frequency of PGCs, which ensures that these are taught in the order that children are most likely to meet them.

Code-Breakers differs from other phonics schemes in a small, but fundamental, way. We start with sounds not texts. Sounds are something that children already use in speaking and listening, so Code-Breakers helps children see how we can represent these sounds that they already know in writing, which they don't yet know. They move from sounds to texts (encoding), instead of from texts to sounds (decoding). This seemingly small shift in emphasis has far-reaching consequences. English text is treated as a code, with a letter or letters used to represent spoken sounds. Children are not thrown into a confusing and unfamiliar world, but find out how to use letters to represent what they already know, sounds and speech. It's child-friendly and has been proven to work. Try it and see.

Each book includes detailed session plans for one term with sample revision sessions, extra practice and helpful lists of phonemes, words and spellings. Hamiilton's Group Readers are matched to the stages of learning phonics, from basic (linked to Code-Breakers Books 1 or 2) to more advanced (linked to Code-Breakers Book 4).

Code-Breakers can be completed in four terms.

• Download Code-Breakers Phonics Scheme.