Now that decodable reading books are being used alongside phonics programmes, there are lots of ways to use them to develop literacy.

Here are 7 ideas:

1. Fun reading practice: Use the phonic focus to make and play games. Dandelion Launchers and Dandelion Readers have them at the back of each book.
2. Dictation: Decodable texts are great for dictation. Using controlled text is a good way to get children to listen for sounds in words they can spell.
3. Spelling assessment: Decodable texts can be used to assess whether the children can spell target words.
4. Seeking spellings: Make a game of finding and listing alternative spellings of a certain sound. This is great for Phase 5 of ‘Letters and Sounds’.
5. Developing expressive language: Try talking about stories more deeply. Most decodable books have good storylines and new words to discuss.
6. Fun comprehension activities: Dandelion Readers, Launchers, Totem and Talisman all have workbooks containing fun comprehension activities, such as true-or-false statements, sequencing tasks and challenges to find what’s missing in a picture.
7. Creative writing: Children could continue a story or change its ending, create supporting materials (such as a poster or a character’s birthday invitation) or write about their own experiences, depending on the story.

There’s lots to do – and all coming from the children’s own independent reading experiences!