It's taken us three years to compile this online phonics training course - and we're very excited about it's launch!
You can read about it here:
http://www.phonicstrainingonline.com
This is a substantial professional development course which will take some time to complete - but the content is very well-explained and not overly theoretical - mainly very practical.
As long as people are prepared to devote the time required to the course, it is worth doing, but don't even think about doing the course if you're in a hurry or not prepared to put the time and concentration into it.
We're being asked if it is suitable for schools to undertake as a whole staff collective approach and the answer is 'Yes' but every staff member would still need to register individually to have their own material to read and respond to.
You can approach David if you have any queries re the registering arrangements for a whole school approach at:
support@phonicsinternational.com
Phew - now I don't just have to train one school at a time face to face!
Best wishes to all,
Debbie
X
AT LONG LAST - Our PHONICS TRAINING ONLINE is launched!
AT LONG LAST - Our PHONICS TRAINING ONLINE is launched!
Debbie Hepplewhite
Re: AT LONG LAST - Our PHONICS TRAINING ONLINE is launched!
Oh my goodness, it's now seven years since we first launched our Phonics Training Online course - and it's still 'going strong' as they say!
We created a forum specifically for the course, and included a 'Feedback' thread. We've heard from people all over the world in various roles and contexts from individuals to 'organisations' (including universities promoting the course and sometimes signing up all their student body).
Here is a reflection of people's responses:
viewtopic.php?t=940
And here is the forum specifically relating to the Phonics Training Online course:
viewforum.php?f=19
Since launching the self-study course (minimum of 20+ hours), much has happened for our company, Phonics International Ltd, and our range of programmes. We are now linked to FIVE 'DfE-validated' systematic synthetic phonics programmes:
1) Floppy's Phonics (published by Oxford University Press),for which I am consultant and co-author (with OUP personnel). Phonics International Ltd has joint copyright with OUP. In 2019, OUP migrated the content of the, 2 CD-ROMs to an digital, interactive platform and added some additional short training videos, the assessment material for code and word level, and some additional printable materials such as 'common exception words', Sounds Mats, Mini Alphabetic Code Chart, enrichment (not core) songs linking letter/s with sounds. OUP has also published further 'cumulative, decodable, reading books' which are complementary to the Floppy's Phonics systematic synthetic phonics programme.
Phonics International Ltd provides a pre-recorded, full day's inset, training package (webinars) specifically for the Floppy's Phonics programme. You can find out about the contents of this training provision, and see the full range of Floppy's Phonics resources and additional decodable reading books at this site (and check out the 'Free CPD Resources' page too:
https://floppysphonics.com
2) The Phonics International programme (for all ages and published by Phonics International Ltd). This amazing body of work provided online as printable/projectable pdfs was always very inexpensive. Since the advent of covid and 'lockdowns', however, we decided to make access to this programme COMPLETELY FREE. When you consider that our Phonics Training Online course is only £20 + VAT per person (and only £10 + VAT per student when universities sign up large number of student-teachers), what an amazing bargain. Of course, if possible, I urge people to print off the 'core' resources which I aim to be in the hands of every individual pupil to maximise visual content and practice (and over learning), so there is a cost to schools for printing - but this is well worth it when you see the results. The Phonics International website is often described as 'overwhelming' and that is precisely because it provides so much - from the programme itself (see PI PROGRAMME INDEX for access to all the teaching and learning resources) to information, to training material, discussion videos, Forum - and so much more. But stick with the information provided by the homepage itself and you're already on your way to learning about the very important, underpinning rationale for my programme design and guidance. Yes, people need to put the time in themselves, but once that is done, use of the programme's core resources will work wonders and be very easy to use. This is also a very FLEXIBLE body of work which also makes it a very special body of work and very supportive of teaching, learning, and informing 'home' - and for learners of all ages 'as required'.
The top embedded video on the PI homepage describes my general rationale/ethos and how the Phonics International programme can be used flexibly.
The embedded video via the link below has accompanying 'course notes' and expands on the Simple View of Reading and how this relates to teaching English as a new or additional language, and on the design underpinning all three programmes: Floppy's Phonics, Phonics International and No Nonsense Phonics. It is quite a thorough video and well worth watching:
https://phonicsinternational.com/cv-lockdown-resources/
3) No Nonsense Phonics ('No Nonsense Phonics SKILLS' originally published by Raintree, full copyright to Phonics International Ltd, but Phonics International Ltd is now the sole publisher of No Nonsense Phonics Skills since July 2022). The body of systematic, cumulative, hard copy resources 'No Nonsense Phonics Skills' was developed by David and me from our original Phonics International resources. Whilst Phonics International provides an extensive body of work 'online', we were also concerned to provide 'ready made' and 'pick up and go' resources for busy teachers, for tutors, for home-schooling - and to give people an alternative medium. We made sure, however, that No Nonsense Phonics Skills was complementary to the Phonics International programme. The 'order' of introducing the letter/s-sound correspondences is the same in NNPS as Units 1 to 6 of Phonics International - and then I covered further code in NNPS Pupil Book 9 as a summary book. Schools could also complete Pupil Book 9 and then use the Phonics International resources from Units 7 to 12 - and any PI resources in a complementary way.
Then, we also went through a steady process of providing 'ready made' resources which are very sensible, such as Flash Cards, Frieze Sheets, Sounds Mats, Mini Code Cards - and now we've developed a series of 'Phonics and vocabulary books' (reading books) to complement both No Nonsense Phonics Skills and Phonics International (Units 1 to 6).
The wonderful thing is that the No Nonsense Phonics Skills series, plus our ready-made visual aids, are so comprehensive that they have been identified by the Department for Education (DfE) in England as a 'systematic synthetic phonics' programme in its own right - entitled 'No Nonsense Phonics'.
Here is the overview of our ready-made resources - worth a look even if you choose the Phonics International programme as your core programme:
https://nononsensephonics.com
UPDATE: You will also find links on our catalogue page (link immediately above) to further hard copy resources and a free eBookshelf for the 'Phonics and Talk Time' content for three to five year olds - so do investigate!
And below is the original site for 'No Nonsense Phonics Skills' which was originally introduced by Raintree (publisher) for 'targeted support' because most schools in England had already identified 'Letters and Sounds' (DfES, 2007) as their mainstream phonics programme. Rest assured, however, No Nonsense Phonics is very suitable for mainstream, targeted support, and intervention - and certainly from four year olds for mainstream and any age in primary for intervention as required. There is masses of information via this site, which also amounts to free training - and, as always, a superb range of 'Free Resources'. The USB stick provided in the 'No Nonsense Phonics Skills Starter Kit' also provides a fabulous range of printable/projectable resources:
https://phonicsintervention.org
4) Wand Phonics with Phonics International and/or No Nonsense Phonics (provided by Wand Education, copyright Phonics International Ltd). Again, this is a fantastic body of work provided as yet another medium - a digital, fully interactive body of work which I've designed to be complementary to No Nonsense Phonics and Phonics International Units 1 to 6. With my passion for informing 'home' and aspiring to work in partnership, teachers can also set up use of this programme in the home. And along with the ethos of David and myself, this is a very inexpensive resource - at the time of writing this, only £99 + VAT per annum. Thank you to Wand Education for supporting us in this regard. I was particularly mindful of how helpful this could be particularly for sharing information in the home (full audio is provided throughout), and for teachers for whom English is an additional language, and for teachers new to phonics provision and who like using technology:
https://wand.education/helpdesk/blended ... ational-2/
Wand Education provide a free 14 day trial:
https://wand.education/teaching-resource/wand-phonics/
UPDATE: Despite Wand Phonics even being validated by the Department for Education in its validation round from 2021, the publishers Wand Education badly let us down - did not respond to our communication even - and is very sadly no longer available. Wand Phonics had excellent reviews from schools (thank you for the feedback) and we would like to apologise for the disappointment of the discontinuation of Wand Phonics.
5) Rising Stars Rocket Phonics (published by Rising Stars) - this is a very content-rich, resource-rich systematic synthetic phonics programme - author Abigail Steel. I felt very honoured to be invited to be the 'consultant' to this programme - and to the following-on programme for Year 2. I've worked with Abi for many years and we share and promote core practices and the need for flexibility afforded to teachers in response to the children in their care and their direct needs and individual progress.
Abi, like me, promotes a slower, steadier introduction to the letter/s-sound correspondences of the alphabetic code as this enables programme authors to provide a more content-rich approach to children's practice, and a greater opportunity to embed the phonics core skills and sub-skills along the way so that children don't get left behind and get plenty of direct, paper-based practice.
Although people undertaking the Phonics Training Online course may not actually use any of these programmes, the course contents, nevertheless, will give teachers a great appreciation of the complexities of the English alphabetic code and how they can teach this both explicitly AND incidentally. And it is this lack of 'incidental' provision and general teacher-training which is worrying. A systematic approach can shut teachers down, make them feel fearful, for stepping outside the 'order' of introducing the alphabetic code and the body of work of their core phonics programme. In contrast, I am hopefully liberating and supporting teachers to address teaching any code, at any time, for reading and spelling as required, and I provide practical suggestions and materials along the way.
Warmest best wishes,
Debbie
UPDATE: Although our phonics programmes have all been 'validated' by the Department for Education in England, I personally did not approve of this action for a number of reasons. The validation process itself was unaccountable, anonymous and very unfair and unsatisfactory - so much so that at one point after providing the DfE with evidence of unacceptable and damaging actions in the education domain and the validation process, I submitted a formal complaint and went through a DfE investigation. This itself was unaccountable and unsatisfactory with the DfE conducting the process and yet the complaint was about the DfE. Hypocrisy knows no bounds. And now the DfE has, in effect, rubber-stamped a large number of SSP programmes (45 I believe) which all fulfilled the official 'core criteria' driving the judgement, but with no apparent understanding or recognition of programme DIFFERENCES and whether, in real terms for real children, any differences made/make a difference. Having 'rubber stamped' and been prepared to fund those programmes for schools (at least in part), the DfE is highly unlikely to be honest and transparent about their use and results. Ah well, we don't live in a perfect world!
I have endeavoured to add to my Literacy Forum some developments and findings over the years which you can look at, if interested, here:
https://hepplewhite.org/debbie-hepplewh ... racy-blog/
We created a forum specifically for the course, and included a 'Feedback' thread. We've heard from people all over the world in various roles and contexts from individuals to 'organisations' (including universities promoting the course and sometimes signing up all their student body).
Here is a reflection of people's responses:
viewtopic.php?t=940
And here is the forum specifically relating to the Phonics Training Online course:
viewforum.php?f=19
Since launching the self-study course (minimum of 20+ hours), much has happened for our company, Phonics International Ltd, and our range of programmes. We are now linked to FIVE 'DfE-validated' systematic synthetic phonics programmes:
1) Floppy's Phonics (published by Oxford University Press),for which I am consultant and co-author (with OUP personnel). Phonics International Ltd has joint copyright with OUP. In 2019, OUP migrated the content of the, 2 CD-ROMs to an digital, interactive platform and added some additional short training videos, the assessment material for code and word level, and some additional printable materials such as 'common exception words', Sounds Mats, Mini Alphabetic Code Chart, enrichment (not core) songs linking letter/s with sounds. OUP has also published further 'cumulative, decodable, reading books' which are complementary to the Floppy's Phonics systematic synthetic phonics programme.
Phonics International Ltd provides a pre-recorded, full day's inset, training package (webinars) specifically for the Floppy's Phonics programme. You can find out about the contents of this training provision, and see the full range of Floppy's Phonics resources and additional decodable reading books at this site (and check out the 'Free CPD Resources' page too:
https://floppysphonics.com
2) The Phonics International programme (for all ages and published by Phonics International Ltd). This amazing body of work provided online as printable/projectable pdfs was always very inexpensive. Since the advent of covid and 'lockdowns', however, we decided to make access to this programme COMPLETELY FREE. When you consider that our Phonics Training Online course is only £20 + VAT per person (and only £10 + VAT per student when universities sign up large number of student-teachers), what an amazing bargain. Of course, if possible, I urge people to print off the 'core' resources which I aim to be in the hands of every individual pupil to maximise visual content and practice (and over learning), so there is a cost to schools for printing - but this is well worth it when you see the results. The Phonics International website is often described as 'overwhelming' and that is precisely because it provides so much - from the programme itself (see PI PROGRAMME INDEX for access to all the teaching and learning resources) to information, to training material, discussion videos, Forum - and so much more. But stick with the information provided by the homepage itself and you're already on your way to learning about the very important, underpinning rationale for my programme design and guidance. Yes, people need to put the time in themselves, but once that is done, use of the programme's core resources will work wonders and be very easy to use. This is also a very FLEXIBLE body of work which also makes it a very special body of work and very supportive of teaching, learning, and informing 'home' - and for learners of all ages 'as required'.
The top embedded video on the PI homepage describes my general rationale/ethos and how the Phonics International programme can be used flexibly.
The embedded video via the link below has accompanying 'course notes' and expands on the Simple View of Reading and how this relates to teaching English as a new or additional language, and on the design underpinning all three programmes: Floppy's Phonics, Phonics International and No Nonsense Phonics. It is quite a thorough video and well worth watching:
https://phonicsinternational.com/cv-lockdown-resources/
3) No Nonsense Phonics ('No Nonsense Phonics SKILLS' originally published by Raintree, full copyright to Phonics International Ltd, but Phonics International Ltd is now the sole publisher of No Nonsense Phonics Skills since July 2022). The body of systematic, cumulative, hard copy resources 'No Nonsense Phonics Skills' was developed by David and me from our original Phonics International resources. Whilst Phonics International provides an extensive body of work 'online', we were also concerned to provide 'ready made' and 'pick up and go' resources for busy teachers, for tutors, for home-schooling - and to give people an alternative medium. We made sure, however, that No Nonsense Phonics Skills was complementary to the Phonics International programme. The 'order' of introducing the letter/s-sound correspondences is the same in NNPS as Units 1 to 6 of Phonics International - and then I covered further code in NNPS Pupil Book 9 as a summary book. Schools could also complete Pupil Book 9 and then use the Phonics International resources from Units 7 to 12 - and any PI resources in a complementary way.
Then, we also went through a steady process of providing 'ready made' resources which are very sensible, such as Flash Cards, Frieze Sheets, Sounds Mats, Mini Code Cards - and now we've developed a series of 'Phonics and vocabulary books' (reading books) to complement both No Nonsense Phonics Skills and Phonics International (Units 1 to 6).
The wonderful thing is that the No Nonsense Phonics Skills series, plus our ready-made visual aids, are so comprehensive that they have been identified by the Department for Education (DfE) in England as a 'systematic synthetic phonics' programme in its own right - entitled 'No Nonsense Phonics'.
Here is the overview of our ready-made resources - worth a look even if you choose the Phonics International programme as your core programme:
https://nononsensephonics.com
UPDATE: You will also find links on our catalogue page (link immediately above) to further hard copy resources and a free eBookshelf for the 'Phonics and Talk Time' content for three to five year olds - so do investigate!
And below is the original site for 'No Nonsense Phonics Skills' which was originally introduced by Raintree (publisher) for 'targeted support' because most schools in England had already identified 'Letters and Sounds' (DfES, 2007) as their mainstream phonics programme. Rest assured, however, No Nonsense Phonics is very suitable for mainstream, targeted support, and intervention - and certainly from four year olds for mainstream and any age in primary for intervention as required. There is masses of information via this site, which also amounts to free training - and, as always, a superb range of 'Free Resources'. The USB stick provided in the 'No Nonsense Phonics Skills Starter Kit' also provides a fabulous range of printable/projectable resources:
https://phonicsintervention.org
4) Wand Phonics with Phonics International and/or No Nonsense Phonics (provided by Wand Education, copyright Phonics International Ltd). Again, this is a fantastic body of work provided as yet another medium - a digital, fully interactive body of work which I've designed to be complementary to No Nonsense Phonics and Phonics International Units 1 to 6. With my passion for informing 'home' and aspiring to work in partnership, teachers can also set up use of this programme in the home. And along with the ethos of David and myself, this is a very inexpensive resource - at the time of writing this, only £99 + VAT per annum. Thank you to Wand Education for supporting us in this regard. I was particularly mindful of how helpful this could be particularly for sharing information in the home (full audio is provided throughout), and for teachers for whom English is an additional language, and for teachers new to phonics provision and who like using technology:
https://wand.education/helpdesk/blended ... ational-2/
Wand Education provide a free 14 day trial:
https://wand.education/teaching-resource/wand-phonics/
UPDATE: Despite Wand Phonics even being validated by the Department for Education in its validation round from 2021, the publishers Wand Education badly let us down - did not respond to our communication even - and is very sadly no longer available. Wand Phonics had excellent reviews from schools (thank you for the feedback) and we would like to apologise for the disappointment of the discontinuation of Wand Phonics.
5) Rising Stars Rocket Phonics (published by Rising Stars) - this is a very content-rich, resource-rich systematic synthetic phonics programme - author Abigail Steel. I felt very honoured to be invited to be the 'consultant' to this programme - and to the following-on programme for Year 2. I've worked with Abi for many years and we share and promote core practices and the need for flexibility afforded to teachers in response to the children in their care and their direct needs and individual progress.
Abi, like me, promotes a slower, steadier introduction to the letter/s-sound correspondences of the alphabetic code as this enables programme authors to provide a more content-rich approach to children's practice, and a greater opportunity to embed the phonics core skills and sub-skills along the way so that children don't get left behind and get plenty of direct, paper-based practice.
Although people undertaking the Phonics Training Online course may not actually use any of these programmes, the course contents, nevertheless, will give teachers a great appreciation of the complexities of the English alphabetic code and how they can teach this both explicitly AND incidentally. And it is this lack of 'incidental' provision and general teacher-training which is worrying. A systematic approach can shut teachers down, make them feel fearful, for stepping outside the 'order' of introducing the alphabetic code and the body of work of their core phonics programme. In contrast, I am hopefully liberating and supporting teachers to address teaching any code, at any time, for reading and spelling as required, and I provide practical suggestions and materials along the way.
Warmest best wishes,
Debbie
UPDATE: Although our phonics programmes have all been 'validated' by the Department for Education in England, I personally did not approve of this action for a number of reasons. The validation process itself was unaccountable, anonymous and very unfair and unsatisfactory - so much so that at one point after providing the DfE with evidence of unacceptable and damaging actions in the education domain and the validation process, I submitted a formal complaint and went through a DfE investigation. This itself was unaccountable and unsatisfactory with the DfE conducting the process and yet the complaint was about the DfE. Hypocrisy knows no bounds. And now the DfE has, in effect, rubber-stamped a large number of SSP programmes (45 I believe) which all fulfilled the official 'core criteria' driving the judgement, but with no apparent understanding or recognition of programme DIFFERENCES and whether, in real terms for real children, any differences made/make a difference. Having 'rubber stamped' and been prepared to fund those programmes for schools (at least in part), the DfE is highly unlikely to be honest and transparent about their use and results. Ah well, we don't live in a perfect world!
I have endeavoured to add to my Literacy Forum some developments and findings over the years which you can look at, if interested, here:
https://hepplewhite.org/debbie-hepplewh ... racy-blog/
Debbie Hepplewhite
Re: AT LONG LAST - Our PHONICS TRAINING ONLINE is launched!
With regard to the 'flexibility' and 'fearlessness' that I'm always going on about, there are some additional documents added to the top of this list of 'FREE CPD RESOURCES' at our Phonics International site. I'm referring specifically to the topic of use of literature including selecting reading books for children - and the dangers of people becoming over-jealous about ONLY phonically designed reading books that EXACTLY match the code introduced in the schools' main phonics programme. If I say so myself, there are some super professional resources on this page - please do explore them:
https://phonicsinternational.com/free-resources/
As can be seen, the No Nonsense Phonics hard copy programme has been developed and streamlined from the original Phonics International programme. But as both bodies of work are based on the same initial 'order' of introducing the letter/s-sound correspondences, and the same 'key picture words' as can be seen on our overview Alphabetic Code Charts and various resources in the programmes, they can be used either as 'stand alone' programmes or in a complementary/supplementary way. Thus, various hard copy resources seen here https://nononsensephonics.com can be used with either No Nonsense Phonics or Phonics International - including our series of decodable reading books.
Here is a little flavour of our reading books - there are eight free eBooks to review their nature - these are available as both hard copies and via an eBookshelf of all 44 of our reading books (the eBookshelf is available via an annual licence system):
https://phonicsintervention.org/product ... ing-books/
But at the time of making this edit, we're also providing an additional series of eBooks (reading books) for the No Nonsense Phonics Skills 'Optional' Pupil Books 2+ and 5+, see here:
https://fliphtml5.com/bookcase/duafn/
In that same light, there are some 'Free Resources' at the https://phonicsintervention.org (main site for No Nonsense Phonics) that have been created over time and can be useful for both PI users and NNP users. See, for example, our free printable 'Sounds Mats' and also our free printable 'Frieze Miniatures' on this page (you'll love them):
https://phonicsintervention.org/free-resources/
https://phonicsinternational.com/free-resources/
As can be seen, the No Nonsense Phonics hard copy programme has been developed and streamlined from the original Phonics International programme. But as both bodies of work are based on the same initial 'order' of introducing the letter/s-sound correspondences, and the same 'key picture words' as can be seen on our overview Alphabetic Code Charts and various resources in the programmes, they can be used either as 'stand alone' programmes or in a complementary/supplementary way. Thus, various hard copy resources seen here https://nononsensephonics.com can be used with either No Nonsense Phonics or Phonics International - including our series of decodable reading books.
Here is a little flavour of our reading books - there are eight free eBooks to review their nature - these are available as both hard copies and via an eBookshelf of all 44 of our reading books (the eBookshelf is available via an annual licence system):
https://phonicsintervention.org/product ... ing-books/
But at the time of making this edit, we're also providing an additional series of eBooks (reading books) for the No Nonsense Phonics Skills 'Optional' Pupil Books 2+ and 5+, see here:
https://fliphtml5.com/bookcase/duafn/
In that same light, there are some 'Free Resources' at the https://phonicsintervention.org (main site for No Nonsense Phonics) that have been created over time and can be useful for both PI users and NNP users. See, for example, our free printable 'Sounds Mats' and also our free printable 'Frieze Miniatures' on this page (you'll love them):
https://phonicsintervention.org/free-resources/
Debbie Hepplewhite
Re: AT LONG LAST - Our PHONICS TRAINING ONLINE is launched!
UPDATE: In 2025, Phonics International Ltd was winner of the 'Welsh Enterprise Awards' as the 'Best Phonics Education Company'.
Originally, we were approached by the South of England Enterprise Awards organisation to enter for this award, but as David and I had moved to West Wales, the South of England people alerted the 'Welsh Enterprise Awards' organisation on our behalf. We then went through a process to describe the work of our company, Phonics International Ltd.
The easiest way to see the longevity and breadth of our work (free and commercial) is through this website:
https://syntheticphonics.com
Originally, we were approached by the South of England Enterprise Awards organisation to enter for this award, but as David and I had moved to West Wales, the South of England people alerted the 'Welsh Enterprise Awards' organisation on our behalf. We then went through a process to describe the work of our company, Phonics International Ltd.
The easiest way to see the longevity and breadth of our work (free and commercial) is through this website:
https://syntheticphonics.com
Debbie Hepplewhite