English at WPPS

We are committed to strengthening our evidence based approach to the teaching of literacy. 

The Big 6

A number of years ago, the principal class team, along with several members of our teaching team participated in training around The Big 6 presented by Anne Bayetto, an academic leader and highly sought after expert speaker on literacy and numeracy difficulties in children. Our approach to teaching literacy is based on an Evidence Based Approach, The Big 6. The Big 6 including; Oral Language, Phonological Awareness, Phonics, Vocabulary, Fluency and Comprehension.

UFLI - Prep to 2

Mid 2024, we commenced implementing UFLI. UFLI is an evidence based explicit Systematic Synthetic Phonics Program that teaches students the foundational skills necessary for proficient reading. UFLI occurs daily in our Prep – Grade 2 classrooms. UFLI has weekly progress monitoring which allows our staff to track growth of our students. 

PhOrMeS - Grades 3-6

In Term 2, 2026 PhOrMeS is being included in the daily literacy program for Grades 3-6 students. PhOrMeS is an evidence-informed approach to teaching reading and spelling, based on the Science of Reading. It provides a structured, whole-school way to build strong literacy foundations for all students. 

PhOrMeS stands for:

  • Phonology (sounds in words)

  • Orthography (spelling patterns)

  • Morphology & Etymology (word parts and origins)

  • Semantics (word meanings) 

Through explicit and systematic teaching, students learn how to:

  • decode (read) words

  • spell accurately

  • understand word meanings

  • develop strong phonemic awareness and handwriting skills 

PhOrMeS uses a systematic, synthetic phonics approach, where students are taught to connect sounds and letters, then blend them together to read and spell words with increasing complexity. 

Importantly, PhOrMeS builds the essential foundations for literacy success. It supports reading and writing development, while working alongside other teaching to strengthen comprehension and written expression.

 Literacy Screeners and Assessments

We have introduced Dibels, a universal screening tool, for all students (beginning, middle and end of year). Dibels is a set of procedures and measures for assessing the acquisition of literacy skills.

Core Phonics survey is completed by Prep and Grade 1 students. Core Phonics is a diagnostic assessment which measures a student’s proficiency in decoding and phonics related skills.

 CUBED-3 assessment has been introduced from Grades 2-6. CUBED-3 is a family of screening and progress monitoring tools that accurately, reliably and efficiently measure language comprehension and word recognition.

Wonga Park Primary School acknowledges the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners of the land where we gather, learn and play. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging who have looked after Country for over 65,000 years.