19 letters | 23 graphemes | 143 words | 9 books
In Phase 2, children learn the sounds that letters make (phonemes). By the end of Phase 2 children are reading some vowel-consonant (VC) and consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words. They also know some high-frequency ‘tricky words’ like ‘the’ and ‘go’. Children learn to sound out each phoneme and blend these sounds together to read new words. For example, they will blend the sounds c-a-t to make the word cat. They will also start learning to segment words for spelling. Letters and sounds are introduced in this order: s, a, t, p, m, I, d, n, g, o, c, k, ck, e, r, u, l, h, f, b, ll, ss, ff.
| Peak | Focus | Decodable Books |
|---|---|---|
| 1Phase 2 | Set 1: s, a, t, p | 
Pat taps |
| 2Phase 2 | Set 2:m, i, d, n | 
Tim and the map |
| 3Phase 2 | Set 3: g, o, c, k, ck | 
Sam can |
| 4Phase 2 | Set 4: r, e, u |
The red rocket 
The cat and the rat |
| 5Phase 2 | Set 5: l, h, f, b, ll, ff, ss | 
Bill 
Kit the cat 
Carrots 
Hot dog |
6 letters | 25 graphemes | 350+ words | 26 books
In Phase 3, children are able to blend and segment words containing the 19 letters taught in Phase 2. During this phase, 25 new graphemes are covered, one at a time, including the most common digraphs and trigraphs. Letters and sounds are introduced in this order: j, v, w, x, y, z, zz, qu. Consonant digraphs: sh, ch, th, ng. Vowel digraphs and trigraphs: ai, ee, igh, oa, oo, ar, or, ur, ow, oi, ear, air, er, ure.
| Peak | Focus | Decodable Books |
|---|---|---|
| 6Phase 3 | Set 6: j, v, w | 
Peg and Meg 
Ravi’s pen 
Mud on the rug 
Pug the pup |
| 7Phase 3 | Set 7: x, y, z, zz, qu | 
Off on a jet 
My duck 
A visit to the vet 
Lots of pets 
Six big pigs |
| 8Phase 3 | Set 8: sh, ch, th, ng | 
Fish for Kit 
Bill’s bath 
The bug 
Sunset |
| 9Phase 3 | Set 9: ai, ee, igh, oa | 
King Rex 
Can a chicken get mail? 
Off on a boat 
Max gets wet |
| 10Phase 3 | Set 10: oo, ar, or, ur | 
Poor kit 
A visit to the moon 
Charley the farm dog |
| 11Phase 3 | Set 11: ow, oi, ear, air | 
Sam has a pain 
Dad gets mad 
Six bad chickens |
| 12Phase 3 | Set 12: er, ure | 
Kit gets lost 
Jess the jogger 
King Rex’s dinner |
400+ words | 6 books
In Phase 4, children blend and segment words containing the letters, sounds, and digraphs previously taught in Phases 2 and 3. They consolidate this knowledge to blend and segment words containing adjacent consonants, as well as polysyllabic words. The main focus of Phase 4 is on CVCC, CCVC, CCVCC, and CCVC words. For example, hand, swim, spend, and string.
| Peak | Focus | Decodable Books |
|---|---|---|
| 13Phase 4 | Set 13: CVCC, CCVC | 
Karl and Charley go camping 
A trip to the coast 
The test |
| 14Phase 4 | Set 14: CCVCC, CCCVC | 
Stink’s snacks 
Good dog, Scrap! 
Gramps, the grump |
500+ words | 18 books
In Phase 5, children blend and segment words containing the adjacent consonants taught in Phase 4. In Phase 5, they learn more adjacent consonants, as well as polysyllabic words. Children learn new graphemes and phonemes, and their alternative pronunciations when reading and spelling. Letter and sounds are introduced in this order: ay, ie, ea, oy, ir, ou, ue, aw, wh, ph, ew, oe, au, ey, a-e, e-e, i-e, o-e, u-e. Children learn alternative pronunciations of graphemes, with specific focus on: c, g, ow, ea and y. They will also learn alternative spellings for phonemes, with specific focus on: tch, dge, kn, wr and mb.
| Peak | Focus | Decodable Books |
|---|---|---|
| 15Phase 5 | Set 15: ay, ie, ea, oy, ir | |
| 16Phase 5 | Set 16: ou, ue, aw, wh, ph | Coming Soon |
| 17Phase 5 | Set 17: ew, oe, au, ey | Coming Soon |
| 18Phase 5 | Set 18: a-e, e-e, ie, o-e, u-e | Coming Soon |
| 19Phase 5 | Set 19: soft c, g, ow as in snow, ea as in bread, y as in baby | Coming Soon |
| 20Phase 5 | Set 20: tch as in match, dge as in judge, kn as in knee, wr as in wrap, mb as in lamb | Coming Soon |