If you have a child in their first year at school or working at KS1, you’ll know that last month children took the Phonics Screening Check. So I ask, What can we learn from the Phonics Screening Check? As you’ll probably know, the Phonics Screening Check (PSC) tests for Year 1 students in England took place between the 10-14th June.   The test will confirm whether or not pupils have met the expected standard in phonic decoding and can reveal which pupils may need additional support. Phonics screening check facts Of course, if you’re involved in KS1 teaching you’ll know the intricacie ..read more

Legal Statement Sadly, it came to our attention last year, that after nearly 10 years of trading with the registered trademark name, CodeBreakers®, Twinkl started to use our name for their phonics resources and reading books, without licence to so, in July 2023. At the time, CodeBreakers® immediately contacted Twinkl to advise them of the breach in the law and sadly CodeBreakers® legal rights were ignored. We were extremely disappointed by their response. We’ve now been able to secure the services of a London attorney specialising in trademark legislation, who has taken on our case. In Februar ..read more

March 15-16 2024 sees the next live Dyslexia Show at the NEC and CodeBreakers will be joining in! I’ve been thoroughly excited and couldn’t wait to share the news with you first!  CodeBreakers is extremely proud to be sitting alongside organisations such as SEN Group  and TTS Special Direct as a supporter of the Dyslexia Show 2024   Dyslexia Show Supporter   Although I can’t be there in the flesh this time to meet and greet you, I will be there in spirit and I have a very special offer for anyone who registers for the Dyslexia Show 2024. In fact, there is no charge to at ..read more

We’d like to wish all our followers a very Happy Christmas and as a way of saying thank you for your support in 2023, we’d like to offer you a FREE GIFT, a copy of our very first decodable and audio book. The war on the Farm The book is set during World War II and will appeal to readers of all ages. ​We’ve also included some comprehension questions at the back of the book. Download your FREE gift here   The book has been recorded to create an audio book too, this will enable words to be tracked as the text is read aloud. Learners will build their confidence, develop language and vocabula ..read more

Today I received a heart breaking call from a parent desperately trying to support her son to gain employment. Following on from my recent post about apprenticeships and lowering the level of literacy and numeracy, I ask, “How can we help young people with dyslexia gain and retain employment?” Today’s caller told me how their son had recently left college and although they had gained a level 3 qualification in engineering and able to secure a level 1 in literacy and numeracy, they were still unable to retain or gain new employment because of their difficulties with dyslexia, which employers se ..read more

In a week when the government reacts positively to a pilot scheme to lower literacy and numeracy levels for apprentices, I ask, is this the best long-term plan? This week (Nov 2023), FE Week reported on the success of a pilot to flex functional skills minimum requirements to entry level 3 for apprentices with learning difficulties who don’t hold education and health care plans (EHCPs) They reported that the  DfE revealed that since 2017 only 1,420 out of over 1.7 million apprentices (just 0.08 per cent) have used the existing flexibility to lower the required completion level where learni ..read more

Something BRAND NEW and VERY exciting is happening! Over the past few months, I’ve been thinking about how I can add more value to CodeBreakers® workbooks.  I wanted to add more to the workbooks and offer even more unique content that couldn’t be found anywhere else. Today, I want to tell you how CodeBreakers® workbooks have been elevated. Not only have our workbooks had a little makeover, we hope you agree the new covers look fresh and you can easily identify the patterns being worked on by their cover, I’m also pleased to say that the day has arrived at last… We’re proud to announce th ..read more

We’ve been working hard this summer to bring you Series 9 & 10 of CodeBreakers and it’s NOW available   Many of the learners I tutor have a significant difficulty with reading and spelling and most of them need to start at the very beginning of the CodeBreakers programme. For some of my older learners, or perhaps those have developed skills in recognising sounds in words and are aware of some of the early years spelling responses, the new series 9 & 10 will help to support any gaps in knowledge. Here you’ll find what your learner can work on in Series 9 https://www.dyslexia-codebr ..read more

As children have made the return to school, we ask, Is going back to school an anxious time for your child or learners? For many school age children, returning to school in September can be an exciting time. Some even love it and find being away from school boring or enjoy the routine of school. For others going back to school can be an anxious time. Friend of CodeBreakers, Wendy Miller Coaching, has written an informative and helpful article about supporting children with anxiety. Following on from my recent article about making mistakes and other Mindful Dyslexia articles, I knew Wendy’s adv ..read more

We’ve been working hard this summer to bring you Series 9 & 10 of CodeBreakers and it’s NOW available   Many of the learners I tutor have a significant difficulty with reading and spelling and most of them need to start at the very beginning of the CodeBreakers programme. For some of my older learners, or perhaps those have developed skills in recognising sounds in words and are aware of some of the early years spelling responses, the new series 9 & 10 will help to support any gaps in knowledge. Here you’ll find what your learner can work on in Series 9 https://www.dyslexia-codebr ..read more