A Game for Sam Reading guide

Bold red vowels and bold blue consonants show the focus sounds.

Phase 1 · Book 1 · Original narrative using the first focus set in Working with Letters & Words Basic. The programme guides concept progression; the story does not reproduce its lesson scripts.

Focus letters and sounds

a m s t p. Say short a as in mat; m as in mat; s as in sat; t as in tap; p as in Pat. Use clear sounds without adding an extra “uh”.

Focus letters in decodable story words are bold: red for vowels and blue for consonants. Adult-supported words remain in ordinary text.

Reading the title

An adult reads A Game for Sam with the child. The words A, Game and for are adult-supported title words beyond this first focus set.

Before reading

Practise the sounds, then blend mat, sat and tap. Introduce the names Sam and Pat. Read the cover together.

Adult-supported words

Help children read I, on, the, sad, said, is and not. These are adult-supported words for this story: they include letters, spelling patterns or pronunciations beyond the five-letter focus set. Introduce them before reading. In taps, the final s says /s/: blend tap, then add s. Explain that taps tells what one child does.

During reading

Point under the letters and blend the focus words. Reread each sentence naturally. Ask why Sam feels sad, how Pat helps and what changes at the end. Invite children to join in with “Tap, tap, tap!” Talk Together gives a prompt on each page.

Narrative structure

Characters: Sam and Pat. Setting: a mat in a garden. Problem: Sam feels sad. Action: Pat invites Sam to tap, and both join the game. Resolution: Sam feels happy playing with Pat.

After reading

Reread for fluency. Let children gently tap a mat with an open hand and retell what Sam and Pat did. Invite children to retell how Pat helps Sam.