The Mountain Mystery Reading guide

Phonics focus

Lessons 79–80: ou and ow for /ow/; r-controlled and complex vowels in longer words

Practise ou and ow; complex-vowel review in these words: ou: mountain, ground, clouds, sound, round, louder, found, loud; ow: brown, down; review: Arthur, farmer, return, wooden. Blend practice words using the focus spelling and compare short and long vowel examples where appropriate. Use the programme lessons to introduce new sounds; the story is original.

Bold red vowel letters and bold blue consonant letters show the selected focus spellings. Read each selected vowel spelling as one unit. Vowel y in oy is red; consonant r in ar, or, er, ir and ur and consonant w in ow are blue. Colour is a visual aid, and every letter in a spelling does not represent a separate sound. Read the guide note for each pattern. Help children with other letters and patterns in the word when needed. A highlighted letter does not mean the whole word is independently decodable.

Adult supported words

An adult reads the title with the child. Preview walk, Molly, stop, spread, picnic, cloth, level, drift, peaks, Listen, says, What, that, low, rumble, comes, from, beyond, hill, Then, hear, Could, asks, sky, clear, above, pack, their, leads, bend, path, grows, spots, dust, rising, behind, bridge, appears, end, flock, sheep, follows, him, Their, boards, family, waits, well, back, passes, One, lamb, gives, bleat, That, one, like, trumpet, smiles, waves, spot, draws, was, parade. Help with unfamiliar spellings within focus words too. This is supported shared reading; highlighting does not mean every word is independently decodable.

Before reading

Read three practice words and name the selected spelling. Look at the cover, name the setting and predict what might happen.

During reading

Read each sentence aloud together. Point to the highlighted letters, blend the focus words and reread naturally. Use Talk Together to discuss the character, problem, actions and ending.

Narrative structure

A rumble and clatter interrupt a mountain picnic. Molly and Arthur consider thunder, follow the safe marked path with Dad, and discover a flock crossing a wooden bridge—with a trumpet-like lamb.

After reading

Invite the child to retell what happened first, what went wrong, what the character tried and how the story ended. Reread the book to build confidence.

Read ou as /ow/ in mountain, ground, cloud, sound, round, loud and found. This book also practises ow as /ow/ in brown and down. Review r-controlled patterns in Arthur, farmer and return and short oo in wooden. Do not highlight unrelated ou in could or long-o ow in grows as this new sound. Dad stays with the children on a level marked walking path; they wait away from farm animals and the bridge.