Ready to Read Phonics Plus - Series introduction
The Ready to Read Phonics Plus series supports primary teachers to provide foundational reading instruction using a structured literacy approach.
About this resource
This page describes Ready to Read Phonics Plus, a Ministry of Education publication to support the teaching of structured literacy. You can find information about the series scope and sequence, the decodable book phases, and the supplementary resources available. At the bottom of the page, you can access further pages which provide detail on the different phases from the Ready to Read Phonics Plus scope and sequence.
Ready to Read Phonics Plus
Ready to Read Phonics Plus supports teachers working in early years primary classrooms using a structured literacy approach. It is the foundational instructional reading series the Ministry of Education provides for students entering school and in junior classes.
The Ready to Read Phonics Plus books and the supporting materials, provide opportunities for students to practice foundational literacy skills, such as decoding, through meaningful texts that are aligned to a structured, phonics-based scope and sequence.
See “Materials that come with this resource” to download:
- Kākano-Seed-Overview (.pdf)
- Tupu-Seedling-Overview (.pdf)
- Māhuri-Sapling-Overview (.pdf)
- Rākau-Tree-Overview (.pdf)
- Ready-to-Read-Phonics-Plus-Scope-and-Sequence (.pdf)
Digital copies
Digital copies of all Ready to Read Phonics Plus resources are available to download on Tāhūrangi.
You can find digital copies of Ready to Read Phonics Plus resources by either:
- Searching for them on theLiteracy (incl. Instructional Series) page (select the Ready to Read Phonics Plus series filter from the left side of the page to aid your search) or,
- Accessing the books from within each of the phases via the carosel at the bottom of the page.
Order copies
Copies of Ready to Read Phonics Plus books and resources are distributed free to primary schools that use the New Zealand Curriculum.
Schools can re-order print copies of Ready to Read Phonics Plus at:
The following video introduces the Ready to Read Phonics Plus series.
Ready to Read Phonics Plus overview
Ready to Read Phonics Plus resources
The Ready to Read Phonics Plus books are underpinned by a scope and sequence which provides the pathway for teaching and learning the alphabetic code.
"Scope" is the breadth and depth of content and skills to be taught; and "sequence" provides the order in which it is taught.
The scope and sequence is organised into four phases:
Kākano | Seed
Tupu | Seedling
Māhuri | Sapling
Rākau | Tree
You can find more detailed information about each phase by either entering the phase names in the rupua | search bar, or by selecting them on the carousel at the bottom of this page.
You can download a pdf copy of the scope and sequence at the top of this page. Go to the "About this resouce" section.
See Materials that come with this resource and choose:
- Ready-to-Read-Phonics-Plus-Scope-and-Sequence (.pdf)
Kākano | Seed sound cards and Tupu | Seedling phonics cards can introduce or support sound and letter knowledge. You can use them before students read or to support sound and letter knowledge as they read the books. Student’s learning needs guide you in choosing how you use the cards.
Resource page where Kākano Sound Cards can be downloaded: Sound Cards Kākano | Seed
Resource page where Tupu Phonics Cards can be downloaded: Phonics Cards Tupu | Seedling
The big books introduce the characters from Ready to Read Phonics Plus. They are designed to be read to students before introducing them to the decodable series. This allows students to become familiar with the characters before meeting them in the Phonics Plus books.
The Boat Race introduces the human characters and is intended to be read first.
Frog Finds a Home introduces the animal characters and is intended to be read second.
Resource page where The Boat Race can be downloaded: The Boat Race
Resource page where Frog Finds a Home can be downloaded: Frog Finds a Home
The Ready to Read Phonics Plus books support foundational reading instruction. The books focus on word recognition, knowledge and skills that explicitly support children to crack the alphabetic code and match print to speech. Each book adds new sound and letter knowledge so children can learn and practise in a cumulative way.
Ready to Read Phonics Plus books have teaching notes in the inside back cover. These provide ideas about how you can use the books to engage your students with word recognition and ways to build language knowledge.
The decodable books are organised into the four phases of the scope and sequence:
You can find more detailed information about each phase, along with access to the books from within the phases by either entering the phase names in the rupua | search bar, or by selecting them on the carousel at the bottom of this page.
Each phase has a phase overview. They show the suggested order of the books, the focus sounds, words to blend, and kupu Māori for each book.
To download a pdf copy of the phase overviews, go to the top of the page and the “About this resource section”.
See Materials that come with this resource and choose from:
- Kākano-Seed-Overview (.pdf)
- Tupu-Seedling-Overview (.pdf)
- Māhuri-Sapling-Overview (.pdf)
- Rākau-Tree-Overview (.pdf)
Te Reo Māori kete cards support kaiako l teachers and ākonga l students in their use of kupu Māori | Māori words in the Ready to Read Phonics Plus books. The cards introduce the whakapapa | origins of these commonly used kupu | words, support correct pronunciation, and explain the sound-letter relationships of te reo Māori.
In a structured literacy lesson, the kupu Māori | Māori words are taught as told words. Students are not expected to decode the kupu Māori | Māori words throughout the books. The foundational skill of phonetic decoding within the Ready to Read phonics plus resources are based on the English language. The kupu Māori | Māori words in the Ready to Read Phonics Plus books are phrases and terms commonly used in New Zealand classrooms.
Resource page where Te Reo Māori kete can be downloaded: Te Reo Māori kete
Ready to Read Phonics Plus includes a games pack designed to provide opportunities to for students to practice the skills you have already explicitly taught – skills such as decoding and blending. They also provide opportunities to consolidate the sound-letter relationships learned in the Kākano | Seed and Tupu | Seedling phases of the Ready to Read Phonics Plus Scope and Sequence.
The games pack includes:
- Matching Pairs cards
- Snap cards
- Bingo boards and tiles.
Resource page where Ready to Read Supporting Games can be downloaded: Ready to Read Phonics Plus Supporting Games
You can find more detailed information about each phase, along with access to the books from within the phases by either entering the phase names in the rupua | search bar, or by selecting them on the carousel below.
Ready to Read Phonics Plus phases