Lay strong foundations for language and literacy with the Year One English collection from Hands-On Education. Specially developed for children aged 5–6, this collection features printable lesson packs, activities, and creative resources to spark a love of reading, writing, speaking, and listening from the very beginning.

Year One English resources follow a phonics-led approach, supporting the development of letter sounds, blending, segmenting, and early word building. Pupils enjoy practical games, interactive worksheets, and lively activities that reinforce key skills—alphabet knowledge, sight words, and decoding strategies—aligned with national curriculum aims.

Beyond phonics, packs introduce children to story structure, character and setting, rhyme, traditional tales, and simple non-fiction forms. With story sequencing cards, guided role play, poetry games, and copywork exercises, children are encouraged to talk about their ideas, act out scenes, and illustrate their stories. Basic grammar and punctuation are gently introduced through fun tasks, stories, and oral composition.

Creative resources also foster imagination with writing prompts, drawing-and-caption activities, emergent handwriting sheets, and early reading comprehension challenges. Many resources are cross-curricular, blending English skills with art, science, and history for richly contextualised learning. Whether designing story characters or keeping a nature journal, children build vocabulary, communication skills, and confidence.

Clear lesson plans, printable templates, and differentiation suggestions give teachers and families the flexibility to individualise learning at home or school. Progression is supported with scaffolded activities, from early phonics and oral rehearsal to first attempts at independent writing.

Browse the Year One English shop for everything needed to inspire reading, writing, speaking, and listening—making every child’s first steps in literacy successful and enjoyable, with activities to revisit across the year.