2023 Phonics Screening Check
Download the 2023 Year 1 Phonics Screening Check materials for free, including the practice materials, assessment materials, answer sheet, scoring guidance, word list, PowerPoint presentation and a complete ZIP file.
The 2023 check was given to all children in Year 1 in England in June 2023. Schools chose a day within the week commencing 12th June 2023, with larger schools spreading the check across several days. It included a mix of real words and pseudo-words.
2023 Phonics Screening Check Past Papers
Below are all the downloads for the 2023 Phonics Screening Check. You can download each resource individually or grab the complete ZIP, which bundles every PDF together with the word list and whole-class PowerPoint presentation published by Exam Ninja.
| Year | Practice Materials | Assessment Materials | Answer Sheet | Scoring Guidance | Spelling Materials | PowerPoint | Complete ZIP File ⓘZip file with all standard resources bundled together | Premium Downloads |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 2023 Phonics Practice Materialsⓘ 2023 Phonics Screening Test Practice MaterialsThis practice sheet provides examples of both real words and pseudo-words to familiarise children with the format of the Phonics Screening Check. The real words shown include in, at, beg, and sum. The pseudo-words include ot, vap, osk, and ect. These sample words allow children to practise decoding before the statutory assessment. Questions: 8 | 2023 Phonics Assessment Materialsⓘ 2023 Phonics Screening Test Assessment MaterialsOfficial pupils' materials for the 2023 Year 1 Phonics Screening Check. Contains the 40 words children read aloud during the statutory assessment: 20 real words (such as hill, jars, chip, shack, boy, foam, white) and 20 pseudo-words (such as ult, zat, fod, bep, farn, shob) split across Section 1 and Section 2. Each word is presented individually for one-to-one administration by the teacher. Questions: 40 | 2023 Phonics Answer Sheetⓘ 2023 Phonics Screening Test Answer SheetThis is the teacher's answer sheet for the 2023 Year 1 Phonics Screening Check. It provides a tick-box grid to record whether each of the 40 words is read correctly or incorrectly by the child. The sheet is divided into Section 1 and Section 2, each containing ten pseudo-words (such as fod, glork, teap) and ten real words (such as chip, boy, scoop), with space for optional comments and a final total. Questions: 40 | 2023 Phonics Scoring Guidanceⓘ 2023 Phonics Screening Test Scoring GuidanceOfficial scoring guidance for teachers administering the 2023 Phonics Screening Check. Lists acceptable pronunciations for each pseudo-word in Section 1 and Section 2, including phonemic representations and rhyming examples (e.g. 'fod' rhymes with 'nod', 'drave' rhymes with 'shave'). Clarifies that regional pronunciations and plausible alternatives are acceptable when decoding pseudo-words. | ||||
| Source: Standards and Testing Agency (STA) | Open Government Licence |
About these 2023 Year 1 Phonics papers
- KS1 Phonics 2023 Phonics Check Practice Materials
- This practice sheet provides examples of both real words and pseudo-words to familiarise children with the format of the Phonics Screening Check. The real words shown include in, at, beg, and sum. The pseudo-words include ot, vap, osk, and ect. These sample words allow children to practise decoding before the statutory assessment.
- KS1 Phonics 2023 Phonics Check Assessment Materials
- Official pupils' materials for the 2023 Year 1 Phonics Screening Check. Contains the 40 words children read aloud during the statutory assessment: 20 real words (such as hill, jars, chip, shack, boy, foam, white) and 20 pseudo-words (such as ult, zat, fod, bep, farn, shob) split across Section 1 and Section 2. Each word is presented individually for one-to-one administration by the teacher.
- KS1 Phonics 2023 Phonics Check Answer Sheet
- This is the teacher's answer sheet for the 2023 Year 1 Phonics Screening Check. It provides a tick-box grid to record whether each of the 40 words is read correctly or incorrectly by the child. The sheet is divided into Section 1 and Section 2, each containing ten pseudo-words (such as fod, glork, teap) and ten real words (such as chip, boy, scoop), with space for optional comments and a final total.
- KS1 Phonics 2023 Phonics Check Scoring Guidance
- Official scoring guidance for teachers administering the 2023 Phonics Screening Check. Lists acceptable pronunciations for each pseudo-word in Section 1 and Section 2, including phonemic representations and rhyming examples (e.g. 'fod' rhymes with 'nod', 'drave' rhymes with 'shave'). Clarifies that regional pronunciations and plausible alternatives are acceptable when decoding pseudo-words.
2023 Phonics Screening Check Word List
Below are all 40 words used in the 2023 Phonics Screening Check. Each is either a real word or a pseudo-word (a made-up, nonsense word that checks a child's decoding skills rather than their vocabulary).
| Question | Word | Type |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | fod | Pseudo |
| 2 | bep | Pseudo |
| 3 | zat | Pseudo |
| 4 | ult | Pseudo |
| 5 | heng | Pseudo |
| 6 | shob | Pseudo |
| 7 | farn | Pseudo |
| 8 | chesh | Pseudo |
| 9 | trun | Pseudo |
| 10 | glork | Pseudo |
| 11 | remp | Pseudo |
| 12 | deebs | Pseudo |
| 13 | chip | Real |
| 14 | hill | Real |
| 15 | jars | Real |
| 16 | shack | Real |
| 17 | twin | Real |
| 18 | crack | Real |
| 19 | tuft | Real |
| 20 | ports | Real |
| 21 | jer | Pseudo |
| 22 | drave | Pseudo |
| 23 | teap | Pseudo |
| 24 | phibe | Pseudo |
| 25 | slimp | Pseudo |
| 26 | craint | Pseudo |
| 27 | splet | Pseudo |
| 28 | strave | Pseudo |
| 29 | boy | Real |
| 30 | scoop | Real |
| 31 | foam | Real |
| 32 | white | Real |
| 33 | swept | Real |
| 34 | dreams | Real |
| 35 | scrap | Real |
| 36 | strike | Real |
| 37 | elbow | Real |
| 38 | tailor | Real |
| 39 | sequins | Real |
| 40 | whirling | Real |
20 real words, 20 pseudo-words.
2023 Phonics Screening Check Pass Mark & Threshold
The pass mark (threshold) for the 2023 Phonics Screening Check was 32 out of 40. A child needed to read at least 32 of the 40 words correctly to meet the expected standard.
Any child who did not meet the standard retook the check the following year, in Year 2. So children who missed the mark in the 2022 Phonics Screening Check sat this 2023 check in Year 2.
More Phonics Screening Past Papers
| Decade | Years |
|---|---|
| 2020s | 20222023202420252026 |
| 2010s | 20122013201420152016201720182019 |
FAQ
Is the 2023 Phonics Screening Check free to download?
Yes. The full 2023 Phonics Screening Check is free to download. It includes the Pupils' Materials booklet (with words for the child to read aloud) and the Answer Sheet for the teacher.
Where does the 2023 Phonics Screening Check come from?
The Phonics Screening Check is produced annually by the Standards and Testing Agency (STA), part of the Department for Education, and published under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
What was the pass mark for the 2023 Phonics Screening Check?
The pass mark (threshold) for the 2023 Phonics Screening Check was 32 out of 40. Any child who scored below 32 retook the check the following year.
Who sat the 2023 Phonics Screening Check?
Two groups sat the 2023 check: Year 1 children, aged 5 to 6 (born between 1 September 2017 and 31 August 2018); and Year 2 children who did not meet the expected standard in the 2022 check and were retaking it. For how the check works, see the Phonics Screening page.
What happened if my child did not pass the 2023 Phonics Screening Check?
A child who did not meet the expected standard (32 out of 40) in the 2023 check retook it in Year 2, the following year, in 2024.
