Phonics Part 8: More Vowels and Consonants

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Do your students (K-5) really know the difference between vowels and consonants? Do they think you are talking about the continents instead?? Can they name the 5 vowels and both vowel sounds with ease? The more I work with individual students, the more I realize they often DON’T know or have a hard time articulating what they are.  So if they are confused, then are they really paying attention when we rattle along using terms such as cvc, cvce, vowel teams, vowel pairs, consonant blends, etc.

Manipulate middle letter(s).

So much of our phonics instruction relies on students knowing what they are, it may be worth it to check with yours to see.  I will admit that I have assumed they have this knowledge, especially at the 3rd grade levels and above, but this is not always the case.

Vowels:  a, e, i, o, u

Consonants:  all of the other letters of the alphabet

Vowel sounds

  • The long sound is just like saying the letter names.
  • For the short vowel sounds, I recommend providing a key word or two for students to refer to such as:  short a = apple, at; short e = egg, the middle sound in red; short i = is, it; short o = on, off; short u = up, umbrella

CVC:  Consonant-vowel-consonant words

  • These are words like cat, red, will, hot, bus
  • They are considered “closed” syllables.
  • The middle vowel usually makes the short vowel sound.
  • This is helpful to apply to multi-syllabic words with closed syllables:  cac-tus, rab-bit, pic-nic, etc.

CVCE: Consonant-vowel-consonant + silent e

  • These are words like cake, fine, note, mule
  • The silent e gives the middle vowel the signal to make the long sound (generally).
  • When there are 2 vowels within a single syllable, the vowel sound is usually the long sound.

Long vowel teams: Generally this means 2 vowels together making just one sound

  • Examples:  ai, ee, ea, ie, oa, ue  (rain, sleep, team, pie, coat, glue)
  • The first vowel makes the long sound, while the second vowel is silent

The above are the basics and need to be understood and mastered to better tackle digraphs, blends, and multi-syllabic words. Read other vowel and consonant information with this link to one of my previous posts: Phonics Part 3: Vowels and Consonants.

Activities to practice:

  • Path games
  • Matching activities
  • Spelling word lists
  • Word hunts for these in texts they are reading
  • Word family lists

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Sight Words Instructional Tips

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Sight words are those which students can identify automatically without the need to decode. They often do not follow phonics “rules.” Examples: who, all, you, of. They may include some high frequency words (HFW). High frequency words are those which occur most often in reading and writing. By learning 100 of the HFW, a beginning reader can access about 50% of text.  According to Fry, these 13 words account for 25% of words in print:  a, and, for, he, is, in, it, of, that, the, to, was, you.

When are students ready to learn sight words?  According to the experts from Words Their Way (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton), student need to have a more fully developed concept of word.  Concept of Word is the ability to track a memorized text without getting off track, even on a 2-syllable word. In other words, does the child have a one-to-one correspondence with words? When tracking, does their finger stay under a 2-syllable word until it is finished, or are they moving from word-to-word based on the syllable sounds they hear? In the sentence shown, does a student move their finger to the next word after saying ap- or do they stay on the whole word apple before moving on? Students in the early Letter-Name Stage (ages 4-6) start to understand this concept. It becomes more fully developed mid to later stages of Letter Names (ages 5-8).

Students with a basic concept of word are able to acquire a few words from familiar stories and text they have “read” several times or memorized. Students with a full concept of word can finger point read accurately and can correct themselves if they get off track. They can find words in text. Therefore, many sight words are acquired after several rereadings of familiar text.

Instructional Strategies KG-2nd Grade

1. To help children gain concept of word:

  • Point to words as you read text to them (big books, poetry on charts, etc.).
  • Invite children to point to words.
  • Pair memorized short poems with matching word cards for students to reconstruct. Using a pocket chart is helpful.

2. Explicit Instruction: Dedicated time each day for sight word work

  • KG: 1-3 words per week; 1st grade: 3-5 words per week
  • Introduce with “fanfare and pageantry”.
  • Read, chant, sing, spell, write.
  • Use them in a sentence and ask children to do the same.
  • Use letter tiles, magnetic letters, word cards.
  • Use with a word wall (see more info later in this post).
  • Locate in text you are reading (poems, big books, stories in small group).

    a box of juice

  • Many sight words are hard to explain the meaning (the, was, of). Associate with a picture and phrase or sentence such as: a box of juice.
  • Reinforce with small group instruction.
  • Practice at learning stations:  CAUTION — activities should be done with previously learned  words to promote fluency. If the words are not known, then stamping them in playdough or writing them multiple times may not help you achieve your objective. Saying them correctly along with visual recognition is key. Go to this blogger’s link for many free resources for reinforcing sight words.  http://www.playdoughtoplato.com/pirate-sight-word-game/   She has a simple path board game which is editable. You can put in 1-5 sight words to practice – students must say the word to their partner to advance along the path. I often require students to use the word in a sentence as well. She is a great resource for KG-2nd grade!!
  • I (and experts) do not recommend using sight words on weekly spelling lists. Research suggests  spelling words should follow typical orthographic patterns, which many sight words do not have (ex: who, was, all, of). If you practice sight words in ways mentioned above, students will get better at spelling them or can refer to the word wall when needed for writing assignments.

3. Flash Card Practice (Research based method) with no more than 10 words: Continue reading

Listening to your students read Part 2: Running Records and the Structural Cueing System

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

This is part 2 of a series on ways you can efficiently listen to your students as they read, identify cueing systems the child is using / neglecting, and offer helpful prompts that will guide them as they read.  This blog will focus on the Structural Cueing System. Even though this is considered an early reading strategy, there are many intermediate elementary students (and higher) with reading difficulties who would benefit from this type of analysis and prompting.

The second cueing system is the use of (S) Structure or Syntax of our English language. Much of a child’s knowledge about language structures comes as a result of speaking or listening to how language naturally sounds. A reader attempts to make it sound right. Below are 3 possible scenarios with analysis of a child’s possible response.

Using this text:  She runs with the puppy.

1. Suppose a student read it this way:

  √        ran      √       √         √.

She     runs   with   the   puppy.

This student is using structure because “She ran . . .” sounds right. He/She is also using M (meaning) because it makes sense. And the child is using visual (V) cues because ran / runs are visually similar.

2. Suppose a student read it this way:

√       runned       √      √         √.

She    runs       with  the   puppy.

This student is not using structure because “She runned . . .” does not sound structurally / grammatically correct. However, it still makes sense (M) and is still visually similar (V).

3. Suppose a student read it this way:

√      chased      –        √         √.

She   runs      with   the   puppy.

This student is using structure because “She chased the puppy” sounds right. He/She is also using (M) meaning because it makes sense. The child is not using (V) visual cues because chased and runs are not visually similar.

When a child is not using structure, their errors in reading are typically with verb tenses. Often with -ed ending words they will use the wrong pronunciation (such as look-ded), or they will generalize by adding -ed to words which don’t use it to make past tense (runned, swimmed, bited). Or a student may be an English Language Learner – be sensitive to their needs. They may not know what “sounds right.” In that case, you as the teacher should model what it should sound like.

Helpful teacher prompts to help a student monitor for (S) Structure / Grammar:sound-icon

  • Did that sound right?
  • Does that sound the way we talk?
  • Is there a better way to say it?
  • What word would sound right there?
  • Can you say it another way?
  • Try ______. Would that sound right? Listen as I read it. Now you try.
  • Listen to this (give 2 choices). Which sounds better?

Remember, it is often most helpful to wait until the child completes the whole sentence before prompting or trying to correct an error. This gives the child an opportunity to monitor themself and perhaps self-correct. If the teacher (or parent) jumps in right away after the error is made, it is the teacher doing the monitoring, not the student.

To assist you with documentation about the child’s cueing system, see part 1 about Running Records. In your notes for the child’s oral reading, write the word they said above the word from the text. Analyze to see if they are making meaning, structural, or visual errors. Does the child tend to use one cueing system over another? What prompts can you offer to help the child monitor their reading and self-correct?

Finally — be sure to let the student know when you notice their self-corrections and montoring.  For example:  “I noticed you changed the word ‘runned’ for ‘runs’ in the sentence. You made it sound right! Good for you!” This reinforces use (and hopefully continued repetition) of the strategy.

Happy Listening! Next time Visual Cues – Part 3

Clip art courtesy of MS Office.

Listening to your students read Part 1: Running Records and the Meaning Cueing System

By C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady – with adaptations from Marie Clay and Scholastic

Taking a running record is written documentation of a child’s oral reading. It consists of listening to a child orally read a passage while you document it as best you can on paper. As the listener, you note errors (such as omissions, insertions, substitutions),  pay attention to strategies they are using or neglecting, and are alert to what is easy and what is hard. Many publishers now provide a written page of the text for you to keep track of the child’s reading page by page, while experienced notetakers can do it at a moment’s notice on any blank paper.

I attended a Reading Recovery workshop about mid-way into my teaching career, and heard from two teachers who described how to take a running record and then analyze the results to determine which strategies students were using or neglecting. That one workshop forever changed how I listened to my students read, and how I talked to parents about their child’s reading successes or difficulties.  About 8 years after that I had formal training in Reading Recovery methods, and subsequently completed a Masters in Reading . . . all because of that workshop!  I learned all mistakes are not equal and provide a huge clue as to what cueing system a child is using. I learned that I can help steer a child toward a neglected strategy by carefully crafted teacher prompts. I learned that there are much more effective prompts than the standard, over-used:  “Sound it out.”

The benefits of running records

  • Identifies accuracy of reading (independent, instructional, or hard)
  • Provides a record of strategies used, errors, corrections, phrasing, fluency
  • Helps teachers identify cueing systems the child is using / neglecting (meaning, visual, structural)
  • Documents progress over time
  • Can help determine a level for guided reading purposes (Fountas and Pinnell, Reading A-Z, DRA, etc.)

Continue reading

Phonics Part 5: Manipulating Phonemes and Letters

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Add beginning letter(s)

Manipulating phonemes refers to the abilty to add, delete, or substitute them orally. This is a prerequisite skill to visually manipulating letters in order to read and write (the phonics part). First grade programs should include both of these routines on a daily basis – and at other grade levels with struggling students. Skill with manipulating letters relates to a child’s ability to use a known word (or word part) to read and write new words. Stay tuned for 10 ways to work on manipulating letters (whole class or small group) as well as some free resources to accomplish your goals. Phonemic awareness falls under the Phonological Awareness umbrella.

Add phonemes – phonemic awareness (examples — letters inside / / represent the sound):

  • “Say /at/.  Now add /k/ before /at/. What do you hear?”
  • “Say /un/. Now add /f/ before /un/. What do you hear?”

Add letters – phonics (examples):

  • “Write at.  Now add the letter c before at.  What word did you make?”
  • “What other letters can you add before at to make new words?” (suggest b, f, h, m, p, r, s)
  • “Write un. Now add the letter f before un.  What word did you make?”
  • “What other letters can you add before un to make new words?” (suggest b, g, n, r, s)

Delete phonemes – phonemic awareness (examples):

Manipulate ending letter.

  • “Say fat. Take off the /f/ sound.  What part is left?”  (at)
  • “Say run. Take off the /r/ sound. What part is left?” (un)

Delete letters – phonics (examples):

  • “Write track. Take off the letters tr. What part is left?”
  • “What other words can you write with the letters -ack?” (suggest back, smack, lack, tack)
  • “Write sting. Take off the letters st. What part is left?”
  • “What other words can you write with the letters -ing?” (suggest sing, ring, fling, thing)

Substitute phonemes – phonemic awareness (examples):

  • “Say like. Take off the /l/ sound and trade it for the /b/ sound. What word do you hear now?” (bike)
  • “Say hop. Take off the /p/ sound and trade it for the /g/ sound. What word do you hear now?” (hog)

Substitute letters – phonics (examples):

Manipulate middle letter(s).

  • “Write like. Change the letter l to a b. What word did you write?” (bike)
  • “Write like. Change the letter i to the letter a. What word did you write?” (lake)
  • “Write like. Change the letter to the letter f.  What word did you write?” (life)

You will notice that manipulating letters also links directly to identification of onsets and rimes.

  • With onsets and rimes, we want students to be able to identify the rimes. This means they have to separate it from the beginning of the word.  Example:  sh + op
  • We also want students to be able to recognize and produce the rimes or common “chunks”  in other words. This involves deleting and substituting letters. Examples:  hop, mop, drop, helicopter. If they can’t hear it, they most likely can’t read it or write it.

Here are 10 ways to work on letter manipulation in the classroom or with small groups:

  1. Utilize some of the above examples as part of your daily word work routine.
  2. Use sound boxes and magnetic letters or letter tiles to model manipulation of the letters.
  3. Use post-its to practice manipulating words.
  4. Provide word family practice like these rimes -op, -and, -it, – un, -et, eet, -oat, -ine, and so on.
  5. Give students letter cards to hold and arrange to make / change words.
  6. Break words apart (and put back together).
    • Break apart letter by letter.
    • Break apart onsets and rimes
    • Break apart beginning / middle / ending
  7. Explore words by making a word chain. Write it or use letter tiles to help. How long can you make the chain go on?

    Word chain starting with cat.

    • Start with one word such as cat.
    • Change just one letter at a time to make a new word (this can be the beginning letter, middle letter, or ending letter):  hat
    • Change it again (just one letter): hit
    • Change it again: bit
    • Change it again: big
    • Change it again: dig
    • Change it again: dog
    • Change it again: dot
    • Change it again: hot
    • Change it again:  pot
    • Change it again: pet
    • Can you keep going???
  8. Use spelling words to make changes. After all, the purpose of spelling is not to just spell the words on the list, but to apply the generalization to other words.  Spelling word is wide? Try these: slide, hide, bride . . .  Spelling word is eat?  Try these:  meat, seat, treat . . .
  9. Give pairs of students word family lists to partner read (-ake:  bake, cake, lake, take, make, rake, snake, shake, wake . . .)
  10. Check out some of these FREE resources from TPT:

As always, please share your favorite manipulating phonemes or letters activities!!

 

 

 

 

Phonics Part 4: Segmenting and Blending CVC and CVCe words

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

This part of my phonics series will focus on some beginning strategies to help student apply letter-sound knowledge with predictable cvc and cvce words. Knowledge of onsets and rhymes, use of Elkonin sound boxes, the “Drive-Thru” and “The Arm” strategies are wonderful methods to accomplish this. We will look at separating sounds (segmenting), combining sounds (blending), and ways to connect to spelling/writing using these methods. Plus, I will recommend some resources to help with teaching and practicing this in your classroom.

Students are ready for segmenting and blending when they have a good concept of word, which includes these phonological awareness routines:

  • Fun with words:  rhyming, tongue twisters / alliteration
  • Familiar with syllables:  clapping or counting # of word parts
  • Hearing and identifying # of words in a sentence: Concept of spoken word is important as a beginning reader so students track under each word a word at a time, not a syllable at a time. Example:  In this pictured sentence, does the child keep their finger under “apple” until it is done?
  • Hearing onsets and rimes:  Can the child segment cat into c + at?  Or shop into sh + op? The onset is the first part of the word before the vowel. The rime is the rest of the word starting with the vowel. The notion of word families is built on the concept of identifying onsets and rimes. Hearing these is a prerequisite to reading them later. Check out this great piece from Reading Rockets on onsets and rimes: https://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/onset_rime

Segmenting:  Segmenting is the practice of separating the individual sounds in each word. Phonemic awareness activities help students attend to this in an oral fashion. Then connecting them with the actual letters is what phonics instruction is based on.  Here are a few examples of segmenting for a phonics lesson:

  • Listen and look at the word dog. Can you take it apart sound by sound? /d/ + /o/ + /g/
  • Listen and look at the word ship.  Take it apart sound by sound:  /sh/ + /i/ + /p/
  • Listen and look at the word feet.  Take it apart sound by sound: /f/ + /ee/ + /t/

This is the skill we want students to be able to do when they are spelling/writing the words. Ask them:  “What do you hear? Say it slowly and listen for all of the sounds.” Use of Elkonin boxes and “The Arm” are helpful tools for children to visually and auditorally isolate the individual sounds. See more information about this at the end of this post.

Blending: While segmenting is a worthwhile skill, it is the actual blending we want students to be able to do quickly and smoothly so it hooks the letters/sounds together and doesn’t sound choppy as they are reading.

Here are a few methods to help with segmenting and blending:

Elkonin Sound Boxes:  A box is used or drawn for each sound in the word. To me, these are most helpful with single-syllble predictable short as well as long vowel words.  I use them often with spelling to help a child notice the different sounds. Then once the sound is identified, the corresponding letters can be put in the boxes. IMPORTANT: Draw an arrow under the sound boxes for students to trace with their finger under the letters to make sure they are not choppy, but hooking the letter sounds together (blending). Here are some resources to help with using this tool.

For cvce words, the silent e would be placed outside the last box. Why? The e does not make a sound, but it is part of the spelling. This also may give the student the opportunity to practice the “flip the vowel” strategy when reading cvce words. If they try the short vowel sound, but it doesn’t make sense or sound right, then flip to the long vowel sound.

“The Arm” Method: Take advantage of the 3 parts of the arm to model the 3 sounds in a word by pointing to the shoulder (beginning sound), inside of elbox (middle sound), and hand (end sound). Tapping each part of the arm is the segmenting portion. Then blend the sounds together by running your hand down the length of your arm as you quickly blend together to pronounce the word. Again, this provides a visual and auditory model for students.

“Drive-Thru” Method:  PLEASE watch this video from Reading Rockets showing the Drive-Thru method for segmenting and blending.  I love it! The teacher models first using a large toy car on the whiteboard as she/he “drives” to each sound, slowly at first, then faster to accomplish blending the sounds together quickly. The letters making up the beginning, middle, and ending sounds are placed at different parts of the board — but still in order. Notice the consonants are placed at the bottom, with the vowel(s) at the top.  I presume this is to give the students more of the experience of “driving” as they go from one sound to the next (as opposed to putting them in a straight line like in sound boxes). After the teacher models this with a few examples (the “I do / We do” parts of the lesson), then students practice the “you do” part with their own little Hot Wheels / Matchbox cars.

Here is the link to the Reading Rockets article and video about Segmenting and Blending. Click on the article and then you will see the short “Drive-Thru” video.  You will see cvc words, words with blends, etc.

Connecting to Spelling and Writing

  • Help students use the “arm” method to break apart or stretch out words to hear the sounds they are trying to spell.
  • Ask students:  What do you hear? Write the letters down in the order you hear them.
  • Provide students with magnetic letters and pre-made sound boxes to make the words they are trying to spell. Here is my sound box template (2 sides): Sound Boxes CE
  • Use picture cards along with sound boxes for students to spell (see resource above).
  • For weekly spelling words, make sure students can segment and blend the letters together on their own so they can do this while they are taking their spelling test.  For KG or first grade assessment (and maybe some second graders), I definitely recommend using the “arm” method or provide a sound box template for students to use.  And to help students gradually get the idea of a spelling test, I would recommend the teacher segmenting the sounds for the words involved (once), then asking students to do that out loud (as many times as they need to in order to write the correct letters). This is a scaffolded task to teach students this is what they should eventually be doing on their own.  It would go something like this on a pre-test or test:
    • Your first word is “hop.”
    • Listen to the sounds: /h/ + /o/ + /p/
    • Now you say the sounds as you write the letters. Say them over and over until you are done spelling the word.
    • Use your arm (or pre-printed sound boxes for test day) to help you as well.
    • The next word is “fog.” . . . .

Next time I will focus on substituting and deleting phonemes, and their connections to reading words with common rimes. Have a great week!!

 

Phonics Part 3: Vowels and Consonants

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

The 5 vowels make up just 19% of the letters of the alphabet, but have 38 different spellings (for the short and long sounds).  The vowels are much like the “glue” that hold words together. The 21 consonants, on the other hand, make up 81% of the letters of the alphabet, and have 54 different spellings (not including the digraphs). Here again is a 44 Phoneme chart 44Phonemes to illustrate this (from Orchestrating Success in Reading by Dawn Reithaug, 2002.)  Stay tuned for other resources and FREEBIES.

Some other interesting vowel and consonant trivia:

  •  “A vowel is a sound that is produced with no obstructions. The air simply floats through your mouth and has very little interaction with your teeth, your lips, or other structures. On the other hand, a consonant has some degree of air obstruction.” (Dr. Molly Ness, Linuistic expert). So now is everyone trying that out like I did? It’s true!  Producing vowel sounds require little or no lip / tongue movement. Whereas most consonants require specific lip and tongue placement.
  • Each syllable is made up of one vowel sound. This is how we count and divide multi-syllabic words (one vowel sound per syllable).
  • While most single consonants only make one sound, there are a few exceptions such as:  c = /s/ or /k/; g = /g/ or /j/; y = /y/ or /long e/ or /long i/; s = /s/ or /z/; x = /ks/ or /z/ . This reveals the letters c and x don’t have their own unique sound.

Then there is this interesting information about how we say the consonant letter names vs. the sound the letter makes — no wonder kids get confused! Here’s a previous blog post going into more detail on this fantastic research. I think it’s a must read for all elementary teachers: Alphabet Letter and Sounds Research (Cindy’s Blog)

Letter names starting with short vowel sound when pronounced:

  • f = /ef/
  • l = /el/
  • m = /em/
  • n = /en/
  • s = /es/
  • x = /eks/
  • r = /ar/ — not exactly a short vowel sound, but close

Letter names with long a sound when pronounced:

  • j = /jay/
  • k = /kay/

Letter names with long e sound when pronounced:

  • b = /bee/
  • c = /see/
  • d = /dee/
  • g = /jee/
  • p = /pee/
  • t = /tee/
  • v = /vee/
  • z = /zee/

Letter names with pronunciatons not using their letter sound:

  • h = /aych/ —  the letter sound is pronounced /h-h-h/
  • q = /kue/ — the letter sound is /kwuh/
  • w = /double u/ — the letter sound is pronounced /wuh/
  • y = /why/ — the letter sound is pronounced /yuh/

The article on Alphabet Research I referenced above has some excellent instructional guidelines for introducing and teaching the letter sounds. If you are a “letter of the week” teacher, this may shed some light on what newer research has revealed.

Here are some good strategies for vowel and consonant instruction in the classroom. Please share some of yours that aren’t on my list!!

  • Check out Kate Garner’s “Secret Stories.”  https://www.katiegarner.com/ She has a fantastic approach to help students notice what their mouth is doing when saying a sound and links it to fun phrases and actions.
  • POST an alphabet chart in the classroom which includes pictures, big enough to be seen across the room.  A good thing to look for is one that has 2 pictures for the vowels, or has the vowels in a different color. To me, this is a MUST in pre-K, KG and first grade classrooms. A poster close to your group teaching station is also highly recommended for easy, quick reference.
  • Here’s a desk alphabet chart that is handy for use at your small group station. FREE alphabet chart from TPT (Mrs. Ricca’s Kindergarten)
  • Learn letter formation steps that can be repeated. Here’s an idea from Pinterest: Lower case letter formation rhymes and Uppercase rhymes for letter formation
  • Provide lots of alphabet books in the reading center for individual reading time.
  • Learn the sign language finger spelling for letters of the alphabet. Here’s a link: ASL Finger Spelling Charts
  • Match upper and lower case letters.
  • Match pictures (beginning sounds) with letters.
  • Do picture sorts with 2-3 letters/sounds at a time.
  • Use object sorting tubs.
  • If working on 2 sounds at a time, give children those 2 letters on cards or with letter tiles. Teacher says the word or shows a picture and the students must descriminate between the two to hold up (all students engaged).
  • In shared or guided writing, have children supply the beginning consonant or vowel sound instead of the teacher writing. Example:  If writing the sentence We will go to the library today, the teacher could get students to help with spelling parts of the words (the w, l, t and perhaps the e, i, o  in we, will, and go).
  • Look for particular vowels and consonants in short poems (see Phonics Part 1 for resources).
  • Make alphabet books.  These could be individual or a class big book which can be viewed over and over again during center time.
  • Refer to one of my favorite bloggers / TPT authors for young children (This Reading Mama): https://thisreadingmama.com/teaching-letter-sounds/
  • Making letters with play-dough or in an art related activity should always be connected with pictures and sound practice so students can connect the sound to the letter.

Finally, using knowledge of beginning letters along with picture cues can help a child read easy texts and verify the correct word was used. Here are two examples:

  1. Look at the ______.  If a child only looks at the picture, it might be read as “Look at the rabbit.” But asking the child to confirm by looking at the first letter should reveal the word can not be rabbit because the word shown begins with the letter b.
  2. I can see my _______. If a child only looks at the picture, it might be read as “I can see my coat.” But asking the child to confirm by looking at the first letter, and prompting the child like this:  “What else could that word be that begins with the /j/ sound?” If the child does read the word jacket correctly, the teacher could ask the child, “How did you know that word wasn’t coat?” This would enable to you to determine if the child was using first letter clues, or just guessing.

Happy Reading!!

Phonics Part 2: What are Phonemes, Graphemes, Blends, Digraphs, and Diphthongs?

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

With 44 different phonemes (sounds) in our English language, no wonder some students have a hard time learning to read! Click on this link to get a chart to show all 44: 44 Phonemes This list shows the 5 vowels, 18 consonant sounds (remember the letters c, q, and x don’t make their own distinct sound), the combinations of vowels (digraphs, diphthongs and r-controlled), as well as the consonant digraphs. See the end of this post for some freebies. And be sure to reference Phonics Part 1 for some other cool resources and videos for teaching phonics.

Below are some commonn phonics terms that often get confused.

Phoneme: The smallest unit of sound. Phonemes can be made up of more than one letter. Phonemic awareness experiences are those in which students listen to or produce these phonemes that are heard in words. Here are some examples:

  • Phonemes can be made up of one or more letters: /d/, /sh/, /ow/
  • The word dog has 3 phonemes:  /d/ + /0/ + /g/.
  • The word ship also has 3 phonemes: /sh/ + /i/ + /p/
  • The word cow has 2 phonemes: /k/ + /ow/

Grapheme: The letter or letters used to write the sound (think about the “graph” part of the word). What obviously gets confusing is that many phonemes can be represented by different graphemes such as:

  • Long a:  sayrain, gateeight
  • /f/:  phone, farm, enough
  • /k/:  cat, Christmas, kick

Blend:  A combination of 2 or 3 consonant letters in which each consonant sound is voiced, but blended together.  Blends are often found at the beginning and/or ending of words. Sometimes blends are referred to as consonant clusters.  Here are some common blends:

  • r blends:  br, cr, dr, fr, gr, kr, pr, tr   Be on the alert for students who actually hear /jr/ or /chr/ when looking at words with “dr” or “tr.”
  • l blends:  bl, cl, fl, gl, kl, pl, sl
  • s blends:  sc, sk, sl, sm, sn, sp, st, sw
  • 3 letter blends: scr, str, spl

Consonant Digraph:  Two consonants which work together, but make one sound. These are made with the letters ch, sh, ph, th, wh, kn, wr. The “graph” part of the word “digraph” deals with the concept of writing / spelling (ie graphics, grapheme).

  • Often these are introduced early in phonics since they are present in many sight words: sh, th, wh, ch

Vowel Digraph:  Like consonant digraphs, vowel digraphs are the written vowel pairs or teams which work together to produce one sound.  Some vowel digraphs are vowels combined with consonants (such as ow, ay, aw). Here are some examples:

  • ea:  team, reach, bread
  • oo:  foot, soon
  • ai:  chain, bait

Diphthongs:  The sound created when two combined vowels are pronounced differently.  The word diphthong comes from the Greek language meaning “two voices” or “two sounds.” Most common diphthongs are spelled with the digraphs ou, ow, oi, oy.  Notice how your mouth changes or glides as you make these sounds. They aren’t long a (as in ai, ay) or long e (as in ea, ee), etc; but usually a sound that cannot be classified as a long vowel or short vowel sound.

Here are some cool charts (FREE) which are handy to keep at your teacher table to show the different letters, digraphs, and blends you are likely to reference:

Please share your thoughts or your own ideas!

Phonics Part 1: Getting Started

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

The National Reading Panel has named five essential components of reading: phonological awareness (which includes phonemic awareness), phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. To be a reader, a student must learn how to decode words and also comprehend them. As I encounter students in my consulting practice, many are at a loss regarding ways to decode words and thus fall further and further behind. According to numerous educational articles about the science of teaching reading, teachers are also often feeling they didn’t have the proper background information from their university experiences about how to teach children to read. Plus, many of my subscribers are alternatively or emergency certified and have not had this information presented to them either. Check out this article. Notice how explicit phonics instruction is a central focus: https://www.nctq.org/blog/The-Science-of-Teaching-Reading

Most reading classrooms utilize a balanced literacy model, trying to devote an equal amount of time to the above 4-5 components. Often times due to time constraints, phonics is “covered” through the spelling lessons or through individualized computer programs. This is not enough. Many commercial reading series provide some phonics instruction, but the lessons are often not to-the-point, rely too much on worksheets, and have too much teacher talk (in my opinion). Many teachers with whom I work have expressed they don’t feel adquate in their attempts to help students beyond saying, “sound it out.”

So let’s see if we can tackle this beast for the next few posts.  Here’s what I plan to focus on:

  • What are the sound / letter combinations students should know?
  • Why are letter sounds and spelling them often difficult?
  • Do students know the difference between vowels and consonants?
  • What is the benefit of helping students know what their lips and tongue are doing as they make various letter sounds?
  • What are some of the best rules of phonics?
  • How many of the “rules” actually work?
  • There are many different ways a student can “sound out” a word. What are they?
  • What to do if a student’s only method is to sound out each letter one at a time?
  • What role do the 3 cueing systems play in reading instruction. How is phonics involved?
  • What are some helpful resources for the teacher as well as the students?
  • How often and what should be included in an explicit phonics lesson?
  • How can the teacher monitor a student’s progress with regard to phonics knowledge?
  • How can the teacher assist the parents so everyone is on the same page regarding helpful strategies?

Here are three wonderful easy to use systematic resources that will help us get started:

Free phonics lessons:Lots of words (and sentences) to practice each phonics skill. The phonics skill is also explained.

Free video phonics reading lessons:Watch the blending procedure and practice in short video clips.

Explicit Phonics Lessons (from W. Virginia):These lessons focus on how to physically articulate the sound (where is the tongue, what are the lips doing?) as well as an I do, we do, you do approach. An easy to implement routine.

Reading Routines Part 5: Phonics (OK Math and Reading Lady)This is a previous post of mine. We will revisit some of the comments made there throughout this series.

What phonics instruction concerns and questions do you have? Please feel free to comment (click on speech bubble at the top of this post). 

Sight Words Part 2: Activities and Resources

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

This post contains some of my favorite sight word activities and resources to help your students practice those sight words and high frequency words.  If you haven’t read part 1 (Sight word instructional tips), be sure to do that as it contains information about research based teaching strategies. Here goes!!

  1. Sight word tic-tac-toe:
    • Played with partners or teacher vs. students
    • Materials needed:  tic-tac-toe template on a small whiteboard or on a laminated page
    • Two-color counters so each student can mark their spot
    • Select 9 sight words you would like to review.  Have students write them in randomly in the 9 tic-tac-toe spaces
    • Each player selects a word to read.  If read correctly, they can put their counter on the space.  You may also require students to use the word in a sentence.
    • 3 in a row wins the game. Then play again!
    • You may choose to give corrective feedback regarding missed words:  Example:  “No, this word is ________. You say it.”
  2. Sight word sentence cards:

    from thisreadingmama.com

    • Using the words in sentences (or phrases) helps students put the word into context.
    • Try these sight word cards from a blogger I follow (www.thisreadingmama.com).  If you subscribe to her blog, you will find these and dozens of other good reading resources for free. Check out: Sight Word Cards with Sentences (Link to free resources)
  3. Sight word teaching routine:
    • Please take a look at this KG teacher’s routine for teaching and practicing sight words.  It is called “Sight Word 60” because through this routine, students get a chance to hear and use the word 60 times during the week. Sight Word 60 by Greg Smedly-WarrenLook for videos for each day, plus center and celebration activities. This routine can also be followed in 1st and 2nd grade classes or small groups.  Especially good for use with tutors, paraprofessionals, or volunteers!
  4. Sight word path game:
    • This simple path game scenario is well-researched. You are likely to find several versions available. Here is mine (also pictured below): Reading Race Track for Sight Words CE   In part 1 (last post), I linked one from another popular blogger (Playdough to Plato). Here is another editable one from Iowa Reading Research: Reading Race Track (editable).
    • Teacher fills in the words being practiced (5-7 words repeated 4x each placed randomly).
    • The track can be used by students for practice (they can roll a die, move to the space, pronounce the word, and perhaps use it in a sentence).
    • The track can be used by teachers and students for timed practice after they have been introduced. A recording sheet is included with my version as well as the Iowa version.

      Page 2 of Reading Race Track by C.E.

  5. Sight words in context:
    • Of course students benefit from practicing sight words in context.  In your guided reading group, allow students to use mini magnifying glasses (check the dollar stores) or those fancy finger nails that slip over a finger to locate sight words you call out.
    • My favorite way to practice sight words in context is through short, fun poetry. Here is a great resource (sorry, it’s not free) full of poems which target specific sight words. I’m sure there are others out there – let us know of ones you have found! Sight Word Poems for Shared Reading ($4 TPT by Crystal McGinnis) 
  6. SWAT!
      • Find some new flyswatters.  If you are working with a small group, you just need 2.
      • Lay out 4-8 sight words you are working on (table top or floor). You could also write them on the board. Teacher calls out a word.
      • The object is for the students to locate and hold their swatter on the word you call out.
      • The student who found it first will have their swatter under the second student’s swatter — proof of who found it first.
      • This is also great for other vocabulary practice or math facts!!

    Find the word “said”

  7. Memory / Concentration:
    • Make 2 copies of each sight word on index size cards. You might limit to 8 cards for KG students and 12 cards for 1st or 2nd.
    • Arrange the cards in a rectangular array.
    • First player selects 2 cards to turn over and read. If they are a match, they can keep them.
    • STRESS to students to just turn the cards over and leave them down — don’t pick them up. This is because the other students are trying to remember where these are located – and they need to be able to see them and their location. It’s a brain thing!!

Notice that in all of these methods, the students need to read and say the word (and perhaps use it in a sentence). Be sure your sight word activities reinforce these. Activities in which students just merely match, stamp, copy, write in different colors, recreate with letter tiles, etc. do very little to help them really know the word. Have FUN!!!

Sight Words Part 1: Teaching Strategies

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Sight words are those which students can identify automatically without the need to decode. They often do not follow phonics “rules.” Examples: who, all, you, of. They may include some high frequency words (HFW). High frequency words are those which occur most often in reading and writing. By learning 100 of the HFW, a beginning reader can access about 50% of text.  According to Fry, these 13 words account for 25% of words in print:  a, and, for, he, is, in, it, of, that, the, to, was, you.

When are students ready to learn sight words?  According to the experts from Words Their Way (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton), student need to have a more fully developed concept of word.  Concept of Word is the ability to track a memorized text without getting off track, even on a 2-syllable word. In other words, does the child have a one-to-one correspondence with words? When tracking, does their finger stay under a 2-syllable word until it is finished, or are they moving from word-to-word based on the syllable sounds they hear? In the sentence shown, does a student move their finger to the next word after saying ap- or do they stay on the whole word apple before moving on? Students in the early Letter-Name Stage (ages 4-6) start to understand this concept. It becomes more fully developed mid to later stages of Letter Names (ages 5-8).

Students with a basic concept of word are able to acquire a few words from familiar stories and text they have “read” several times or memorized. Students with a full concept of word can finger point read accurately and can correct themselves if they get off track. They can find words in text. Therefore, many sight words are acquired after several rereadings of familiar text.

Instructional Strategies KG-2nd Grade

1. To help children gain concept of word:

  • Point to words as you read text to them (big books, poetry on charts, etc.).
  • Invite children to point to words.
  • Pair memorized short poems with matching word cards for students to reconstruct. Using a pocket chart is helpful.

2. Explicit Instruction: Dedicated time each day for sight word work

  • KG: 1-3 words per week; 1st grade: 3-5 words per week
  • Introduce with “fanfare and pageantry”.
  • Read, chant, sing, spell, write.
  • Use them in a sentence and ask children to do the same.
  • Use letter tiles, magnetic letters, word cards.
  • Use with a word wall (see more info later in this post).
  • Locate in text you are reading (poems, big books, stories in small group).

    a box of juice

  • Many sight words are hard to explain the meaning (the, was, of). Associate with a picture such as: a box of juice.
  • Reinforce with small group instruction.
  • Practice at learning stations:  CAUTION — activities should be done with previously learned  words to promote fluency. If the words are not known, then stamping them in playdough or writing them multiple times may not help you achieve your objective. Saying them correctly along with visual recognition is key. Go to this blogger’s link for many free resources for reinforcing sight words.  http://www.playdoughtoplato.com/pirate-sight-word-game/   She has a simple path board game which is editable. You can put in 1-5 sight words to practice – students must say the word to their partner to advance along the path. She is a great resource for KG-2nd grade!!
  • I (and experts) do not recommend using sight words on weekly spelling lists. Research suggests  spelling words should follow typical orthographic patterns, which many sight words do not have (ex: who, was, all, of). If you practice sight words in ways mentioned above, students will get better at spelling them or can refer to the word wall when needed for writing assignments.

3. Flash Card Practice (Research based method) with no more than 10 words: Continue reading

Reading Routines Part 5: Phonics

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Research supports the fact that explicit systematic phonics instruction is highly beneficial to students. In other words, phonics instruction should make up part of the daily reading routine . . . especially in primary classrooms. Here is Reading Rockets take on the Alphabetic Principle: “Alphabetic principle is the idea that letters and letter patterns represent the sounds of spoken language. It differs from oral language and phonemic awareness because it is introducing students to letters and incorporating what they have already learned (sounds). It is showing them that the sounds they have learned have letters and can all be put together.” Here’s some more info from RRockets on this subject: Alphabetic Principle

Phonics instruction starts with matching letters with sounds as well as naming the letter. Here is a summary I wrote regarding some  fantastic research on alphabet learning (to change from the former letter-of-the-week method): Alphabet Letter / Sounds Research

  • Some of the most significant parts of the research for me was the realization that saying the letter name results in a variety of added vowel sounds such as short e sounds /em/ = m; /ef/ = f; or sometimes a long a /kay/ = k; /jay/ = j; or sometimes long e /dee/ = d; /tee/ = t; or something all together different such as /aich/ = h; /double u/ = w.
  • Sometimes the letter name is close to the sound assigned to it, and sometimes it’s not.
  • The research provides some evidence that letter of the day instruction with 5 to 6 cycles of instruction was very beneficial. Each cycle had a different focus such as letters common in the students’ names, most frequently used letters, by the ways letters are formed, etc.

In my last post on phonemic awareness (see Reading Routines Part 4), I shared the progession from sound boxes to letter boxes and included a couple of good videos. These are very helpful with cvc words and other one syllable words. The goal in all of this is to move from letter-by-letter sounding out to continuous blending and chunking.

So what do explicit phonics instructional programs look like? Although not set in stone, there is usually a progression of skills that look similar to this:

  • Letter and sound matching
  • CVC with short vowel practice
  • CVCe with long vowel practice
  • Beginning consonant blends
  • Beginning consonant digraphs
  • Vowel pairs
  • R controlled vowels
  • Vowel diphthongs
  • Multi-syllablic words

Starting in 2nd grade, the emphasis is more on the vowel patterns (such as different ways to spell the long a sound) as well as consonant combinations, both beginning and ending (such as ck, ng, str). Grades 3 and above focus on these as well, but improve and apply to multi-syllablic words. Most textbooks have a daily phonics lessons to help you keep your instructional explicit and systematic.

These are at the core of all phonics instructional programs:

  • Connecting phonics instruction to weekly spelling patterns and learning centers helps students practice a specific set of words and apply the skill to other similar words.
  • Moving away from sounding out words letter-by-letter to try continuous blending and chunking (by looking for common parts or patterns)
  • Using knowledge of one syllable words to apply to multi-syllablic words
  • Relating known words to new words (often called an Analogy Strategy). Here is an example I used with a 5th grader recently who was trying to read the word “wren” in a portion of text. Obviously this bird species is not well known, and the context didn’t help her with the pronunciation.  I just simply wrote the word “write” on my little white board because I was positive she knew it – and she recognized it immediately. Then I said, “Use what you know about this word (write) to help with the word in your text.” She was able to make the analogy quickly! I didn’t have to go into a phonics lesson on how to pronounce words with wr, etc.

Your phonics instruction is strengthened via fix-it strategies which are embedded in your day-to-day teaching situations (guided reading, etc.). Here is a link to my fix-it-strategies post: Decoding fix-it-strategies Continue reading

Reading Routines Part 4: Phonemic Awareness

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

This is Part 4 of a series about daily reading routines I recommend. Previously we have looked at read alouds, independent reading, and phonological awareness. Today’s focus is Phonemic Awareness. Some videos and freebies via TPT are linked below.

See link #3 below for FREE task cards from TPT

Phonemic Awareness is under the umbrella of phonological awareness. This encompasses pre-reading skills associated with the sounds of language. Phonemic awareness is the part dealing with individual phonemes and how they can be identified, segmented, blended, and manipulated to create recognizable units or words . . . . the auditory portion. Students need a firm foundation with this aspect before they can adequately apply it to phonics and reading (which is where the visual aspects of the letters that make these sounds appears). So here are some basics about phonemic awareness:

  • Phonemes are the basic sound units. In the English language there are 44 of them (the consonants, the vowels, digraphs, etc.). Here is a good, short list from Orchestrating Success in Reading by Dawn Reithaug (2002).: 44 Phonemes However, if you want to go more in depth, then this link should satisfy your curiosity (or make you want to quit teaching spelling) from The Reading Well44 Phonemes in Detail
  • Onsets/rimes:  The onset is the part of the word before the vowel. The rime is the part of the word including and after the vowel. Examples: In the word shop, /sh/ is the onset and /op/ is the rime. In the word bed, /b/ is the onset and /ed/ is the rime.
  • Identifying: When presented with a word orally, can a student identify the beginning sound or ending sound? Example: What is the beginning sound in the word moon? /m/.  What is the last sound in the word jump? /p/. The brackets are used to represent the sound – the child is not asked to name the letter.
  • Segmenting: When presented with these words, can a student take the parts or individual sounds apart orally (segment)? Examples: bed = /b/ + /ed/ or /b/ + /e/ + /d/.  Students would NOT be asked at this point to identify the letters that make those sounds, just the sounds.
  • Blending: When presented with these sounds, can a student put them together orally (blend) to form a word?  Examples:  /k/ + /at/ = cat; or /sh/ + /o/ + /p/ = shop
  • Manipulating:  This involves adding, deleting, or substituting sounds. Example:  What is /ap/ with /m/ added to the beginning? (map). What is /land/ without the /l/ sound? (and).  Change the /b/ in bed to /r/. . . (red).

Daily teaching routine for Phonemic Awareness:

  1. If using a reading series, check to see if there is a daily practice with words (like the examples above). Just a few minutes with the whole class is a good introduction and chance for you to observe / listen to who is or is not grasping these tasks.
  2. Use simple pictures (such as fox): Ask students to do some of the following when you feel they are ready:
    • Name the picture and tell the onset and rime. /f/ + /ox/
    • Orally say all of the separate sounds /f/ + /o/ + /ks/.  Use the length of your arm for these cvc words: tap shoulder and say /f/; tap inside elbow and say /o/; tap the wrist and say /ks/.  Then run your hand along the whole arm to blend them back together.
    • Use an Elkonin sound box to show the distinct sounds. For fox, use a 3-part box. Push a chip into each box as each sound is being made (no letters yet, just chips, beans, cubes, pennies, etc.). Then blend all the sounds together. (I like to put an arrow at the bottom of the boxes and run my finger along it to remind students with a visual that the last step is to blend the sounds together.)
    • Change the /f/ to /b/. What word does that sound like? /b/ + /o/ + /ks/ = /box/
    • Change the /ks/ to /g/. What word does that sound like? /f/ + /o/ + /g/ = /fog/
    • Change the /o/ to /i/. What word does that sound like? /f/ + /i/ + /ks/ = /fix/
    • If you remove the /f/ sound, what is left? /oks/ or /ox/
    • Be sure to use short and long vowel words, digraphs, etc. because it’s all about hearing the separate parts – not about matching up the letters that make those sounds.
  3. Follow up these same routines during guided reading and work station time. Here are 2 links from TPT (FREE) with some great sound box practice opportunities:

Here is a great short video I recommend regarding the Elkonin sound boxes: Sound boxes

When you are ready to progress from sound boxes to letter boxes, these two videos should be very helpful.

These routines will be very important once you feel they are ready to associate the letter(s) that make these sounds (via phonics, spelling, and writing). A phonics routine will be the next topic. So stay tuned!

Reading Routines Part 3: Phonological Awareness

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Daily explicit routines regarding phonological awareness and phonics are important, especially for KG-2nd grade levels (and beyond for those who are in need of extra intervention). Whether you are utilizing the textbook’s recommended lesson plan or seeking out on your own, I’d like to advocate for a daily routine to teach and/or practice these skills. In this post, I will focus mostly on teaching early phonological awareness routines and how they are connected to later reading, spelling, and writing success.

Phonological Awareness encompasses pre-reading skills associated with the sounds of language. If you have assessed this at the PreK-2nd grade levels, you know part of the assessment involves identifying spoken words, rhymes, syllables, onsets/rimes, and identifying, segmenting, blending, and substituting phonemes. Phonemic awareness is under the umbrella of phonological awareness with more of a focus on the latter part (onsets/rimes, and identifying, segmenting, blending, and manipulating phonemes). All of this, regardless, is based on SOUNDS only. This awareness is AUDITORY and not print related.

My opinion regarding this daily routine, is for a whole class explicit 10-15 minute lesson. During the whole class daily routine, keep mental tabs or quick notes on who has difficulty so you can follow up during small group and learning station opportunities throughout the week. Try video taping your routine for those “extra eyes.” See a link to some FREE research-based activities at the end of this post.

Spoken Words: 

I have observed frequently that young students do not always know the difference between letters, words, and sentences. I usually discover this via writing lessons. Wonder why students don’t space between words? Or spread letters within a word far apart? I think it may go back to a misunderstanding about this very basic phonological awareness concept.

The assessment for this involves the teacher stating a sentence and the child pushes chips or pennies to indicate how many words were heard. Usually this isn’t too difficult until the teacher utters a 2-syllable word. Does the child understand this to be one or two words?

Believe it or not, this is a huge key concept later when the child is reading text. You may discover errors with 1-to-1 correspondence. When reading this sentence: “The apple is good.” does the child keep their finger on apple until the word is finished, or do they move their finger for each syllable? And then, as mentioned previously, it also becomes a hindrance when writing.

As you can see then, concept of spoken word is closely tied to the understanding of syllables. The number of syllables per word is determined by the number of vowel sounds heard. Friend = 1 syllable. Funny = 2 syllables. There are several ways to count them:

  • Clap or snap each syllable
  • Count with fingers
  • Feel the jaw move

Why is knowledge about hearing syllables important to later reading skills?

  • Breaking apart words by syllables is an important reading strategy. Can the child visually see the syllable and then pronounce each part as if it was a little word (example: yes-ter-day).
  • Breaking apart words by syllables is an important spelling and writing strategy.  Hearing the sounds of the word is just as important as the visual aspects of the word. Trying to spell the word important? Can I hear the parts /im/ + /por/ + /tant/? If I can hear them, I can come closer to spelling them.

Daily teaching routine for Spoken Word and Syllables:

  1. Present a sentence orally. Step 1:  Students repeat the sentence. Step 2: Have them do one of the following to indicate # of spoken words:  clap, stomp, use magnetic chips on a the board, unifix cubes, count with fingers, or select a # of students to match the # of words and they each stand to say one of the words in the sentence – they become the sentence.
  2. State a word and have students clap, snap, or count # of syllables.
  3. Hand out picture cards and have students group together by # of syllables.

Rhyme: Continue reading

Reading Fix-it Strategies: Part 3 “Does it look right?”

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Welcome back to part 3! In this post we will look at some strategies and prompts regarding the visual cueing system. When a student’s main strategy is to use the letters they see to sound out words, they are attempting to make the word(s) look right. This method is often helpful, especially with cvc words or words which are phonetic. We do want kids to know how to segment the sounds and blend them together to pronounce the word. But we don’t want them to overuse it and neglect the other 2 cueing systems. A good reader uses all 3 at the same time to cross check their reading.

If we want children to use the visual cueing system, there are several “sounding out” strategies. Children often need guidance about which of these works best. So try not to just say, “Sound it out.” This  guide emphasizes many of these strategies. Get it here FREE:  Strategy Chart full size.

  • Sound out letter by letter:  To pronounce had = /h/+/a/+/d/
  • Get the word started with the right sound.
  • Stretch out the sounds slowly (also referred to as continuous blending).
  • Use common chunks (sometimes referred to as rimes, phonograms, word families): spent = /sp/ + /ent/
  • Look for little words within bigger words: stand = /st/ + /and/
  • Flip the vowel:  If a student tried the word time, but pronounced it /t/+/i/+/m/ with the short i sound, tell the child to flip the vowel (meaning they should try the other sound that vowel makes to determine if it makes sense). This is a GREAT strategy to use without having to go into a mini lesson about vowel pairs, silent e, and other phonics rules concerning vowels.  Just say, “Flip the vowel.”
  • Think of another known word which has a similar spelling: If the child is trying to read the word were think of the word her. Trying to read the word tree? Think of the word see.

Continue reading

New reading resource

I added this new resource in the literacy section of the resources in my blog.  See the black band at the top of my home page – click on “Resources.”

Go to “This Reading Mama” by clicking on this link:  https://thisreadingmama.com/

Look for “Free Printables.”  She has one of the best selections I’ve seen for reading (especially in the primary grades). You will find sight words with sentences cards, word families, color the chunk, phonics, spelling folders, abc books, etc. — all for FREE!

Enjoy!  C. Elkins — OK Math and Reading Lady

Writing Part 5: Temporary Spelling and Word Wall

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Can u reed wut i am riting? Can u tel frum my riting that i no most uv the mane sonds in werds? I no sum site werds, i no the sonds in order frum left to rite as i strech them out. I no sum vowl paterns. I can evn spel sum 2 silubul werds by trying 1 silubul at a time. After i am dun riting, the teecher helps me pik out 2 werds to lern. Then i practis them a fu timez and add them to my speshul werd book so i can find and uz them agen.

This is an example of temporary spelling appropriate for a late KG-2nd grade student. The “student” was able to focus on the content of their writing using spelling strategies mentioned in my previous posts:

  • Stretch out sounds or use sound boxes.
  • Clap to hear the distinct syllables and spell each syllable separately.
  • Think about spelling patterns from known or rhyming words.
  • Use words posted on the word wall and/or in the individual word book.
  • Try words different ways to see which one looks right.

For this student, I would have selected these 2 words (werd/word and frum/from) for further practice because they were used often, close to the correct spelling, and only need minor adjustments. I usually have them circle the words we chose. These words only need minor tweaking and they are likely to be words needed often for future writing. When the words are added to his/her word book, they are there for reference and are more likely to be used correctly in the future. Continue reading

Writing Part 4: How to get kids to stay on topic

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

I support you, OK teachers!!! I walked with you in 1990 and in 2007-2008. I feel your frustrations and have been contacting OK representatives and senators this past year on your behalf. Last in pay, overcrowded classes, lack of supplies, on and on – I experienced it myself and see it everyday when I visit classes. I am proud of you, your goals, and your actions to affect change.  I am with you all the way!!!

Today’s post will focus on moving children toward more independent writing. A strategy I love to use addresses the following writing points:

  1. Composing sentences
  2. Staying on the chosen topic
  3. Practicing temporary spelling strategies (sounding out, stretching sounds, clapping syllables, thinking of words that rhyme, using related known words)
  4. Applying conventions of print (spacing within and between words, left to right, return sweep, etc.)
  5. Using class word wall (or individual word book)
  6. Proofreading and fluency

I have used this strategy and have felt successful with it. After students have seen me model writing in various forms (example: class news or other shared writing experiences), I usually follow these steps: Continue reading

Writing Part 3: Modeling and Shared Writing

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

I will share several writing strategies via this series of posts on Writing. Part 1 was a focus on the continuum and word-writing strategies. Part 2 focused on the importance of letter formation and handwriting (printing) with a way to incorporate it with concepts of print, phonics, and composing sentences. In this part, I would like to focus on a modeling / shared writing strategy I call “Class News.” I utilized this strategy with KG-3rd grade classes and will share some pictures and ideas with you. I also wrote an article about this that appeared many years ago in the Oklahoma Reader, a publication by the OK Reading Association.

What is it?  I called students together each day for math talk time. After this, we held a class news session. Writing the date was part of the routine (but it doesn’t have to be). Students took turns sharing news of importance to them – and sometimes some other news about the day was added. For younger students it was a definite time to emphasize a variety of concepts of print:

  1. Directionality and return sweep (going to the next line from left to right)
  2. Spacing within and between words (see part 2 reference to “spaghetti and meatballs”)
  3. Letter formation – tall letters vs. short letters vs. below the line letters
  4. Use of capitals and punctuation
  5. Noticing the difference between letters, words, and sentences
  6. The opportunity to think aloud about letter sounds and sight words

After a sentence was orally agreed on, I wrote parts of it and solicited help from students for parts I felt they could be successful with. This often varied depending on what I wanted to emphasize. At first it was beginning letters or ending letters. Then I would try leaving out the vowels for students to work on. Gradually, different word parts or whole words were left for students to complete (usually with a different colored marker). All the while I was right next to them guiding them.

I also kept a few learning aids handy (alphabet chart with pictures, letter formation chart, vowel pairs chart, etc.) so we could reference them when needed. I have linked some FREE mini charts at the end of this post. Example:  A student is finishing the word “toad” and is thinking of the correct vowel pair, so I show my vowel pairs chart and point to the word “boat” and say, “Do you see a word / picture that has the same middle sound as the word toad?” . . . child finds boat to see the letters oa.  I also kept a small white board (or clip board) handy. For example, if the child came to write the sight word “have” on the chart, I might ask them to write it on the white board or clipboard first to check their thinking – that way all the kinks were worked out and the news chart stayed in a non-smudged condition. I also used the whiteboard to make sound boxes for a student to work out the sounds (like for a cvc word). Continue reading

Writing Part 2: Concepts of Print and Handwriting

by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

I read an interesting blog post about checking children’s ability to distinguish between letters, words, and sentences. While I always considered that a reading skill related to “concepts of print,” it dawned on me that this relates strongly to a child’s successful writing experience too. This whole concept is what I will explore in today’s post – along with my opinions and ideas about teaching handwriting / penmanship.

Do you want to see if your students can distinguish between letter, word, and sentence? Try something like this from www.kindergartenchaos.com.

Here are some other links to help your children practice this.

  1.  Letter, Word and Sentence Sort (Free @ TPT)
  2. Kinderblossoms.blogspot lesson using poem to teach letter vs. word vs. sentence concepts
  3. Word, letter, or sentence cut-n-paste (free @ TPT)
  4. Pocket chart concepts of print (free @ TPT)

Using poems on a weekly basis (as with the spider poem in video from #2 above), make it easy to highlight these features (letter, word, sentence) as you continue to practice emphasizing the difference.

So when I want KG or 1st graders to write and I model how to write letters, and put space between these letters and words to write a sentence, they will hopefully have this concept under control. It seems to be pretty common that students aren’t always “seeing” this because they string everything together in one line with no differentiation in spacing between letters and words. Or they confuse letters with numbers.

Another blog I was reading had a great visual that I started trying regarding ways to teach spacing within words and between words when writing. Call it “spaghetti and meatballs.” When writing words, the space between the letters (within the word) should be really close (so that a skinny piece of spaghetti will fit in between). When writing a sentence, the space between the words should be the size of a meatball. Placing an uncooked spaghetti strand is a great visual aid! Regarding the meatball, however — I would tell students, “We can’t lay a meatball on our paper, but one or two fingers might work because they are about the same size.” Or if possible, provide a popsicle stick to each student to use as their spacer. Continue reading