Teaching phonics to young readers...
How do you go about teaching phonics? Phonics is the "how-to" of reading. It is critical that children learn to use phonics skills to quickly and easily figure out words.
What is important
- Review letters and sounds.
- Blend and segment two and three letter words with short vowel sounds (ie: dog, cat, pig)
- Blend and segment beginning and ending consonant blends (ie: /pl/ in play or /nd/ in bend)
How to help children develop these concepts and skills
- Sound out a three-letter short vowel sound word together, for example, cat. Place the three from the target word in front of the child. As you sound out the word, let the child find the letters that make the sounds.
- When teaching phonics, teach blending in four stages. (See the video below.)
- Say the first two sounds individually. Blend them, then add the last sound and blend the word.
- Say the sounds for each letter individually, then blend the word.
- Say only the vowel sound, then blend the word.
- Blend the word.
To see all of the skills in the Early reading and writing stage, click on the links below
Phonics
Sight Words
Writing
Vocabulary and Oral Language
Phonemic Awareness
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