A Primary Teaching Blog
Since the Science of Reading research has gained traction more recently, I have been discussing the difference between leveled readers vs. decodables (see my instagram highlights for some video details). These are important discussions for those of us who teach primary reading/phonics. It can be confusing to know the difference, but as we revamp and reeducate ourselves to align with Science of Reading, it’s… Read More
It’s time for the magic of SILENT E! 🪄 This is absolutely one of my favorite sound/spelling patterns to teach because it unlocks so many more words that creates so much excitement for the students! (note: this isnt the only job of “e”, but it sure is fun) WARM UPS FOR SILENT E When introducing a new phonics patterns, I usually begin… Read More
Blending sounds is when students fluently join phonemes together to make a word. Successive blending is the most effective blending technique (as research shows here). This is where students “stretch out” the sounds in a continuous manner instead of isolating each sound. Examples of blending with the word mat: Successive blending helps students “hold” the sounds in their brain, because how many times… Read More
Phonological awareness is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate words (including phonemes-the smallest sounds) in a language. It is directly linked to decoding and in turn, the success of a reader (you can read more about that here if you want more scholarly work). The lovely thing about phonological awareness is, it only takes about 5-10 minutes a day… Read More
Let’s talk about short vowels. Distinguishing short vowels can be tricky! Especially short i and short e (but I’ll get to that later in this post). Here’s one of my favorite quick activities for short vowel intervention or just practice for that matter. Vowel Tents Basically, your students have “tents” or cards in front of them with each short vowel… Read More
Grammar is an important feature in reading skills, but sometimes it seems mundane to teach. There are some simple ways you can integrate grammar skills into your teaching, reading centers, or small group time. Somethings do need to just be taught directly, but the practice doesn’t have to be boring! Here are some ways you can sneak these skills into… Read More
Beginning sounds are an important part of learning to read and learning those beginning sounds is done mainly through phonological awareness (the ability to hear and manipulate units of sound in spoken language). To learn more about phonemic awareness you can read this blog post. 1. Beginning Sound Sorts My students tend to mix up certain sounds (especially when their… Read More
When I switched from classroom teacher to reading intervention teacher, I was immediately immersed in all things phonemic awareness (PA). Phonemic Awareness is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate sounds in a language. It is directly linked to decoding and in turn, the success of a reader (you can read more about that here if you want more scholarly work)…. Read More
Phonics can easily be left out during virtual learning because it seems so hands on and teacher-directed at times. But I’ve got all the tools you need for teaching phonics during virtual learning! These ideas will make low effort on your part, but high engagement on the students part! Introducing the Phonics Pattern YouTube Video Library I honestly love starting… Read More
I love to begin my phonics block with videos/songs. Songs are a great way to learn and remember new things. Here are a few of my favorite YouTube videos for teaching phonics. If you’re looking for YouTube channels for the primary classroom, check out this blogpost! Note: I try to keep this updated, but know sometimes YouTube videos are removed… Read More
