Many students struggle with split vowel spellings a-e, e-e, i-e, o-e, u-e. These are also known as ‘split digraphs’, ‘magic e’ and ‘vowel + e’. These students need extra explicit instruction and practice reading words with these split spellings. It […]
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Dictation is great activity for emerging spellers
Most teachers approach teaching in a child-centred way so dictation goes against the grain. It may seem old-fashioned and yes, a bit dictatorial. But actually, is it a really powerful tool which is particularly useful for struggling or emerging readers […]
Read MoreHow to teach children about syllables
Before children can begin to read and spell multisyllabic words they need to get a feel for what a syllable is – for what a ‘mouthful of a word’ is. If they have had systematic phonics instruction they may find […]
Read MoreCumulative teaching – how to teach children who forget
Many of my students at the Bloomfield Learning Centre have difficulty remembering the complex alternative spellings of sounds in English. The problem is they don’t hold on to what they have learned. The teacher may teach <ai> and the next […]
Read MoreIndependent review of That Dog! series
We have just received this independent review from Teach Primary Magazine. The review is available online. See link below. Phonic Books – That Dog! for catch-up readers across the school. At a glance: • Age appropriate, synthetic phonic catch-up […]
Read MoreHow to use decodable books
How to use decodable books Decodable books are controlled texts that beginner readers can read independently once they have been taught the spellings in the text. Children learning to read with phonics benefit from reading decodable texts because they allow […]
Read MoreHow to teach reading and spelling with the Smart Chute
It is really important to teach reading and spelling together so that children can see that reading is decoding letters into sounds and spelling is encoding sounds into letters. In short, they are reverse activities. This way children learn how […]
Read MoreWhat is wrong with levelled readers?
Seplfabet explains how levelled readers do not develop the decoding skills children need to become fluent readers. http://www.spelfabet.com.au/2016/02/levelled-books-for-guided-reading/
Read MoreDecodable books – why they are important
What are decodable books? For people who can read – all books are decodable. For children who are learning to read – decodable books are controlled texts that they can decode at each level as they acquire literacy (by sounding out […]
Read MoreHow to correct phonic pronunciation
A fun activity for learning phonic sounds
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