Many young children learn to sing the ‘A, B, C’ song in nursery or at home. This song teaches them the names and the order of the letters of the alphabet. It’s a great way to store the alphabetic order of letters in our long-term memories. I still use the alphabet song when using a […]
Read MoreLearning to Read
How to choose a good phonics reading scheme
If you’re thinking of using a phonics reading scheme of decodable books, you may be wondering how to choose one. Here are some questions you should be asking.
Read MoreShould fluent readers be taught phonics?
Some children get the hang of reading easily and become fluent readers. Is there any point in taking them through a structured phonics programme?
Read MoreHow to say the sounds of letters in Synthetic Phonics
Most schools in the UK are now following a synthetic phonics programme. All such programmes teach children to pronounce letters in a slightly new and different way. This is called ‘precise pronunciation’ or ‘pure sounds’. Some staff members and parents may find they are not sure about this new pronunciation, as they were not taught […]
Read MoreWhy is English spelling such a headache?
Some languages have a ‘transparent’ phonic code. Take Italian or Spanish: the phonic code is simple and consistent. Once you have mastered the sounds for the letters of the alphabet, you can read and spell. The graphemes (written spellings of a sound) are reliable as they always represent the same sounds! Why is learning to […]
Read MoreTotem Series reviewed
The Totem Series has just been reviewed in SNIP, Special Needs Information Press. This is a really useful publication full of a wealth of information and resources for Special Needs teachers.
Read MoreSynthetic Phonics – a ‘back to basics’ approach to reading?
We often hear people calling for a ‘back to basics’ approach in education. But is synthetic phonics really backwards-looking, or has it some new elements that differ from how reading was taught in the past?
Read MoreSchools white paper – good news for phonics
Some of us may not agree with the coalition’s plans for free schools but, for us phonics enthusiasts, it looks like some good things may come of the new schools white paper.
Read MoreHow to split a multi-syllable word
There are a number of ways to split a multi-syllabic word. It really depends on your approach; there are no hard-and-fast rules. Here are a number of ways to go about it.
Read MoreWhat would Harry Potter look like to a pupil who cannot read multi-syllabic words?
Following the discussion about the importance of teaching the phonic code and how to split multi-syllabic words, I thought it might be illuminating to show what a page from Harry Potter might look like to a pupil who has weak phonic knowledge and cannot split long words into syllables:
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