Tag: science of reading

Phonics, Phonics Rules for Teachers, Reading, Writing

All About Short Vowels and How to Teach Them

Short vowels are typically the first vowel sounds that children learn, but why is that? Let’s take a look at what short vowels are, some important facts for understanding short vowels, and how the heck to teach this important phonics concept to your students. This is post 9 in my series Phonics Rules for Teachers (and How the Heck to…

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Phonics, Phonics Rules for Teachers, Reading, Writing

The Best Order to Teach Sounds: Phonics Scope and Sequence

Which is the best letter sound order? Is there one correct phonics scope and sequence that follows the science of reading? What does the research say about the sequence in which we teach our students phonics? You probably know that structured literacy requires just that: a structure. However, it can feel overwhelming to determine which order to teach sounds. Let’s…

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Phonics, Phonics Rules for Teachers, Reading

6 Syllable Types: Why You Need to Teach Them

Syllables are a key building block of the English language and are an important part of strong phonics instruction. There’s a whole lot more to syllables than just clapping out how many a word has and moving on. Understanding the 6 syllable types and using them to help read and write helps the English language make sense. This post will…

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Phonics, Phonics Rules for Teachers, Reading

Why Letters and Sounds are Different and How to Teach Students

Understanding the difference between letter names and letter sounds is one of the first steps of phonics instruction. People often use letter and sound interchangeably, but they’re not the same thing. Let’s explore why letters and sounds are different . We will also explore strategies to teach these concepts to our students in a simple and meaningful way. Would you…

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