Teaching Basic Phonic Skills to Beginning school Children- Article 5 in a series to parents

Teaching Basic Phonic Skills to Beginning School Children -

Article 5 in a Series to Parents

by Dr. Edward  E. Green

General Manager of Family Literacy Centers, Inc. 

The purpose of this article is to give parents a few tips that will help them teach basic phonics skills to beginning school children readers. Teaching “phonics skills” involves learning the sounds of letters and blending them into words.  By “beginning reader” we mean a child somewhere between kindergarten and second grade, though it could be an older person who has somehow missed out on these basic skills. 

It’s important to understand that learning the relationships between letters and sounds is only part of the preparation needed for reading.  Before a child can connect spoken sounds and letters, he or she first has to see the connection between written words and spoken words.  That’s one reason it’s so important to read aloud to children when they are young. 

The majority of children learn to read, no matter what the approach is in the school. 

But some children fall behind early on.  Some children may be labeled ADHD or dyslexic but most experts believe that these and other children somehow did not learn to sound out words.  As one educator put it, “The majority of children with reading disabilities fail to grasp the idea that words and syllables are made up of a sequence of vowel and consonant sounds blended together…in other words, that the letters of the alphabet stand for spoken sounds, and that it is possible to string these sounds together into words.” 

It’s a good idea to track your child’s progress, in order to determine special help that is needed.  Many children are unable to master these basic reading skills in the primary grades unless they are taught by their parents and even if a child suffers from dyslexia or has ADHD.  If children are still behind in fourth grade, they are at a serious disadvantage.  Studies show that 2/3 of all children reading below their grade level in the 4th grade will end up either on welfare or in jail.  Some states predict the number of jail cells needed in the future by how many children cannot read in the 4th grade. 

Many people say that reading the English language is very difficult because its spelling is so illogical.  Actually that’s only partly true.  Over 500 of the most common words used in primary readers can be spelled using only 37 letter combinations.  So it makes sense to show children how to sound out these words.  Sounding out words is a very complex process, which consists of several sub-skills a person must master.  We’ll talk about each one and suggest some informal teaching procedures.   

Before getting into the specifics of sounding out words, however, it is important to remind parents that children cannot learn in a tense, negative environment.  If it’s too hard to be supportive and positive, leave this job to someone else in the family. It’s necessary to be very kind and patient.  If the child makes an error, do not say “no” or in any way chastise the child for making a mistake.  Simply supply the right answer, give the child a chance to try again, and then offer praise.  Praise and encouragement are the most important elements of good teaching.  And make sure the affection and patience show in your actions and facial expression. 

Now back to basics.  Most of these have been learned - but have been forgotten or taken for granted.  When working with children, try to think of these skills from their point of view. 

The genius of our language is that letters of the alphabet represent vocal sounds, and that the sounds can be put together into words.  Obviously, then, the first step is to learn the letters of the alphabet and the sounds these symbols represent.  Most children learn to say the alphabet from A to Z when they are four or five. If a child has gaps in this knowledge, Alphabet books are helpful.  Or, teach one of the alphabet songs.  Ordinary alphabet blocks, or plastic magnetic letters are a good investment too. 

Next, it is necessary to be able to recognize each letter and call it by its name.  Since each letter takes two forms - upper case, or capital letters, and lower case or small letters, the child needs to be able to write and name all of these letters even though they may represent two different sounds.  A good way to learn and review the letters is to make some flash cards of the entire alphabet, both big and little letters.  Children will learn faster if they help make them.  This is a good way to tell which letters a child knows, so more time can be spent on the weak areas.  And the flash cards will come in handy later on. 

Consider making a game out of finding and recognizing letters.  Look for “big” and “little” letters in the house or outdoors on signs.  Or in magazines and books.  The child should practice recognizing all of them quickly and easily.  This is just the beginning, however.  More important is to understand that each letter stands for a spoken sound, and its important to be able to say the sound.  Teachers learn various strategies for teaching sounds of consonants and vowels in a systematic way.  This article suggests a simpler approach, though very interested parents may want to study more on the subject. 

First just a quick review of things important to know.  There are twenty-six letters in the alphabet. Of these, five are vowels and the rest are consonants.  They are important because of the sounds they make.  Most children do best if they are introduced to consonant sounds first.  Most consonant names contain the sound they make.  For example B says “B…,” D says “D…,” F “ff…,” J “j...”  Consider starting with flash cards.  Or find something that can be written on and check to see how many of the consonant sounds, if any, the child already knows.  If they know all but a few, work on those.  If they know none of them select four or five of the most common ones, like B, D, and M.   Gradually add more consonants as the child has mastered the first few.  The Family Reader Series produced by Family Literacy Centers outlines the specific consonant sounds to practice before beginning each book with short and then long vowel practice. 

After they know at least a few consonant sounds, begin teaching vowel sounds.  Vowels are harder, because each vowel has at least two sounds.  Although there’s no hard and fast rule, it’s usually best to teach short vowel sounds first because they are the most common in simple words.  The long vowel sounds make the same sound as their name. 

That’s a pretty simple strategy.  Start with a few easy consonant sounds.  Then add one or two short vowel sounds.  Gradually introduce all the consonant and vowel sounds. 

Repetition is very important.  And try to make it fun.  Use a chalk board or a special new notebook and colored marking pens.  Use another medium, such as clay, finger paints, or even snow or mud.  Some children learn better by feel.  Magnetic letters are an interesting change of pace.  Specific suggestions for consonant and vowel sound practice are given in The Family Reader Series produced by Family Literacy Centers. 

And there are sound games.  It’s easier to hear starting sounds than ending sounds.  So be patient.  And take advantage of print that is available in the home or when traveling.  Talk about the sounds in the letters you see.  Learning all the sounds of all the letters can take a long time.  But as soon as a child has mastered a few consonants and a vowel or two, blend the sounds into simple words by stringing the sounds together.  Show the word.  Then practice saying the sounds of each letter.  Exaggerate them if necessary.  Then show how the sounds blend together.  Let the child practice saying and writing the word.  Teach only a few words at a time - perhaps four or five.  Add others as the child gains confidence.   

Word games can be fun.  One useful game teaches the blending of sounds by working with word families. A word family is a group of words with different beginning consonants but the same endings.  Make some cards on which to write some common word endings.  Then make a few cards with consonants.   See how many words can be made by shuffling the cards around.   When a child knows all of the letter sounds, have them try to sound out new words.  This will build even more confidence, when they realize that they have the knowledge to figure out words by themselves.  

If a child knows many of the letter sounds, but has gaps here and there, it’s a good idea to start at the beginning, identify the gaps, and then practice, practice, practice.  But - keep practice sessions very short and enjoyable.  Fifteen minutes a day will work wonders.  In between times, pick out some interesting picture books to read together.  Family Literacy Centers use a computer program called Lexia that identifies specific skill deficiencies a child might have and then gives the child practice in that skill until it is mastered.  This works well with the Family Readers which are built around the same reading skills. 

This article has only skimmed the surface of phonics rules and practice.  There are other so-called “rules” such as silent “e,” and other vowel combinations and consonant blends.

There isn’t time in this article to go into detail.  Literacy Centers will help to provide more information and practice.  Use your own knowledge and imagination to help the child deal with other combinations of letters and longer words. 

Ease in reading means that sounding out words becomes second nature and very rapid.  That takes a lot of practice.  One way to speed up reading is to memorize the most common words.  Educators call these “sight” words.  The 5 most common words written by children account for 18 per cent of the words they use.  These are the words: “I,” “AND,” “THE,” “A,” and “TO.”  The idea is to teach children to recognize these immediately.  Using flash cards to practice them is a good idea.  When reading aloud to a child, stop once in a while when you come to one of the words and let the child read it.  Together, look at a newspaper or magazine and circle all the sight words the child has learned.  As these are learned, add new ones.  The child may want to choose the ones to work on next. 

Learning to read is like any other skill.  To get past the beginning stages takes practice and repetition.  Some children need to practice a new sound or word fifty or even a hundred times.  A variety of interesting storybooks can make this fun.  Some of the most interesting stories for beginners can be found in the library in the easy reader books section.  The librarian can show you those that are at your child’s level.  Take them home and encourage your child to read them over and over.  You can read them to your child as well.  Some parents are reluctant to do this because they think that if children memorize the words, they won’t learn to read.  But memorization is often an important step - especially for children who lack confidence. 

If, after following these suggestions, the child is still having trouble, there are resources available.  Many books have been written especially for parents.  Or if there is a Family Literacy Center near you, pay them a visit.  Also many computer programs include activities that teach letters and sounds in a systematic and appealing manner.  This can be an important help in reinforcing your teaching and student learning.