{slit LM N a Belamit ll a a a i Sr Phonological Awareness — A‘ Elizabeth Love & Sue Reilly 8 LONGMAN Vine 1 We‘Addison Wesley Longman Australia Pty Limited 95 Coventry Street Melbourne 3205 Australia Offices in Sydney, Brisbane and Perth, and associated companies throughout the world Copyright © Addison Wesley Longman Australia Pty Ltd 1995, First published 1995 Reprinted 1995, 1996 (three times) Al rights reserved. Except under the conditions described in the Copyright Act 1968 of Australia and subsequent amendments, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright ‘owner, Permission is hereby given for blackline masters to be reproduced for non-commercial classroom use. Designed by Kikitsa Michalantos Ilustrated by Jean Cooper-Brown Set in Hehetica & Frutiger Produced by Addison Wesley Longman Australia Pty Ltd Printed in Malaysia through Longman Malaysia, PA National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data i Love, Elizabeth, 1950- 3 ‘A sound way. Bibliography. ISBN 0 582 804140 1. Reading (Primary). 2. English language - Orthography and spelling - Study’and teaching (Primary). 3, Literacy ~ Study and teaching (Primary). 4. Language awareness in children. 5. English language - Phonology - Study and teaching (Primary). |. Reilly, Sue (Susan), 1950- I, Title 372.4145 The publaors pale io use oper manuactwred from sista forestwe ie ow a uw wl — eae ee aL About the Authors Elizabeth Love and Sue Reilly both initially trained as Speech Pathologists Their work with children in hospitals, community health and school environments showed them how closely competency in oral language was linked to a child’s successful acquisition of reading and writing skills This strong interest in language and literacy led them independently to pursue further study in education In 1992 Elizabeth completed a Masters of Educational Studies specialising in Special Education. Her language research interests have included developing a classroom narrative program for children at preparatory level and investigating the auditory processing skills of learning- disabled children in the classroom. She currently works with children as a Speech and Language Pathologist in her private practice and as a Speech and Language Consultant in schools. In 1978 Sue undertook a Diploma of Education (Early Childhood) and gained valuable experience working as a kindergarten teacher. During this time she consolidated her views on the importance of oral language and listening skills in preparing children for school. After several years Sue returned to her original profession and worked with children with language and learning difficulties in New South Wales’ and Victorian schools. She is currently in private practice.2 i dd a_i lll Contents Foreword About the Book About the Activities Before You Begin Child Screening for Phonological Awareness Teacher Screening for Phonological Awareness What's In A Sound? Sound Makers Mr Mouth Mr Tongue’s House Speech Sounds Articulation Errors Which Sounds First? But What About the Vowels? Sound-Letter Link Two ‘Baskets’ of Knowledge Alphabet Alphabet Strips Personalised Alphabet Charts Singing Alphabet Cards Alphabet Flash Cards Flips Sound Check Whose Name Game Phonological Awareness Activities Word Awareness Syllables Rhyming Alliteration Analysis Blending Manipulation Teacher Resources 47 67 83 111 121 181 201 219_A Sound Way Foreword Communication is the main goal of oral language. Young children develop their language skills by hearing the spoken language of their parents. Children are encouraged to understand what is said, follow directions, answer questions, tell what happened, comment or ask questions. Establishing meaning is the major focus of this interaction. What is said is more important than how it is said. For readers and writers the aim of written communication is also the establishment of meaning. However the transition from competence as a speaker and listener to competence as a reader and writer can sometimes be a slow and difficult process as it requires the acquisition of a new language skill During the process of learning to read, spell and write, the child must begin to think about the structure and components of spoken language. This language awareness is called metalinguistic awareness. It involves, knowing that a sentence is made up of words, which in turn are made up of a sequence of sounds, It also includes talking about what words mean and recognising correct grammar. An important aspect of metalinguistic awareness is the ability to attend to and manipulate sounds within words. This is called phonological awareness. Phonological awareness builds upon the child's primary language and cognitive growth and is facilitated by language experience at home and school and through reading, Research has shown that phonological awareness is the most powerful predictor of success in learning to read and spell (Share, Jorm, Maclean and Matthews, 1984). Phonological awareness can be taught. Training in this awareness has been shown to positively influence the development of beginning reading and writing skills (Wagner and Torgeson, 1987). The aim of this book is to present key language and phonological ‘awareness activities that can be used as part of the classroom language program.| i { | j j j I | A Sound Way About the Book A Sound Way is divided into four sections. The first two sections are What's in a sound? and Sound-Letter Link. Studies have shown that phonological awareness can be taught, and that this teaching is more effective when sound-awareness activities are linked at an early stage with sound-letter training (Bradley and Bryant, 1985). It is for this reason that we have included these two important sections for the teacher prior to the section on Phonological Awareness. This book concludes with a Teacher Resource section What's in a Sound? This section provides information and activities about sounds: where and how they are made and which ones are easily confused. It includes practical activities to help children learn about sounds in a fun way. Be sure not to overlook What's in a Sound? as knowledge in this area is basic to all phonological awareness activities. Sound-Letter Link In this section teachers are shown ways of assisting children acquire clear concepts of sounds and letters, thus enabling them to make firm associations between the two. Similarly the Sound-Letter Link section is crucial if children are to succeed with reading and spelling tasks. Note: It is important for the child's helper to be very familiar with all the sections of the book so that planning of developmentally appropriate, rather than random, activities can occur. Phonological Awareness There are seven main areas involved in building phonological awareness. 1 Word Awareness (including compound words) This involves breaking sentences up into words. Compound words are divided into their meaningful partsA Sound Way 2 Syllables Words can be broken into syllables or beats. 3 Rhyme This requires recognition and production of words that rhyme. That is, words that end with the same group of sounds. 4 Alliteration Alliteration involves providing words that begin with the same sound as a given target word. It assumes a beginning-sound analysis skill 5 Analysis This refers to the isolation of sounds within words — in the initial, medial and final positions. It also includes discovering how many sounds are in words and working out the component sounds of consonant blends. 6 Blending In this section, individual parts of words, either the syllables or sounds, are given and the child is required to ‘push them together’ and discover the whole word. 7 Manipulation These tasks require the sounds in words to be moved from one position to another. Note: These seven sections are in a general developmental order of difficulty however this does not preclude working on more than one section at a time. For example: the oral activities in Blending are best presented prior to or in conjunction with those for Sound Analysis. Oral and Written/Reading Activities Within each of the above areas of phonological awareness there are two levels of activities: oral and written. Beginning activities involve recognition and matching. For example: ‘Do these words start with the same sound?’ ‘Which of these three words does not rhyme?’ Later activities require independent production of a word, sound or sentence. For example: ‘Tell me a word that ends with the sound ‘s’.” ‘As these activities involve only talking and listening (and not reading or writing) they are symbolised by an open mouth. SBeReHeBeeSeeese8seteBesessnt # .a i| i | i} | A Sound Way Written/Reading ZO These activities assume sound-awareness skill at the oral level and some letter-sound knowledge. They involve some reading and writing and are therefore symbolised by a pencil Note: Many written/reading activities can be made easier by presenting the material orally or with picture support, About the Activities * The purchaser of this book may photocopy the activity sheets for individual, small group or classroom use. * The activities can be used as individual worksheets for children or given as homework tasks. * The picture card sheets can be backed with heavy card and laminated, producing a permanent class resource. * Care should be taken to match appropriate activities to the child's ability. Parents should be guided by their child's teacher or speech pathologist in the selection of appropriate activities. * Teacher resource pages are found throughout the book. Additional information about suitable books, tapes and games can be found in the Resource List at the end of this book. ‘+ Use the index of Phonological Awareness Activities Index at the back of this book for quick referenceBefore You Begin In this section you will find informal Phonological Awareness Screening Tests — one for a teacher and one for a child. * In the case of children, the screening test will help the teacher decide where to begin and which activities to choose for the child. (The teacher presents the test orally to the child and fills in the answers.) * For the teachers, the test will give an indication of their own knowledge of sounds and therefore their readiness to embark on these activities with children.Before You Begin Child Screening for Phonological Awareness (Teacher presents this test orally to the child) 1 What sound does your name start with? For example: Michael — ‘mmm’. If the child replies with the letter name M, confirm that this is the correct letter when his name is written but encourage attention to the sound. If still unsuccessful repeat the name slowly and demonstrate isolating the first sound. Repeat this process using a friend's name. For example: Sally — What sound does her name start with? If the child’s name begins with a vowel, use the child's surname or the name of another family member or friend. 2 Do you know another word that starts with this sound? 3. Whatis the first sound in these words? sun Oo party LF mummy oO fish oO gorilla Oo 4 Do these words start with the same sound? fill fat mouse two bed boy [ | ship shine [| Tell me a word that starts with the sound ~~ eeReEReERFEBE SES RPBRBBBBBBE‘fl "Y & Rhyme identification a Some words sound nearly the same — ‘rat’, ‘fat’. rat and fat rhyme because they end the same way. Listen again — Before You Begin q rat, fat. Do these words rhyme/end the same way? man pan J book head ball fall sock send [| a but hut [] rake — make fight fine [~ leap creep [| a, Tell me a word that rhymes with... ag cat run q nose a ship Note: (8. children who cope well with all the tasks are ready to proceed with activities, * Children who manage tasks 4 and 6 but who find other areas difficult have developed some sensitivity to sound but will require demonstration and explanation beginning with the What's in a sound? section. * Children who cannot manage any of the tasks will need more explicit instruction, perhaps in a one-to-one relationship, within a program stimulating overall language development. * Poor performance may be indicative of a general language delay or possible hearing impairment and should be investigated further. oa ow Co ee__ Before You Begin Teacher Screening for Phonological Awareness 4. How many syllables in each of the following words? animal hastily revolution invincible stealthily 2 How many sounds (not letters) in each of the following words? flag rust change chemist thought 3 What is the second sound (not second letter) in the following words? bride scream queen O caution catalyst crustacean inconceivable fortunate scone dump straight hiccup instrument whim bought thrive ia 10 10 SBeseaeseaeeeseeseseaesesaewaasas BgBefore You Begin” 4 4 What is the /ast sound (not last letter) in the following ™ words? aj| laugh L] though Oo i a| giraffe {_] ginger | crisp | arrange LC] 6 5. Join the rhyming pairs of words. stuff basin nasty hasten some enough pastie zipper numb zither 4 6 Join the words that begin with the same sound. a " cholera knave gentle 4 pneumonia chauvinist quiet shoal joke chef a -. a 4) TOTAL SCORE 40 ai al " i] a! 4) J) "Before You Begin Answers Teacher Phonological Awareness Screening 13 2 24 4 3 3 4 5 4 3 4 5 4 5 6 5 3 3 3 1 3 r ‘Was in ink 4 f ‘o' as in toe ‘c ‘or’ ‘f ‘uh’ as in appear wor ‘p\fasinjam 5 stuff — enough 6 cholera — quiet some — numb chef — chauvinist — shoal hasten — basin joke — gentle nasty — pastie knave — pneumonia How did you rate? 37+ Well done! Now enjoy the activities with the children. 34-37 * Look over your errors — if you understand your confusions proceed with caution. below 34 You may need to concentrate on improving your own sound awareness before leading children in the activities in this book. Improve your score by reading the What's in a Sound? section of this book. ABCDEEG abederg SSeBSB8kHeeBeBeeseSenpeesEenBenesernsesrs ss my 12What's In A Sound? It is wise to spend some time helping children become aware of where and how speech sounds are made, before proceeding to listening activities. * Children can be encouraged to explore their own ‘sound makers’ — lips, tongue, teeth and so on. They can meet the Mr Mouth puppet, discover similarities between sounds, and even learn some hand signs for sounds. * Adults will gain information about sounds — where in the mouth and how they are produced, the contrast between voiced and unvoiced sounds, the special properties of vowels. This will assist them in presenting sounds and sound activities in an appropriate sequence. 13What's In A Sound? 4 Sound Makers Sounds of speech are made in the mouth. While this seems obvious to adults, children are not always aware of how they make speech sounds. This is quite understandable. When children speak they do not have to pay attention to individual sounds and how they are made — they are intent on getting their meaning across to the listener. During the process of learning to read and spell children are required to focus on individual sounds, to find them within the continuous stream of sound in words and then associate them with written letters. By introducing the parts of the mouth area which are used to produce speech sounds — the ‘sound makers’ — you are preparing children to give their conscious attention to individual sounds. Talk about the ‘Sound Makers’ whilst using the puppet-like Mr Mouth (p. 16) and during the cleaning of Mr Tongue’s House (p. 17). Activity Ideas * Use a mirror. Have a supply of hand mirrors for children to share. A large mirror fixed to a wall is also helpful. Children can see what their lips and tongue are doing and identify the various ‘Sound Makers’. Can they see their tonsils? What happens when they say ‘ah’? Who can reach their nose with the tip of their tongue? * Use a pocket torch to aid exploration! * Explore the range and variety of movements of lips and tongue. Think of words to describe some of the movements, such as rolling, folding, pointing, smacking, pursing. * Adapt ‘Simon Says’ or the Copy Cat game (see page 124), encouraging accurate imitation of the movement and positioning of the ‘Sound Makers’, Bere eBe BSB Sse see BBR BeeBs BB FE.What's In A Sound? —_ The ‘Sound Makers’ lips — top and bottom ai tongue — front (including tip), and back. 9 tip) teeth — top and bottom al roof of mouth — front: hard palate or ‘ridge’ — back: soft palate including uvular voice box or larynx — in the throat lungs — this is the source of the airstream nose — some sounds use the nose rather than the mouth for their resonating chamber & aq) ridge hard palate root of : soft palate aq mouth uvular q back lips Z blade tongue front teeth tip epigiottis 4 larynx q) vocal cords ri trachea (windpipe)What's In A Soun 16 Mr Mouth Many children need to be taught about sounds before they can easily ‘find’ them in their own speech. A mirror is useful. Children can look and see what their lips and tongue are doing when they make a particular sound or say a word. Mr Mouth will help in a similar way. Young children enjoy the puppet-like nature and quickly learn that it represents a time for sound discovery. It is easily made — an opened-out wire coat hanger ‘onto which is threaded and sewn... LIPS (red pantihose material stuffed with wadding) onto which is stapled or sewn... ‘TEETH (cardboard or white felt) TONGUE (thick, pink material such as corduroy, like an oven mit) B @ & - 7f 4 ri r] Www Ww mw ww lw eee Mr Tongue’ S House What's in A Sound? A game to promote awareness of the ‘sound makers’ and the movements involved in speech-sound production Suggested story Action Mr Tongue lives inside his house. point to mouth His front door bell works like this — ring it and see if he is home. lips together ‘mmm’ (or variations) Mr Tongue opens the front door and comes out onto the front step. Perhaps he will wave to you. open mouth tongue touches bottom lip tongue wiggles. Mr Tongue likes to keep busy cleaning his house. Sometimes he sings while he works. 4a! ‘la’ ‘la’ Can you hear the vacuum cleaner? ‘ann’ After lunch he puts on the dishwasher. ‘sh’ ‘sh’ ‘sh’ Later, he chops some wood for the fire. ‘ch’ ‘ch’ ‘ch’ Mr Tongue has bought some pictures — he wants to hang them on the walls: - at the front of the house - at the back of the house ‘t't 't’ (or ‘dd eK Ke (or 'g! 'g"'g!) Mr Tongue notices that his windows are dirty. Can you help him clean them? run tongue along top teeth — inside and out — then the bottom stands just outside the front door and waters them every day. Mr Tongue has some flowers by the front door —he | “th! ‘th’ ‘th’ He also sweeps the leaves from the door step. Pars ‘One day Mr Tongue decides to paint the inside of his house — the walls, one side, then the other — and the ceiling. move tongue along inside surface of cheeks and roof of mouth Oh no! A fly has got in and might stick to the wet paint. Mr Tongue has to chase the fly from room to room. tongue moves quickly e.g. behind front teeth inside cheek to touch back teeth Mr Tongue is now very tired. He goes to bed. Can you hear him snoring? Good night! tongue rests in mouth a! ‘2! '2! W7____What’s in A Sound? 18 Speech Sounds There are three main ways in which speech sounds can differ. Ask: 1 Where is the sound made? 2. Howis the sound made? 3. Isthe sound voiced or unvoiced? (See diagram on page 15) Knowledge gained in these areas will clarify why some sounds are easily confused. Where? Compare where sounds are made. Encourage children to discover differences between, for example: “f’ and ‘m’ ind ‘d’ “t’ and ‘k’ “V and ‘p* How? Sounds can be placed into broad groups according to how they are made. ‘popping’ sounds ‘long’ sounds — 2’ ‘sh’ ‘th’ ‘Ir ‘nosey’ sounds—‘m’ ‘n' ‘ng’ ‘combination’ sounds — sounds made by closely blending two individual sounds. ‘ch’ = ‘t’ plus ‘sh’ ‘j! = 'd!" plus ‘2h’ (as in measure) Demonstrate the differences. For example: * How long can one “p’ sound keep coming out of your mouth? * Say ‘sh’ for as long as you can. * What happens if you block your nose while saying ‘m'? Choose a sound and ask questions like ‘Is it a long or a “popping” sound?’ or ‘Does the sound come out your mouth or your nose?’ BEeEeBeeeBeesaeresBs ELee ee no a Voiced or whispered? Some pairs of sounds are very similar and differ only according to whether or not voice is used — that is, whether or not the vocal cords vibrate during the production of the sound. NOVOICE | ‘p’ ‘t’ ‘k’ ‘s' ‘ff ‘sh’ ‘ch’ ‘th’ asin (Whispered) thin VOICE ‘b' ‘dd’ won ‘zh’ asin ‘i’ ‘th’ asin measure this Children, understandably, often confuse the sounds in such pairs when listening and spelling Note: It will assist children greatly if you always make the whispered sounds without voice so that the contrast with its voiced ‘partner’ is emphasised. For example: the first sound in pig is ‘p’ not ‘puh’, (‘pub uses voice). You will find the correct way if you isolate the ‘p’ on the end of the word ‘shop’ — say ‘p* by itself, in the same way you say ‘p’ at the end of ‘shop’. Helpful hints Hold a tissue in front of your face as you make each sound in the pairs ‘p'b’, ‘t/'d’, ‘k’I'g’. The whispered sound makes the tissue waver much more! For 's'/'z', 'f''v', ‘sh'I'2h’ and ‘ch’/j' pairs — place fingers on front of throat. Feel the vibrations from the larynx during the voiced sounds. Choose a sound from the no voice-voiced table above and ask ‘Is it noisy or whispered?’What's In A Sound? Speech Sounds 1 WHERE «< lips teeth > < reof of mouth > throat both | lips & hard | soft lips teeth | teeth | ridge | palate | palate | throat ‘popping 'p' “b’ a eg ‘tong’ teow lthethe| seat | she 2 HOW asin asin ‘ thin this oe fo ‘ng! a = y 3 VOICE (Unvoiced sound is in left of box. Voiced sound is in right of box.) 20w ww Articulation Errors ww Sounds acquired in speech at later stages in development, like “th’, ‘r” and ‘I, may not be correctly articulated. Other sounds may also be incorrectly made. For example: “t! for ‘k’ asin tat for cat “th’ for ‘s’ as in theat for seat wa It may be tempting to avoid listening activities using these sounds, however, if you go through the ‘Sound Maker’ activities (see page 14) and talk about where and how the particular sound is made and then compare it with the sound it is confused with, you may be surprised! The extra information gained by the child may be sufficient to assist him/her to correct the error. For example: “t’ — tongue tip taps on the ridge (the roof of the mouth just behind the top teeth) “k’ — back of tongue taps on back of roof of mouth say: keke tar car tar = car tea key tea key fe aaa a a il 21What's In A Sound? 22 Which Sounds First? When progressing to sound analysis tasks and establishing links between sounds and letters, it is important to consider which sounds will be easier for the child to ‘find’. In general, sounds that are easier to see and feel when they are made and those which have very distinctive auditory characteristics are easier to ‘find’ in words. More difficult: how oe th Easier: im fs! tn! Separate the introduction of similar sounds. For example: ‘m’/'n’ You will notice that the above sounds are from the ‘long group’ — (see Speech Sounds table page 20) — they can be elongated either in isolation or in words which will assist children’s identification. For example: 2222200 — 200 runnin —run The ‘popping’ sounds, particularly those made without voice (‘p’, “t’, 'k’) are not as easy to isolate at the front of words as the ‘long’ sounds. (Because of their short ‘popping’ nature they merge very quickly with the vowel following them.) ‘p’, ‘t’ and 'k’ — may be easier to ‘find’ at the end of words. ‘b’, ‘d’ and ‘g’ — are the voiced ‘partners’ and may be difficult to identify at the end of words. For example: ‘What is the last sound in red?’ word in a whispered voice which causes the , Children may repeat the to closely resemble a Note: When introducing the letter-sound links you also should consider which letters look alike and introduce them well apart. For example: ‘h’ /‘n* yg! A useful system of hand signs exists representing where and how in the mouth each sound is made. This system is called Cued Articulation and was devised by Speech Pathologist, Jane Passey. (Cued Articulation and Cued Vowels, Jane Passey, ACER 1990.) The Auditory Discrimination in Depth Program by C. and P. Lindamood also has a systematic way of presenting sounds and their place and manner of production. = E E: Ee = & & &ba ee a da bc ce el What's in A Sound? But What About the Vowels? Vowels are made by the tongue taking up a shape and position in the mouth, thus altering the shape of the space in the mouth. For some vowels this results in an obvious position of the lips. For example: ‘o’ —as in on *u' — as in under tee’ — asin seat For many vowels there is little visible postioning information, Consider mouth shape for the following vowels (in bold print). short night dirt laugh noise make With vowels there are no contact points between the ‘sound makers’ so children can not ‘feel’ them as easily as they can the consonants. When linking short vowels (‘a’ i ‘o" ‘u’) to their corresponding letters, diagrammatic information about that letter’s lip position may be helpful. For example: Note: ‘u'l'a’ ‘e'/'i' These short vowels are often confused — particularly in the middle of words. Children can be assisted with this by carrying out listening activities that use vowels in the initial position of words. Assist also by strengthening the sound-letter links for these vowels). 23ww a a waa a — i Sound-Letter Link Children need to build up sound awareness and letter knowledge separately. Links between sounds and letters can then be firmly established in a way that avoids confusion and is meaningful to the child. Adults also need to have a clear knowledge of sounds and letters and be accurate in how they use these terms with children.Sound-Letter Link 26 Two ‘Baskets’ of Knowledge Sounds and Letters Children need to: 1 be aware of sounds, where they come from and how to ‘find’ them in words (see the What's In A Sound? section and all oral activities) 2 have a knowledge of the alphabet, recognising and naming the individual letters and, in time, writing them. When the knowledge in each ‘basket’ has been gained children will be ready to link the two ‘baskets’: ‘the letter is S and it usually makes the sound ‘sss’ . . The word ‘usually’ will ensure children realise that there may be exceptions. It is wise to use the words sound and letter very specifically. * Aletter is written down and can be seen and named. + Asound is made in the mouth and can be heard. * Spoken words are made up of sounds, written words are made up 0 letters. Why Not Just One Basket? ‘Some people say that alphabet names are of no use and so they focus ‘only on sounds. Others point out that the many variations of sound— letter correspondence can be confusing. For example: If a says ‘a’ (as in ant), what about ‘a’ in any, acorn, appeal etc. These people tend to op for emphasis on letters. Both points of view are valid. However, regardless of the particular focus in a particular class, the child will be exposed to both letter name and sounds at home, on television and so on, and will face the task of sorting out how these names and sounds relate to each other. For some children the task is too daunting and they end up with only ‘one basket filled with confused knowledge, e.g. they write half as hrf. Consider the letter names for: g j ¢ f | m mr uy. When you say their names, the first sound in the name is not the sound the letter usually makes. For example: g — ‘gee’ — ‘j'; y — ‘wigh’ —‘w’ Children must acquire automatic knowledge of letter names and their usual associated sounds. BHeRehReeReReeoex#FnpesFefsrns ns x __ Bn HErmense#seLlhininTinhssemw ow Alphabet Sing the Alphabet Song As you sing: * Point to the letters on the alphabet chart (p. 29) * Clap — one clap per letter. This is especially relevant in sections where letters can be said in quick succession. For example: ‘elemenopee’L M N O P (Some children perceive this as one unit!) Use other body movements such as stamping, wiggling and so on. * Use both upper and lower case alphabet forms (see pp. 29 and 32): ABCDEFGHIJK... abcdefghijk... wd uu ww ew Say the Alphabet * Use ideas from the singing activity above. * Divide and cut up the alphabet letters (p. 30) into groups of three abc | def | ghi || jkl Note: These ‘chunks’ of the alphabet can then be superimposed on the whole alphabet strips (p.29) aj * With a large group, a small group or an individual child, ‘say and sort’ to reassemble the alphabet. ww a aSound-Letter Link Some children will be able to recite the alphabet but will have difficulty recalling the name of some individual letters. The following strategy may help. abc def ghi - Say the alphabet again but increase the time in the ‘gap’ between the groups of three letters. — Ask child to clap hands or blink eyes, etc. before resuming the alphabet sequence. — Return to the continuous sequence if this is too difficult and put in a very short pause in the ‘gaps’. + Muddle the cards. Can children name them when they are out of order? Can the letters on each card be named in reverse order? Cut Up the Alphabet Cut up the alphabet further so that there is one letter on each card Note: These individual letters of the alphabet can be superimposed onto 3-letter ‘chunks’ (p. 30) or onto the whole alphabet (p. 29). (Giving each child his/her own set of cards ensures that the child can move on to each activity stage at their own pace.) ‘+ Match individual letters to the alphabet sequence Play ‘snap’ or ‘memory’ using two or more sets of alphabet cards. Each time a card is turned over a letter must be named. Match lower and upper case letters. SZBeeseseBeameeBeSBeReBEeReasBeeseaeseasa SB BH |et 29 § Teacher's Notes:. See suggested activites (p. 27). lhe alphabet strips (pp. 29-32) cn be superimposed upon one another Alphabet Strips Lower Case mo’? 67'7;hh6U©7hUGUPlUlUrlUrOOOOlOetOetetoaetokeeaekemeaekeeteaetsen@RSRB RB ER RBS me en ucosep 2) abd a ozoiayd oa aepind nu ps6 9 UoRRA “S65 eHEENY LEUSuO) FaR2\A UOSEY @ AERA PUNOS ¥ 7d | I | | | 4 | I ! | | 4 ! | ! | | 4 | | | ! ! | 4 k j Alphabet Strips Lower Case h a Sound-Letter Link Teacher's Notes: See suggested actites(. 27). Al the alphabet strips (p. 29-32) canbe superimposed upon one another.Sound-Lettér'bink. Alphabet Strips Lower Case -- x! Ore Oa > OL. Oo; Ss) peeen © DE o> ‘A Sound Way © Aion Westy Langman Austraka 1935, Perris "_ se mmr eee 2 Teacher's Notes: See suggested actites(p. 27. Althe alphabet strips (pp. 28-32) can be superimposed upon one another. 31Sound-Letter Link Alphabet Strips Upper Case fee FF BeBe BerBeetrenzasazss as BE ip ; i | | x Z 4 Y | : | | 2 | | : ———— J 5 : 2 ‘Teacher's Notes: See suggested activites (. 27). Al the alphabet strips (pp. 29-32) canbe superimposed upon one another [ASound Way © Ac 32Personalised Alphabet Charts til bd ual Photocopy the Persons firm paper or card. d Alphabet Charts (pp. 34 and 35) onto * Each child fills in his/her own chart with pictures as different letter- sound links are learned. * The picture chosen by the child for each letter is the one that most readily elicits the sound the letter usually represents. The child may choose family members’ names, in which case a small photo may be pasted in the appropriate space. * Discourage less usual sound representations (while at the same time acknowledging that they are correct!). ‘g’ for giraffe, ‘e’ for cigarette tei add el al a Also discourage less common letter representations of the sound. For example: 'f’ Phoebe (But do acknowledge that ph can say ‘fff’.) Note: A similarly personalised chart can be made for digraphs like ‘sh’ and long vowels such as ‘ee'/'ea’. a q Commercial Alphabet Charts : Before purchasing one of the many commercial alphabet charts or 4 friezes, be sure to check it carefully. Consider the following * Are the words chosen appropriate for the children’s vocabulary and experience? * Do the words chosen begin with the sound which the letter most commonly represents or just the letter? It is better if the word does not begin with a consonant blend. Do you want lower or upper case or both? Are the pictures clear? Are two or more pictures easily confused? ie These are examples from actual alphabet charts. was represented by the number one = [Link] represented by giraffe (confusing it with the picture for j) — was represented by the unicorn — on the same chart: i was represented by itchy witchy and w by wizard. These two had similar illustrations. ee kk ms 33 aaa