The Importance of Letter Sounds (full show notes here)

• Alphabetic Principle - having knowledge of letters and the sounds that make up those letters.
• Letter name knowledge is the best predictor of reading achievement from kindergarten to 2nd grade.
• We must be sure that letter sounds stick.
  • Explicit
  • Systematic
  • Consistent
• Alphabet instruction must be three things:

Explicit

• HOW we are teaching letter sounds.
  • If you're teaching the letter m to your students, you may not initially show them the actual letter. Instead, you may show them a picture of a mouse, moon, or muffins.
  • Teacher: "Mindy the mouse makes muffins. What sound do you hear at the beginning of those words?"
  • Students: "/m/!"

Systematic (Sequential)

• WHY we are teaching letter sounds.
• We must:
  • Example: A scope and sequence that covers letters b, d, p in the same week would not be beneficial to students because of how similar those letters are.
• teach in a variety of ways - from simple to complex.
• be purposeful.
• choose a scope and sequence that makes sense.

Consistency

• WHAT we are teaching our students.
• What activities are we using to help move the needle forward?
• Choose 4-5 activities that students are familiar with and use them for each letter sound you teach. When you introduce a new letter, do it in the same manner you did it for the previous letter.
• Routine, routine, routine!

Additional Resources & References:

FREE Resources:

FREE Short Vowel Intensive

FREE Find It! Dot It!

FREE Spin It, Say It, Write It

Letter Sound Resources:

Alphabet Boot Camp

Letter Name and Sound Sorts

Letter Name Recognition

Letter Sound Strips

References:

Episode 5: Five Fun Ways to Practice Phonemic Awareness

10 Simple Letter Sound Recognition Activities

Teacher Prerequisites for Teaching Letter Sounds

Making Letter Sounds Stick

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