Phonics Instruction

[ms.abc]

My Phonics Instruction is not what I would like for it to be! I feel like Its boring/dull at times. I also feel like Im not really teaching, yet just sining one minute and lecturing the next! Just so you can get a better idea of what I mean, here is what a typical phonics lesson looks like in my class: We start off with a review of the letters and their sounds, vowels (long and short), short trivia e.g. how many letters in the alphabet? how may are vowels? how many are consonants? After that I go into teaching, or speaking rather on whatever concept we are on for the day e.g. the special sound in the words ship, shop, stop, step. After that I am done. I may have them come up to the board and write and/or circle something, but thats it. Same thing everyday! If I am bored I can only imagine, my poor students! So what do you lovely teachers do? Please share... any feedback is greatly appreciated, I usaly find some lifesavers on here. Thank you in advance!

 

[reading star]

i do

small group phonics. I see where my students are as far as sounding out and blending words together and then I put them into small groups based on ability. My lesson is usually a review of the past letter sounds, the new letter sounds, and then reading words with the vowel we are learning that week. Everything is very structured using a my turn, together, your turn format to practice sounds and word reading. How fast we go and how soon I drop them to just a your turn depends on their ability level. Higher groups get exposed to blends and other phonetic patterns earlier than students who are struggling. While I am sure that this is not the most fun activity my students like the structure and my enthusiastic praise when they read correctly. I also stress to them that their most important job as first graders is learning to read and that takes work and work is not always fun. don't minimize phonics instruction as all students need it from your struggling students who need the systematic structure of it to your high students who are whole word readers but can't break apart an unknown word.

 

[cvt]

phonics

don't minimize phonics instruction as all students need it from your struggling students who need the systematic structure of it to your high students who are whole word readers but can't break apart an unknown word.

Well said!

I agree that phonics is not the most interesting thing to teach, but it is a foundation for reading. Without this, most children will not become proficient readers. There is a lot of rote learning as well as repetition involved. We were required to do the Sound/Spelling cards every day in a specific way. Every teacher in the school starts the language arts block with this, starting with the basics in Kinder to reviewing all phonics in the middle and upper grades. This is important for those ELLs as well as struggling readers who have gaps.

Don't forget the phonemic awareness component, which may make your instruction a little more fun. Make it into a game with rhyming, using a rubber band for stretching out sounds, clapping syllables and phonemes, etc.

Some of the things I did to make phonics instruction a little more interesting during whole group or small group:
•individual dry erase boards so students can write the letters/words. Easy instant assessment for you as you can see what they have written.
•individual file folders with post-its that have the letters already written on them--students put the letters together to form words together with you.

my students like the structure and my enthusiastic praise when they read correctly.

Yes! The more you pretend that this is a fun activity (we are all actors ), the more the students will buy into it and learn.

 

[OU-Bobcat]

Been there...

When practicing phonics concepts that go with my daily lesson, I use different materials for the students to write the sounds and words. For example, if we are practicing letter sounds we write in sand, shaving cream, on magnet boards, using plastic grids, markers, chalk, dry erase, or on each other's backs etc. My districts phonics program is very scripted and systematic so these are the tools I use to keep me and the students from being bored!