Episode 10: Introducing Letter Sounds and Making Letter Sounds Stick

The Importance of Letter Sounds

• 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.

• Alphabet instruction must be three things:

• Explicit

• Systematic

• Consistent 

Explicit

• HOW we are teaching letter sounds.

• Example: 

• 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:

• teach in a variety of ways - from simple to complex.

• be purposeful.

• choose a scope and sequence that makes sense.

• 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.

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!

Our Routine Should:

1. Be a multi-sensory approach.

2. Be sequential.

3. Have early identification and intervention for struggling students with letter sounds.

4. Have frequent practice and scaffolding.

1. Teach to automaticity and be prepared to circle back.

5. Focus on letter foundation.

1. Students form letters the correct way, every single time.

2. They should be quick to retrieve a letter and immediately print it.

6. Connect to phonemic awareness

 Letter Sound and Phonemic Awareness Lesson Plan

Part #1: Warm Up & Review Skills

Part #2:  Explicit Teaching

Part #3:  Application of Skills

Additional Resources:

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:

LINK TO PODCAST #5

10 Simple Letter Sound Recognition Activities

Teacher Prerequisites for Teaching Letter Sounds

Making Letter Sounds Stick