Teachers often ask us how to include decodable readers during phonics instruction. This session answers that question. Teachers will learn how decodable texts enhance phonics instruction, when to start using decodable text, when it is appropriate to move away from decodable text, and how to track students’ progress with decodable texts. Teachers will also learn the importance of using decodable text to practice a new advanced phonics pattern is taught, even though students are capable of reading grade level text independently.
This presentation will focus on emerging research suggesting that proficiency in phoneme awareness skills is essential for building a large and continuously expanding sight vocabulary. This session will address the phonological skills needed to remember and instantly identify written words. Most assume that phoneme skills are limited to K-1 and are assumed to be associated with phonic development. Yet decades of research on orthographic learning clearly shows that phoneme-level skills are foundational for remembering the words we read. The skills needed for word-level reading and discuss techniques that promote that skill will be highlighted.
