Category: Tutor Tools

Word Lists

When teaching reading, it is important to have access to lists of words for a phonics pattern. The word lists from On Track Reading are helpful, and there is another list for phonemic awareness.

Now there are now two word lists available here at Phonics Pow.

CardsClipStrips

The first list includes all the words in the free Clip Strips. These are all word families that help to introduce phonics patterns in a sequence while teaching reading. Download the Clip Strip Word Lists pdf.

CardsWordSorts

The next one includes all the words in the Word Sort Games that are designed to go along with the Phonics Pow Toolkit. Download the Word Sort Games Word Lists pdf.

Both are helpful to introduce phonics patterns in a sequence during a reading tutor session.

Strategies For Reading

StrategiesForReading

Learn these helpful strategies while following the sequence for learning how to read. Start with short vowels, blending left to right. Then as more vowel patterns are learned, also scan the word for other parts and patterns.

Silent e – Nōte an e at the end
Bossy R – Observe an R
Diphthongs & Vowel Teams – Look for vowel teams
Syllables – Nōtice a closed or ōpen syllable
More ways that vowels can be long – Bē/gin with long, Vĭs/it short
To Fīnd lŏng, Pĭck Bōth
Tricky Y – Discovery of a Y at the end
Schwa – Be aware of schwa
Be careful with these Consonants that vary
Consonant Digraphs – Checking for H Brothers & -ng
Keep Cautious with K & C
Give Care (on a nice page) with G & C

The strategies for reading chart is included in the free CD calendar, and in the Phonics Pow Toolkit.

Author Wiley Blevins

One of the best places to learn about phonics (other than here, of course!) is the book “Phonics from A to Z” by Wiley Blevins. It is one of my phonics favs, and provides tons of great information is a way that is understandable. He provides word lists for each phonogram, books to read for phonics patterns, and much more. One of the things I especially like are the charts that show the frequencies of patterns.

A chart that shows the frequencies of long vowel patterns from the Phonics Pow Toolkit is based on a pdf of English-Language Spelling Pattern Generalizations at anyflip.com.

Learn with Wiley Blevins in videos from the Sadlier School Phonics Masterclass on Facebook Live Part One and Part Two. Check out his website at www.wileyblevins.com, read A Fresh Look at Phonics at naesp.org, and 10 Important Reseach Findings at Scholastic.

Clip Strips

Words that have the same ending pattern (rime) often rhyme with the same ending sound. They are sometimes called word families. They are a great way to introduce a pattern that you are learning as part of a reading lesson.

Blending Onset & Rime together is a part of phonemic awareness, an important skill for learning to read.

  • Onset – the part of the word before the vowel
  • Rime – the part of the word with the vowel and what follows it
    (Rime & Rhyme are homophones, words that sound the same but are spelled differently and can have different meanings.)

Some options for free printable word family sliders can be found at my Pinterest board on Word Families and Ladders. I especially like the ones from Little Bunny because there are lots of phonograms. They have cute illustrations and are in black and white so they don’t use a lot of color ink to print. But since compact resources are essential for a portable tutor kit, I created a very plain and simple set of clip strips for this purpose.

Print and Assemble:

  1. After the introduction, the next few pages are an index. The phonics pattern is printed on the left. These are word endings, or rimes. Print the index pages on regular paper & cut across by patterns to use them as labels on long envelopes for storing the strips.
  2. Print the remaining sets of strips on card stock.
  3. Cut the bottom strip off across. These are word endings, or rimes, that will be cut apart to attach to the back of matching strips in step 5.
  4. Cut remaining strips apart horizontally (down). Leaving the top margin and a small right side margin on is helpful.
  5. Cut apart each ending (rime) from the bottom strip (or a 1″ circle punch works) and attach to the back of the matching strip with velcro dots. Store the strips in labeled envelopes.

Use:

  1. Select a strip with onsets, and attach the ending (rime) with a velcro dot to a clothespin.
  2. Move the clothespin down the strip, with student blending the sounds into words.

The Clip Strips freebie is available at the Super Tutor Tools store at Teachers Pay Teachers. Visit Word Lists for a free download of the words.

I continue to find patterns and uses for these!

Author Brian P Cleary

Brian P Cleary is a prolific author who has written many books, including the titles below that are perfect for practicing different phonics patterns. Follow the sequence for teaching reading to introduce these.

  • Short u – “The Bug in the Jug Wants a Hug” by Brian Cleary
  • Silent e – “Nice Mice in the Rice” by Brian P Cleary
  • Vowel Teams: AI – “The Frail Snail on the Trail” & EA “The Peaches on the Beaches”
  • Digraphs: “Whose Shoes Would You Choose?,” “The Thing on the Wing Can Sing,” and “Spring in the Kingdom of Ying”
  • Diphthongs: “Whose Shoes Would You Choose?” and “The Clown in the Gown Drives the Car with the Star”

Check out his website at www.brianpcleary.com.

Learn about more phonics favs, and more books to target specific phonics skills at READ, just read

Mr. Nussbaum

This Phonics Focus is about the website mrnussbaum.com, a Phonics Fav with many free helpful tools and games. More resources can be obtained with a subscription. While there are resources for many subject areas, the language arts category is of most interest for learning to read. Mr. Nussbaum makes great use of audio. In the video, we highlight:

Literacy Tools

Games

Reading Comprehension Cubes

Reading Strategies for Comprehension

Get a free copy of cubes for reading comprehension at the Super Tutor Tools store at Teachers Pay Teachers. One includes strategies for reading comprehension, the other has the elements of a story.

Elements of a story

Find websites with passages to check reading comprehension at READ, just read.

See Recipes for Reading Comprehension Strategies at the Balanced Literacy Diet.

English is Weird

English is weird, oh yes, it is! There are vowels that can be spelled in lots of different ways, silent letters, consonants that can have different sounds, and lots of exceptions.

The English language can be a nasty beast, but it is one that can be beat.

It can be tamed with the super tools here at Phonics Pow!

One of the reasons that English is challenging to learn to read is that 26 letters make 44 sounds, called phonemes! Single letters or letter combinations create 72 different phonograms, written symbols that represent sounds. It is no wonder that reading can be difficult, when it looks like this to students:

O = ŏ in DOG and SOCK, but o = ō in NO and GOLD

And like this:

ea = “ē” in BEAN, ea = “ĕ” BREAD, ea = “ā” STEAK, ea+r = “air” BEAR

Those are just two examples of how English can be weird. Phonics terms that are important for teaching reading can be a little intimidating for those who want to help. But fear not, they will make sense as definitions are included when they are introduced!

At Phonics Pow, we use the ABC method to make sense of English. We Add fun with games, Build skills with memorable rhymes, and use Color coding in a sensible sequence to arm tutors with the weapons they need to tame this beast.

Learn more about the Phonics Pow Toolkit, how to get free word sort games and more free resources.

 

Sweet Treats for Phonics

Use these sweet treats to teach phonics patterns in sequence!

II. SOUND OUT WORDS
a. Short Vowels | CVC words – Milk Duds
b. Blends – 100 Grand
c. Short vowels that vary – Kisses (flossy words)
III. VOWEL PATTERNS
a. Silent e – Take Five
b. Bossy R -Star Bursts
c. Diphthongs – Mounds
d. Vowel Teams – Pay Day (Oatmeal Raisin bars are good too!)
e. Vowels that vary
-Dove (Schwa sound)
-Kind bar & Hersheys Gold (i & o can be long when followed by 2 consonants)
-Milky Way (tricky y)
IV CONSONANT PATTERNS
a. Consonant Digraphs – Nestle Crunch
b. Hard or Soft C – Ice Cube gum
V. MULTI-SYLLABLE WORDS
a. Open/Closed Syllables – Zero
b. Consonant-le – Skittles
c. Schwa – Extra gum

Learn more about the Phonics Pow Toolkit, how to get free word sort games and more free resources.