How I Teach Phonics + GIVEAWAY/FREEBIE!!

Happy Thursday Friends,

 

Today I found a great linky about teaching phonics from Melissa over at First Grade Smiles.

Teaching phonics is something that I love as a first grade teacher and it goes along with a creation that I just made that I wanted to share about.

I always like to hook my students with the phonics skills that we are learning that week. Here are some examples of phonics videos that I like to use in my classroom:

 

Anything with the Electric Company...my kids LOVE these videos

 

I also like the videos "Between the Lions" to teach phonics skills. Some of them are short songs, but they are usually longer videos so I might save them for later on in the week or as a filler if we finish up our work early. :-) This is one for "at".

 

I am a HUGE advocate for Making Words in the classroom. According to Patricia Cunningham, "Making words provides a structured way for students to experiment with words and investigate how the sounds of language are put together" (Cunningham, 1994).  As you know more skilled readers look for those familiar word patterns in unknown words to help them decode. We spend a lot of time focusing on those word patterns and how to manipulate them. This is how my students become successful readers. I refer a lot to Fountas and Pinnell also when it comes to reading instruction. I feel this best sums up where to focus your goals when you are planning your instruction:

 

I just created this Making Words Mega Pack for my classroom that provides 115 different word patterns to practice making words with! It has short and long vowel families, blends (beginning/ending), digraphs, diphthongs, and r-controlled vowels. With this pack, I feel like I am set for the year when it comes to providing my students with word family practice. It can be used in small or whole group instruction, Daily Five, or additional practice at home. Here's a look at this product in action!:

 

 

You can find this in my TPT store!!! 

 

 

 



 Click on either image above to check it out in my TPT store!

 

Here are some additional websites that I use as resources for phonics:

 

Florida Center for Reading Research

 

Reading A to Z

 

Heidi Songs

 

Reading Rockets

 

I also love using anchor charts as a visual representation of the word patterns that we are studying that week. Here are some great examples of anchor charts that I have found (I don't draw so nicely, so I am not showing examples of mine lol).

 

 

Off on a tangent real quick...I just found this awesome idea for displaying anchor charts from Christina over at Sugar and Spice. It involves a magnetic towel rod...seriously check out this brilliant idea HERE!

 

 

Besides making words, we also use our decodables from our reading series to highlight familiar word patterns as we read. My students can then take them home and refer to them as they reread these decodable texts to build fluency. Here are some pinterest inspired center ideas that I've found for practicing phonics in our classroom:

Word Sorts with Familiar Word Patterns

 

Vowel flip books...inspired by Mrs. Schmelzer's Class

 

Anything with food...I use food to teach reading, writing, and math! This idea was from First Grade Wow. 

OKAY...drumroll please...it's GIVEAWAY time!! I will pick 2 people to win my new Making Words Mega Pack (valued at $12.00). Enter in Rafflecopter Below! It will end Sunday at midnight.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

And of course, a freebie for you! This is an example of my -at making words from my Making Words Mega Pack. Click on the picture to download from Google Docs!  

 

 Have a thrilling Thursday!!!,