Phonics, Word Recognition, and Spelling

1. Phonics, Word Recognition, and Spelling Sharon Walpole University of Delaware

3. Overview of the Session • Look at development of the alphabetic principle in a child’s natural writing • Discuss stages in reading and spelling development • Review principles of, strategies for, and research on phonics instruction • Look at reflection of the alphabetic principle in a child’s developmental spelling assessments • Review some basic concepts about the spelling system that are helpful for teachers to know • Consider strategies for developing teacher knowledge in this area

4. Children’s spellings can give us insight into their knowledge of the characteristics of an alphabetic orthography. From spellings, we can document what children know, what they can do, and what they need to learn.

5. TRNSX “tyrannosaurus rex” October, Kindergarten

6. What does the child

7. HTUT SAT NO DWO WOW “Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall (and I made the O into a pumpkin!)” October, Kindergarten

8. What does the child

9. Fin you dot limi wrking you ovwas s locat the mes you mad “Fine. You don’t like my working. You always say look at the mess you made.” Summer Between Kindergarten and First

10. What does the child

11. I like gowin g to the moves with my mom September, First Grade

12. What does the child

13. WONS A BOY NAMDE DAVY FIDID INDEIDS HE HAD A GON AND A NIF HE WOS the KING of the WIYD FROTTER TER October, First Grade

14. What does the child

15. I like horsis The beste I like anomols. November, First Grade

16. What does the child

17. I like to ski on the hill. I like green eggs and ham. January, First Grade

18. What does the child

19. February, First Grade

20. Onc my brother had a dream. We had a krab. We boet the krab that day. That same knite the krab crold on my brothers head and he dreamd abuot that crab. He wock up and said I dremd abuot a krab.

21. What does the child

22. Today at library we talkt about Sinthiea Riyhlent. She had a real dog naemd mudge. And she rote abuot Henry and mudge. A subetot came in and read us a henry and mudge book. March, First Grade

23. What does the child

24. My uncel came on Saterday. He was the kcick me chaimpieon. He juggled 585 times in a row. He was the best in the word back then. He realy was!!!! April, First Grade

25. What does the child

26. The watercress seeds are poiting towerd the window because it needs sun. We are going to be able to eat them at the end of school. May, First Grade

27. What does the child

28. General Questions • Do you have adequate understanding of developmental issues in reading and spelling? • Do you have adequate understanding of the role of decoding in word recognition and spelling? • Does your reading program include adequate attention to instruction in phonics and decoding? • Does your reading program include a sensible plan for assessment of phonics knowledge and decoding skills? • Does your reading program include adequate attention to intervention in decoding?

29. General Plan • Who needs phonics instruction? When? • A look at literacy ages and stages • Instructional strategies for teaching phonics • Research on phonics instruction • Building a knowledge base for teaching phonics

30. Development of Reading • Emergent Stage: Before children have a concept of word • Beginning Stage: As children are building a sight vocabulary • Instructional Stage: Continues through years--advances with instruction • Transitional reader: Begin to read silently and read/write with greater fluency • Intermediate and Advanced: Read to learn and write to convey meaning

31. Stages in Beginning Reading Ehri (1997) • Pre-alphabetic Uses environmental and visual cues • Partial alphabetic Reads words by forming connections between only some of the letters • Full alphabetic Reads words by forming complete connections because child can segment to the phoneme • Consolidated alphabetic Reads words by chunking (morphemes, syllables, etc.) Ehri, L. (1997). Sight word learning in normal readers and dyslexics. In B. Blachman (Ed.), Foundations of reading acquisition and dyslexia: Implications for early intervention (pp. 163-189). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

32. Stages in Beginning Spelling Gentry (1982) • Precommunicative Pictures or letters, but random • Semiphonetic Abbreviated spellings, some sounds represented • Phonetic All sounds represented • Transitional Long vowels marked, but not always correctly • Conventional Spelling Mostly correct spellings Gentry, J.R. (1982). An analysis of spelling development in GYNS AT WRK. The Reading Teacher, 36, 192-200.

33. Reading and Spelling Development

34. How does developmental data inform instruction? • Core instruction mirrors developmental sequence • Assessments identify developmental status • Needs-based and intervention programs accelerate development for struggling readers

35. What does this development really look like? Take a few minutes to put some developmental milestones for kindergarten and first grade in order based on your knowledge of beginning reading. Notice the relationships among alphabet knowledge, phonemic awareness, reading, and spelling.

36. Principles of Good Phonics Instruction Good phonics instruction should develop the alphabetic principle. Good phonics instruction should develop phonological awareness. Good phonics instruction should provide a thorough grounding in the letters. Good phonics instruction should not teach rules, need not use worksheets, should not dominate instruction, and does not have to be boring. Stahl, Duffy-Hester, & Stahl, 1998

37. Good phonics instruction provides sufficient practice in reading words, both in isolation and in stories, and in writing words, both from dictation and using invented spelling. Good phonics instruction leads to automatic word recognition. Good phonics instruction is one part of a reading program. Stahl, Duffy-Hester, & Stahl, 1998

38. To what extent does the phonics instruction in your setting honor these principles? What strategies might you use to improve it?

39. Take time to identify the most common instructional approaches to teaching phonics. To what extent are these approaches reflected in your phonics curriculum, either singly or in combination?

42. What does SBRR say about phonics instruction? Goes in a preset, logical order. No matter what the type or types, it has to be systematic and explicit The teacher and the child are clear about the element under study.

43. National Reading Panel Report General question: What do we know about phonics instruction with sufficient confidence to recommend for classroom use? NRP, 2000

44. Method NRP, 2000

45. Sources 38 studies Some type of phonics instruction compared with unsystematic or non-phonics instruction School-based rather than laboratory-based curricula Measure of reading Not used in the PA meta-analysis NRP, 2000

46. Coding Variables NRP, 2000

47. Findings Systematic phonics instruction had a significant effect on children’s reading achievement compared to controls. Synthetic, larger-unit (onset-rime), and other phonics programs all were more effective than controls, but no one type of instruction or instructional program was significantly more effective. NRP, 2000

48. Tutoring, small groups, and whole classes are all effective delivery systems for phonics instruction. Phonics instruction is more effective when it occurs in kindergarten and first grade than later. Phonics instruction is effective for at-risk kindergarteners, at-risk first graders, and disabled students. The findings for older weak readers are confusing. NRP, 2000

49. Phonics instruction improves students’ ability to read real words, pseudowords, and (to a lesser extent) irregular words. Phonics instruction improves reading comprehension in kindergarteners, first graders, and disabled readers, but not necessarily in older readers. Phonics instruction improves spelling in kindergarten and first grade, but not for older readers. NRP, 2000

50. Phonics instruction is effective for children at different levels of SES. Phonics instruction was more effective than all forms of control groups (basal, whole language, whole word, regular curriculum). NRP, 2000