Teaching Phonics with Decodable Reading Passages

Why Use Decodable Reading Passages?

We know that students need explicit instruction in the essential components of reading including phonics, phonological awareness, comprehension, fluency and vocabulary. Decodable reading passages are a great way to teach phonics, fluency, and comprehension!

Decodable passages:

• Provide systematic phonics instruction
• Are fun for students and easy to implement for teachers
• Provide quality text at a carefully controlled level
• Are a flexible learning tool that can be used in a variety of classroom settings

How to use the decodable readers:

On the front cover students are introduced to, or review, a phonics sound. They practice reading words with the pattern, picture clues are included for support. I like students to use a highlighter and highlight the target skill. The words will appear again in the reading passage.

Next, students open up the booklet. On the left column they apply their phonics skills to read words with the pattern. I like students to read the list at least three times to increase their fluency. 

Now it is time to read the phonics-based reading passage! Students should be able to read the text independently. There may be a few high-frequency words that you need to introduce prior to reading. Again, I recommend having the students read the passage multiple times to work on fluency. 

Students search through the passage and find all the words that fit the word pattern being taught. You can have children circle or highlight them. Then, they write them on the list at the bottom center of the page. You can see students are getting a TON of practice with the new phonics skill!!!

After reading and finding the words, it is time for students to do some reading comprehension work! At this level, students complete a cloze reading activity. Later in the year, students answer questions about the text. This is a great way to get students back into the text one more time!

The back cover of the booklet provides a great opportunity for students to apply their new learning! Students write words that contain the learned phonics pattern. Children should be able to write the words without looking back in the passage. This page is a great for you to assess your students understanding of the learned skill.

Currently, I have five sets of phonics-based reading passages: short vowels, silent e, r-controlled vowels, vowel teams, and diphthongs.

The bundle is a great deal because any new sets will also be added to it for free!

Short Vowels Decodable Passages

Sign up to receive a free short a and short u decodable passage.

Thank you!

Check your email inbox for your free decodable passages.

0

Beginning Consonant Blends

After your students have learned to read short vowel words, it is time to work on beginning blends.  Most beginning blends fall into one of three categories: l blends, r blends, and s blends. Work on one type of blends at a time.  I have always thought s blends are the easiest for students to master first, then l blends, with r blends being last.  Spend at least a week teaching each type of blend.

These are the most common beginning blends.  I created these by using my hot glue gun to glue magnetic letters together.

Here are some activity and center ideas for working on blends:

1. Reading and sorting words by beginning blend.

Here is another activity center idea for sorting.  By changing how the sort looks, it feels like a different activity to the children.  You can find the sorting cards here.

2.  Building blend words with onsets (the blend) and rimes.  

 You can download the cards here for free.  Print the blends in one color, and the rimes in a different color.  Students can use the cards to build and read real (and nonsense) words.  This works great as a table top activity during guided reading or intervention time.  

I created these mats with some word family sticky notes I found several years ago. 

This set makes a great center.  Students add blends with magnetic letters, letter cards, or dry-erase markers.  Click here to see this set in my TPT store.

3. Bingo type games are always fun!  In this version students draw a picture card, and find the matching word on their mats.  You can find it here.

4.Write and Wipe mats

 These mats make a great center or independent activity.  Place them in a write and wipe pocket, sheet protector, or laminate them. Students write the beginning blends.  You can find it here.

5. Roll and Read is another fun center idea.  Students roll the dice and find a word with the beginning blend.  If they can read the word they add it to their pile.  You can find it here.  

6.  Worksheets

Students read, write, sort and glue the words into the correct column. You can find them here.

Want all of the activities?  They are available in a bundle in my TPT store. 

 You can find the bundle here.

I hope this has helped you to think of some fun ideas and centers for beginning blends!

0

Word Work Center

This is one of my students favorite centers.

I had all of these old boxes of cards (I think 4 of them) laying around and I wasn't sure what to do with them.  I hadn't really been using them. 

So I decided to use them to create a center.  I love that this center was easy to make, self-checking, and hands on for the kids! 

Here are the supplies you need:

Simply add magnetic tape to the back of the cards and your center is ready!

Students build the words on the cookie sheets, and turn the cards over to check.

 I separate my cards into sets short vowels, short vowels with blends, silent e, vowel teams, etc.



0