Phonics

=Phonics= Phonics is a strategy for teaching children to read. It involves sounding out letters or groups of letters to ultimately decode and read words. Phonics contrasts with the whole word approach which requires children to memorise entire words at a time. For example, instead of memorising the pronunciation and spelling of the word 'chess', the child learns the sounds 'ch', 'e' and 'ss' letters make before combining them to read the word. Using Phonics can unlock a considerable vocabulary quickly as pupils can decipher new words by sounding out their components.

Systematic or synthetic phonics is a process in which phonics are taught. The method first teaches individual letter sounds, then two or more letter sounds, and then finally combining these sounds to attain full pronunciation of words. Starfall.com(screenshot from the home page below) is a free interactive online service that teaches systematic phonics in a fun way for children. According to the website, Starfall Education (2011) is ideal for children up to eight years of age including and in addition to children in special education, homeschooling and those learning English as a second language.



Applying the whole word method to learn reading can be daunting for some students including those with learning difficulties such as ADHD or dyslexia. Systematic phonics provides a viable alternative for such students as confirmed by Dyslexia Teacher, which states "All dyslexic children struggle to learn to read. The most helpful strategy is to provide them with systematic phonics teaching methods." (Dyslexia Teacher, n.d., "Systematic Phonics", para. 1) As there are considerably less sound components to learn than actual words, learning reading by phonics can be easier. Also, children can apply their knowledge of phonics to discover new words in their everyday lives which can be gratifying.

The main disadvantage of using phonics to teach reading is that all words cannot be sounded out. For instance, the words 'want' and 'music' will not be pronounced correctly using the technique. However phonics can provide children with a strong base of words to which specific words, that need to be memorised, can gradually be added. Fitzroy Readers (n.d.) believes that once the fifty most common words that cannot be sounded out are learnt, over 90% of all words can be deciphered phonetically.

Starfall can be used in the classroom or at home. In the classroom, teachers and their assistants can take children aside and help them become familiar with the program on a single computer. This could be done with one student, or two if of a similar reading ability. Interactive whiteboards can be used for larger groups of children. Pupils can make sounds together with the program and take turns attempting the interactive components. As the program is entirely internet based, keen students will often be able to continue exploring the service at home.

Starfall Education. (2011). //Where the Children have Fun Learning to Read.// Retrieved from @http://www.starfall.com/
 * References**

Dyslexia Teacher. (n.d.) //Systematic Phonics.// Retrieved from @http://www.dyslexia-teacher.com/

Fitzroy Readers. (n.d.) //E-Course Introduction.// Retrieved from @http://www.fitzprog.com.au/phonics_ecourse.html

Phonics Alive. Phonics alive is an interactive computer ‘game’ that develops and builds on your understanding of phonics by interacting with games and puzzles. This software is useful for all age groups and levels because of the different stages:

‘ [|Phonics Alive!] - Introduces all letter shapes and sounds. It can be used with children at a very early age, through to older children with learning difficulties or those for whom English is a second language.

 [|Phonics Alive! 2 - The Sound Blender] takes the student a step further by teaching the blending of sounds.

 [|Phonics Alive! 3 - The Speller] teaches students to plan how to spell new and unfamiliar words. Spelling Rules are explained and actively taught, followed by practice activities.

 [|Phonics Alive! 4 - Grammar Stage 1] introduces the student to the concepts of grammar and develops an understanding for grammatical rules by active teaching and fun activities.

[|Phonics Alive! 6 Typing] teaches Primary age children to use a keyboard correctly. It does so by blending tried and tested traditional teaching methods with the entertaining and interactive capabilities of a modern computer program.’ (Phonics Alive (n.d) Phonics Alive Family)

This resource can be used in the classroom or in the computer labs while the rest of the class are doing their spelling and reading the students that need the help from phonics could be using this software.

Reference: Phonics Alive (n.d) Phonics Alive Family Retrieved from [|http://www.advancedsoftware.com.au]

By Stefany Lamb


 * Phonemic Awareness **

Teaching phonics explicitly helps students learn the exact relationships between letters and sounds. Peter Westwood (2007) recommends students should not be left to discover phonic principles by incidental learning. At the same time students should have opportunities to apply the phonic skills they learn to ‘real’ reading and writing.

Students with learning difficulties are likely to need even more help to learn letter-sound correspondences. Games, rhymes, songs and stories are good ways of helping students find links between letters and sounds.




 * Letterland ** is an excellent system for learning letter-sound correspondence with games, rhymes, songs and stories. It is most suitable for the Early Childhood band of development. The system uses alliteration for the names of characters that represent each letter and uses visual cues to assist with the learning. Each character has a story to help students make a link and remember the letter-sound correspondence.





There are characters for vowel sounds Mr A - Apron man Mr E - Easy Magicman Mr I - Ice-Cream man <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Mr O - Old man <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Mr U - Uniform man <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">media type="youtube" key="rExneWWHSgk?version=3" height="216" width="371" align="right"



<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Letter characters can be put together to make letter combinations or digraphs – sh, ch

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Harry Hat Man's Handwriting Song
<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Hurry from the Hat Man's head down to his heel on the ground. Go up and bend his knee over so he'll hop while he makes his sound.

=Who's Who in Letterland = = = <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Reference: <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Westwood, P. (2007). Commonsense Methods For Children with Special Educational Needs (5th ed.). Abingdon, Great Britain: Routledge