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L-Blends
Make sure your students (especially elementary students) can hear 👂🏼 , say 🗣and read 👀the different types of L blends.
A good way to do this is to provide examples of the different L blends (i.e. bl, cl, fl, gl, pl) within words in a list.
This should be practiced in reading, spelling, pronunciation, and phonemic awareness drills.
You can also make this skill tactile by using the “say and trace” method, which should be incorporated AFTER the child locates the vowel sound FIRST in the word.
My favorite L blend examples:
bl - black ⚫️⬛️🖤
cl - clap 👏🏼
fl - flag 🇺🇸
gl - glass 🍷 glasses 👓
pl - plant 🪴
sl - slippers 🥿
A good way to do this is to provide examples of the different L blends (i.e. bl, cl, fl, gl, pl) within words in a list.
This should be practiced in reading, spelling, pronunciation, and phonemic awareness drills.
You can also make this skill tactile by using the “say and trace” method, which should be incorporated AFTER the child locates the vowel sound FIRST in the word.
My favorite L blend examples:
bl - black ⚫️⬛️🖤
cl - clap 👏🏼
fl - flag 🇺🇸
gl - glass 🍷 glasses 👓
pl - plant 🪴
sl - slippers 🥿
Schedules
#tutortiptuesday✏️ courtesy of the creative and smart mom of @harleyaussiedood who shared with me today the tip for keeping track of her middle schooler’s schedule...since there’s no repeats for 12 days!
.
Here is the breakdown: 6 day cycle that is spread over 12 days so students go through one days schedule over 2 days.
A = periods 1-4 and B = periods 5-9.
.
for some families, schedules printed and posted on the child’s bedroom cork board or refrigerator work..and for others, a printed/laminated key ring does!
.
This is a great tip that I had to pass along 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
.
Here is the breakdown: 6 day cycle that is spread over 12 days so students go through one days schedule over 2 days.
A = periods 1-4 and B = periods 5-9.
.
for some families, schedules printed and posted on the child’s bedroom cork board or refrigerator work..and for others, a printed/laminated key ring does!
.
This is a great tip that I had to pass along 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Suffixes
One of the cornerstones of the English language is the use of affixes, aka prefixes and suffixes, that impact the meaning of the word.
.
⭐️I have found that as young as 1st grade, students should have a basic understanding that:
✔️suffix -s and -es indicates plural (vs singular)
.
✔️suffix -ing indicates happening now/present tense
.
✔️suffix -ed indicates already happened/past tense
.
⭐️Depending on the child, it’s possible to begin differentiating between vowel suffix vs consonant suffix [as seen in the zoom tutoring session 📸]
.
Why?
.
⭐️Because it helps increase spelling accuracy!!
.
➡️⭐️When the child recognizes that the suffix starts with a vowel (examples: -ing, -ed, -er) or a consonant (examples: -ful, -ment) they will know when to:
.
✔️drop or keep the e like in the words hopeful vs hoping
.
✔️double the consonant (or not) like in the words running vs runs
.
✔️and change/keep the y like in the words crying vs cries
.
📝FYI: visually using the same suffix cards and list helps the child build familiarity and success
.
⭐️⭐️⭐️Moral of the story: spelling is extremely challenging for our kids, so the more we can explicitly instruct them on spelling rules using their working knowledge of suffixes, the less challenging it’ll be for them and they will be ready to take on the next set of challenges in the English language!
.
⭐️I have found that as young as 1st grade, students should have a basic understanding that:
✔️suffix -s and -es indicates plural (vs singular)
.
✔️suffix -ing indicates happening now/present tense
.
✔️suffix -ed indicates already happened/past tense
.
⭐️Depending on the child, it’s possible to begin differentiating between vowel suffix vs consonant suffix [as seen in the zoom tutoring session 📸]
.
Why?
.
⭐️Because it helps increase spelling accuracy!!
.
➡️⭐️When the child recognizes that the suffix starts with a vowel (examples: -ing, -ed, -er) or a consonant (examples: -ful, -ment) they will know when to:
.
✔️drop or keep the e like in the words hopeful vs hoping
.
✔️double the consonant (or not) like in the words running vs runs
.
✔️and change/keep the y like in the words crying vs cries
.
📝FYI: visually using the same suffix cards and list helps the child build familiarity and success
.
⭐️⭐️⭐️Moral of the story: spelling is extremely challenging for our kids, so the more we can explicitly instruct them on spelling rules using their working knowledge of suffixes, the less challenging it’ll be for them and they will be ready to take on the next set of challenges in the English language!
Multi-sensory Tutoring
Our students need the combo of auditory (hearing the sounds the letters made) and visual (seeing them while hearing them)
.
💥So, I start EVERY SINGLE SESSION (Virtual or in person) with a game of trivia...if you watch my stories, I post these often!
.
Why?
.
🔠Structured literacy must be multisensory aka targeting more than one sense! And while this utilizes more energy from the brain 🧠, it’s key to work toward reaching the goal for the child to become automatic and accurate!
.
How do i do this?
.
1️⃣The student is presented with his/her “sound chart” as pictured.
.
2️⃣I say to the student as they hold their dry erase marker or zoom annotate drawing tool, “circle the letter that says _____, _____, and _____.”
.
3️⃣Wait time is well spent time. So now the child scans the sound mat and circles the correct letters to represent the sounds I gave.
.
4️⃣Reverse it! The student becomes the “professor” and says, “Genny find the letters that say _____, _____, and _____.” I listen and circle it as I was directed.
.
5️⃣Repeat another round of it (steps 2,3,4)
.
🌠This “trivia exercise” taps into their knowledge base, fires up the literacy neurons, and sets the stage for engagement and fun...all things necessary to then carry out the remainder of the lesson.
.
PS - the Sound chart remains by the child’s side the entire time...!
.
🌟Tell me - How do you start your sessions? Find ways to engage the child authentically?
.
💥So, I start EVERY SINGLE SESSION (Virtual or in person) with a game of trivia...if you watch my stories, I post these often!
.
Why?
.
🔠Structured literacy must be multisensory aka targeting more than one sense! And while this utilizes more energy from the brain 🧠, it’s key to work toward reaching the goal for the child to become automatic and accurate!
.
How do i do this?
.
1️⃣The student is presented with his/her “sound chart” as pictured.
.
2️⃣I say to the student as they hold their dry erase marker or zoom annotate drawing tool, “circle the letter that says _____, _____, and _____.”
.
3️⃣Wait time is well spent time. So now the child scans the sound mat and circles the correct letters to represent the sounds I gave.
.
4️⃣Reverse it! The student becomes the “professor” and says, “Genny find the letters that say _____, _____, and _____.” I listen and circle it as I was directed.
.
5️⃣Repeat another round of it (steps 2,3,4)
.
🌠This “trivia exercise” taps into their knowledge base, fires up the literacy neurons, and sets the stage for engagement and fun...all things necessary to then carry out the remainder of the lesson.
.
PS - the Sound chart remains by the child’s side the entire time...!
.
🌟Tell me - How do you start your sessions? Find ways to engage the child authentically?
Linking Verbs
Do you know your linking verbs? Do your students?
.
✏️A few months ago, I enrolled myself in William Van Cleave’s Syntax course and learned so much about the parts of speech and parts of the sentences. I also purchased a ton of his materials, especially his appropriately titled book “Writing Matters.”
.
✏️One of his tips was that kids should begin to memorize the short list of linking verbs by age 7-8. Why?
.
✏️Kids needs to have a firm grasp of the most basic parts of speech in order to better identify the not-so-obvious in a sentence.
.
✏️Teaching this explicitly is a must by using examples from text surrounding topics THEY love and then showing their new learning when writing on their own to practice.
.
✏️Repeat the process and the child can begin to demonstrate strong writing skills as well as independence and confidence 🚀
.
✏️Do you teach linking verbs? Are you comfortable teaching parts of speech/syntax?
.
✏️A few months ago, I enrolled myself in William Van Cleave’s Syntax course and learned so much about the parts of speech and parts of the sentences. I also purchased a ton of his materials, especially his appropriately titled book “Writing Matters.”
.
✏️One of his tips was that kids should begin to memorize the short list of linking verbs by age 7-8. Why?
.
✏️Kids needs to have a firm grasp of the most basic parts of speech in order to better identify the not-so-obvious in a sentence.
.
✏️Teaching this explicitly is a must by using examples from text surrounding topics THEY love and then showing their new learning when writing on their own to practice.
.
✏️Repeat the process and the child can begin to demonstrate strong writing skills as well as independence and confidence 🚀
.
✏️Do you teach linking verbs? Are you comfortable teaching parts of speech/syntax?
Say and Trace
When correcting a student who is stuck with reading, the script is, “SAY AND TRACE.” 🤏🏼📝 Model it enough times for the student on the paper so it becomes habitual and then learn to decode each sound and blend together independently. 👉🏼👉🏼👉🏼swipe left for VIDEO👉🏼👉🏼👉🏼
💛Spelling is even tougher than reading for the majority of our kids, so my go-to script is “FINGERSPELL...Fist (syllable) to fingers (phonemes).” 👊🏼➡️👍🏼 .💛
It’s so important for kids to be able to identify the number of syllables in the given word you want them to spell THEN break each syllable down into its individual sounds to assist with spelling on the paper.
.💛
Again, if you model it and practice it countless times, the child will be able to do it independently.
.💛
This can still be done virtually! This can be done but teachers and parents EVERYWHERE.
.💛
Anything can be done if we think it through, trust the process, and believe in time the answer will come
💛Spelling is even tougher than reading for the majority of our kids, so my go-to script is “FINGERSPELL...Fist (syllable) to fingers (phonemes).” 👊🏼➡️👍🏼 .💛
It’s so important for kids to be able to identify the number of syllables in the given word you want them to spell THEN break each syllable down into its individual sounds to assist with spelling on the paper.
.💛
Again, if you model it and practice it countless times, the child will be able to do it independently.
.💛
This can still be done virtually! This can be done but teachers and parents EVERYWHERE.
.💛
Anything can be done if we think it through, trust the process, and believe in time the answer will come
R Blends
#tutortiptuesday is all about the R blends!
✅make sure your students can hear, say, and read the different types.
Give examples:
br as in broom🧹bricks 🧱brown🤎
cr as in crab 🦀 crown 👑
dr as in drip 💧 drive 🚘 dream 💭
gr as in grapes 🍇 grow 🪴grass 🌱
tr as in train 🚂 trim 💇🏻♀️
🧠✏️The trickiest ones to spell are
dr (because it sounds like /j/
And
tr because it sounds like /chr/).
A great way to do this is to give multi-sensory tasks ➡️ Have the student sound out 🗣and write ✍🏼the words simultaneously as they look 👀 at it!
✅✏️Making sure that R blends are understood and pronounced correctly is very important for a child’s verbal and literacy development, especially in elementary age children. 🧠🧠🧠
✅make sure your students can hear, say, and read the different types.
Give examples:
br as in broom🧹bricks 🧱brown🤎
cr as in crab 🦀 crown 👑
dr as in drip 💧 drive 🚘 dream 💭
gr as in grapes 🍇 grow 🪴grass 🌱
tr as in train 🚂 trim 💇🏻♀️
🧠✏️The trickiest ones to spell are
dr (because it sounds like /j/
And
tr because it sounds like /chr/).
A great way to do this is to give multi-sensory tasks ➡️ Have the student sound out 🗣and write ✍🏼the words simultaneously as they look 👀 at it!
✅✏️Making sure that R blends are understood and pronounced correctly is very important for a child’s verbal and literacy development, especially in elementary age children. 🧠🧠🧠
S Blends
#tutortiptuesday is all about the S blends. 🐍S blends include: sc/sk, sl, sm, sn, sp, st, sw.
.
🙅🏻♀️They can be quite difficult to learn for any child, especially a child with a speech disorder; however, I am here to help ease this task with these tips⤵️
.
1️⃣Make sure your students can hear, say, and read the different types of S blends. This is especially important in elementary school students who are still developing their speech patterns.
.
2️⃣To reinforce this concept, use visual aids and even tactile elements to ensure all senses are engaged in the learning process.
.
3️⃣My favorite multisensory line during reading is, “Say and trace,” in which the student looks, says, and touches the letters simultaneously. This increases the odds for retention.
.
4️⃣Another fun way to reinforce these concepts is incorporating items that begin with the S blend such as:
skate ⛸🛼
slipper 🥿
smile 😄
snake 🐍
spoon 🥄
stop sign 🛑
swimmer 🏊♀️
.
✅This is a super fun and engaging way to teach s blends.
.
🙅🏻♀️They can be quite difficult to learn for any child, especially a child with a speech disorder; however, I am here to help ease this task with these tips⤵️
.
1️⃣Make sure your students can hear, say, and read the different types of S blends. This is especially important in elementary school students who are still developing their speech patterns.
.
2️⃣To reinforce this concept, use visual aids and even tactile elements to ensure all senses are engaged in the learning process.
.
3️⃣My favorite multisensory line during reading is, “Say and trace,” in which the student looks, says, and touches the letters simultaneously. This increases the odds for retention.
.
4️⃣Another fun way to reinforce these concepts is incorporating items that begin with the S blend such as:
skate ⛸🛼
slipper 🥿
smile 😄
snake 🐍
spoon 🥄
stop sign 🛑
swimmer 🏊♀️
.
✅This is a super fun and engaging way to teach s blends.
C vs. K Rule
#tutortiptuesday✏️ is all about the C vs. K spelling rule, which relies entirely on the vowels!
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Consonant “c” pronounced as “k” can come almost anywhere in the word and comes before the vowels a, o, and u.
.
The letter “k” comes before the vowels e, i, or y.
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🗣A fun rhyme I sometimes use with kids is, “K takes i and e...C takes the other three!”
.
Obviously, this can be a tricky concept and can be super confusing for students IF NOT GIVEN EXPLICIT INSTRUCTION.
.
Examples:
c comes BEFORE a o u as in:
.
can🥫cat 🐱 cop 👮🏻♀️ cut ✂️
.
k comes BEFORE e i y as in:
.
keds 👟 key 🔑 kite 🪁 Kyle 🧑🏻
.
Fun fact: beginning blends “sc” vs. “sk” follow the same rules as in⤵️
.
sc ➡️ scan 👀 score ⏳sculpt 🗿
sk ➡️ sketch ✍🏼 skip ⏭ skull ☠️
.
which word starting with a C or K always trips you up?
.
Consonant “c” pronounced as “k” can come almost anywhere in the word and comes before the vowels a, o, and u.
.
The letter “k” comes before the vowels e, i, or y.
.
🗣A fun rhyme I sometimes use with kids is, “K takes i and e...C takes the other three!”
.
Obviously, this can be a tricky concept and can be super confusing for students IF NOT GIVEN EXPLICIT INSTRUCTION.
.
Examples:
c comes BEFORE a o u as in:
.
can🥫cat 🐱 cop 👮🏻♀️ cut ✂️
.
k comes BEFORE e i y as in:
.
keds 👟 key 🔑 kite 🪁 Kyle 🧑🏻
.
Fun fact: beginning blends “sc” vs. “sk” follow the same rules as in⤵️
.
sc ➡️ scan 👀 score ⏳sculpt 🗿
sk ➡️ sketch ✍🏼 skip ⏭ skull ☠️
.
which word starting with a C or K always trips you up?
Schwa ə part 2
#tutortiptuesday ✏️The schwa ə part 2️⃣ 🛸
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🛸 the schwa over the second vowel is an important but sometimes confusing concept for students.
.
🛸It is the concept that dictates how words like “ribbon” and “phantom” are said.
.
🛸 It is also an important aspect of learning to spell longer words due to the effect of stressed/unstressed syllables in English and how the words may sound differently than they are spelled.
.
🛸It is difficult to teach as it requires very advanced phonemic awareness skills that require the ability to discern different vowel sounds within the context of multisyllabic words.
.
🛸the best way I’ve learned through teaching the SCHWA ə is ⤵️.
1️⃣teaching it along side VCV camel tiger words (trying patterns 1&2)
.
2️⃣using the 🛸 icon to show the vowel sounds was transformed from “outta nowhere!”
.
3️⃣My spelling script (for example) during “spell words” is: “say Cottin but spell it cot-ton.”
.
Any questions? Comments? Ideas you’ve tried??
.
🛸 the schwa over the second vowel is an important but sometimes confusing concept for students.
.
🛸It is the concept that dictates how words like “ribbon” and “phantom” are said.
.
🛸 It is also an important aspect of learning to spell longer words due to the effect of stressed/unstressed syllables in English and how the words may sound differently than they are spelled.
.
🛸It is difficult to teach as it requires very advanced phonemic awareness skills that require the ability to discern different vowel sounds within the context of multisyllabic words.
.
🛸the best way I’ve learned through teaching the SCHWA ə is ⤵️.
1️⃣teaching it along side VCV camel tiger words (trying patterns 1&2)
.
2️⃣using the 🛸 icon to show the vowel sounds was transformed from “outta nowhere!”
.
3️⃣My spelling script (for example) during “spell words” is: “say Cottin but spell it cot-ton.”
.
Any questions? Comments? Ideas you’ve tried??
Doubling the Consonant
✏️❇️this week's #tutortiptuesday is designed to help students with language processing deficits try to master hard concepts, such as the doubling rule!
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❇️This is found in words like “spin.” When a vowel suffix like “-ing” is added to the base word “spin,” the consonant after the vowel (n) must be DOUBLED and it becomes “spinning.”
.
🗣Remember: a vowel suffix is any ending that begins with a VOWEL!
.
❇️This can be a confusing concept for students just starting to read and spell longer words.
.
⤵️Let me break it down with for you with the most common vowel suffixes:
🐰hop + -ing = hopping
.
📦ship + -ed = shipped
.
💃🏻red + -ish = reddish
.
📜flat + -en = flatten
.
🏃🏻♀️jog + -er = jogger
.
🦀 crab + -y = crabby
.
.
🗣🗣have you ever taught the DOUBLING rule? Do you enjoy teaching it as much as me? 🙋🏻♀️
.
❇️This is found in words like “spin.” When a vowel suffix like “-ing” is added to the base word “spin,” the consonant after the vowel (n) must be DOUBLED and it becomes “spinning.”
.
🗣Remember: a vowel suffix is any ending that begins with a VOWEL!
.
❇️This can be a confusing concept for students just starting to read and spell longer words.
.
⤵️Let me break it down with for you with the most common vowel suffixes:
🐰hop + -ing = hopping
.
📦ship + -ed = shipped
.
💃🏻red + -ish = reddish
.
📜flat + -en = flatten
.
🏃🏻♀️jog + -er = jogger
.
🦀 crab + -y = crabby
.
.
🗣🗣have you ever taught the DOUBLING rule? Do you enjoy teaching it as much as me? 🙋🏻♀️
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