Curriculum

What is phonemic awareness?

Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear and work with the individual sounds in spoken words. This is a listening skill, so learners do not look at printed letters or words.

How can I help at home?

• Say a word and your child has to break the word into individual sounds (You say, "top" your child says, “ t-o-p”). Your child can count each sound on their fingers. Remember, your child is only saying the sounds they hear so the word bike would be b-i-k ( because the e is silent there are only three sounds). You can continue this with 4 and 5 letter words once your child is ready.
• Play the “Name Game”. Replace the first letter of each family member’s name with a different letter sound. For example, say the sound /t/ and make ‘Tob’ for ‘Bob’ and ‘Tatt’ for ‘Matt’.
• Say a sentence out loud and ask your child to tell you how many words are in the sentence.
• Give your child a 3 letter word (like dog). Ask your child what sound he hears at the beginning of the word? For example, you say, “dog” and he says, “d” (make sure he says the letter sound, not the letter name). As he masters beginning sounds, ask what sound he hears at the end of the word. Then, once he has mastered ending sounds, ask what sound he hears in the middle of the word.
• Choose a letter sound, then have your child find things around your house that start with the same sound. For example, “Can you find something in our house that starts with the letter “p” sound?” (picture, pencil, pear)
• Tell your child you’re going to communicate in “snail talk” and she needs to figure out what you are saying. Take a simple word and stretch it out very slowly (ex. ffff-llll-aaaa-g) then ask your child to tell you the word. Switch roles and have your child stretch out a word for you. 
• Play I Spy. You can say, “I see a sign that says s-t-o-p.” Then your child has to blend  sounds to guess your word– stop. Remember to say only the sounds in the words, not the letters. Keep the words short, moving from two to three to four sounds depending on your child’s skill level. 

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What is phonics?

Phonics is the ability to understand the relationship between letters and the sounds they represent.

How can I help at home?

• Make letter-sounds and have your child write the letter (s) or letters (ch) that match the sound.
• Write letters on cards. Hold up one card at a time and have your child say the sound (for example, the /d/ sound for the letter d). To make this more of a game, put the letter cards in a paper bag and let your child reach into the bag and take out a letter. Have your child say the sound that matches that letter.
• Build words using magnetic letters or letter cards to make 3 letter words. Have your child read the word. For a more advanced option, have your child use the word in a sentence. Continue to add 4 and 5 letter words as your child is ready.
• Write a word (such as tape) on a sheet of paper. Challenge your child to make a list of new words by just changing one letter at the beginning, middle or end of the word. For example,
  • tape, cape, cake, lake, like , live, dive, five, fine, line
• Many children love to send and receive notes, and writing is a great way to reinforce phonics skills. Send your child a note in her backpack or place notes on her pillow. Whenever your child receives a note, have her write back. Don’t be concerned about spelling. Instead, have your child sound out the words to the best of her ability. 
• Use outings such as the grocery store as an opportunity for learning! Ask your child to help you by reading the labels. For example, “Can you find the tuna fish packed in water?” He’ll be using his reading skills to find the right item. Another activity is to put your child in charge of the grocery list. As you put items into the cart, say the word and ask your child to cross it off the list. 
• Decoding is hard work! Try setting aside time each day to listen to your child read to you and let her know how much you enjoy hearing her read and how proud you are.    

What is fluency?

Fluency is the ability to read text smoothly, accurately, with appropriate speed, and proper expression. The ability to read fluently allows learners to focus on comprehension rather than sounding out words.

How can I help at home?

• Choose a passage that will not be difficult for your child to read. Read the passage aloud to your child and then read it together. Help your child figure out any tricky words. Next, have your child read the passage to you with accuracy. Have your child continue to reread the passage focusing on expression and reading at a smooth, natural rate.
• To make repeated reading fun, your child can practice reading to a variety of audiences such as family members, stuffed animals, pets, etc.
• Use different voices. When reading a familiar story or passage, try having your child read the story using a mouse voice, cowboy voice, baby voice, teacher voice, etc.
• On the ipad, record your child reading a passage or story for the very first time. Then after practicing the passage several times, record her again to hear the difference!
• Take turns reading aloud. You go first, as your reading provides a model of what fluent reading sounds like. Then, ask your child to re-read the same page you just read. You’ll notice that your child’s reading will start to sound more and more like yours. Do this for several pages. Once your child is comfortable enough and familiar enough with the book, take turns reading page for page.
• Practice, Practice, Practice! Repetition is the key to fluency.

What is vocabulary?  

Vocabulary is students’ knowledge of and memory for word meanings. Developing vocabulary is an ongoing process based on life experience, education and exposure to new language.

How can I help at home?

• Continue to read aloud to your child even after he is capable of reading independently. Choose books above your child’s level because the material is likely to contain richer vocabulary, and then you are able to teach new words and how they are used in context.
• Introduce your child to a variety of experiences to help build background knowledge she can use while making sense of print by taking them to the park, public library, zoo, etc.
• Play categories with your child. Name a topic such as “farms” and ask your child to think of all the words he can relate to that topic. This is a great way to build word knowledge!
• Reading aloud to your child and having your child read books on his own is the best way to increase his vocabulary. Books provide words he won’t encounter in everyday conversations. A great story also provides context and illustrations for learning a new word.
• Nonfiction (informational) books offer young children a treasure chest of new and interesting words about our world. If the book has a glossary, spend some time discussing the words with your child, and as you read aloud stop as often as needed to think about new words and how they connect to what your child already knows.
• Choose a word and then your child has to think of another word that means the same thing. Take turns until one of you cannot think of another word. For example, you may say, “cold,” and your child might say, “freezing.” Then you could say, “chilly,” and so on. Try the game again with antonyms (opposites).
• Give your child a simple category such as pets, clothes, or family members. For older children, the categories can be more complex such as The Revolutionary War, astronomy, or math terms. Ask your child to name all the words she can that relate to the topic. This is a great way to build word knowledge.

What is comprehension?  

Comprehension is the ability to understand and gather meaning from text. 

How can I help at home?

• Build in everyday comprehension by asking your child who, what, when, where, why and how questions. For example, “Who did you sit with at lunch?” or “What is one thing you did to be a helper today?” etc. Once your child is comfortable answering questions about their experiences, try asking these questions about a book you’ve read together.
• When you read aloud to your child, share what you are thinking. It is your opportunity to show your child that reading is a lot more than just figuring out the words. Describe how you feel about what’s going on in the book, what you think will happen next, or what you thought about a character’s choice.
• When reading a book or passage together, stop early in the reading to ask, ”What do you think will happen next?”
• After reading a book or passage together, ask your child to tell you about the beginning, middle and end of the story. You may need to model this several times first. 
• Help your child make connections to his life experience while reading. You could say, “Is there anything you read in the story that reminds you of something?”   

Reading Fiction (Stories)

• Before Reading: Point out the title and author. Look at the picture on the cover and ask, “What do you think is going to happen in this story? Why?” This will help your child set a purpose for reading. 
• During Reading: Stop every now and then to ask your child to tell you what has happened so far or what she predicts will happen next. You might also ask for your child’s opinion. “Do you think the character did the right thing? How do you feel about that choice?”  Ask questions about character traits. For example, “Which character do you think was kind? Which character was bossy? How do you know?” If your child doesn’t know, give your answer. You may need to do this many times before your child can do it.
• After Reading: Ask your child to retell the story from the beginning and ask for opinions, too. “What was your favorite part? Would you recommend this to a friend?”

Reading Nonfiction (Informational)

• Before Reading: Point out the title and author. Look at the picture on the cover and ask, “What do you think you’ll learn about in this book? Why?” This helps your child consider what he already knows about the topic. Look at the table of contents.
• During Reading: Don’t forget the captions, headings, sidebars, or any other information on the page. Young readers tend to overlook these, so it’s a good idea to show that the author includes lots of information in these “extras”.
• After Reading: Ask your child, “What was it mostly about? What do you still want to know? Where could you find out?”