Teach Phonics Before Sight Words

Many children are taught sight words before they are taught to make the individual sounds in the words. Some children need a little help with phonemic awareness before they are ready for phonics. Many children begin to believe reading is about knowing each word by shape and sight. This may work for many easy books, but if a child has not learned to make individual sounds and blend those sounds together the child is not reading.

Use magnetic letters, a Magna Doodle, a white board, paper, or finger paints on slick side of freezer paper.

Teach Consonant Vowel. The vowel sound will be long.
Voice the separate sounds and blend together. n-o, no, g-o, go, m-e, me, h-e, he, sh-e, she, w-e, we
Look for CV pattern in other words.

Teach Vowel Consonant. The vowel sound will be short.
Voice the separate sounds and blend together. a-t, at, i-n, in, i-t, it, o-n, on,
u-p, up
Look for VC pattern in other words.

Teach Consonant Vowel Consonant. The vowel sound will be short.
Voice the separate sounds and blend together. m-o-m, mom, d-a-d, dad, c-a-t, cat,
d-o-g, dog, b-i-g, big, r-u-n, run
Look for CVC pattern in other words.

Teach the schwa sound. All vowels can make the "uh" sound.
Voice the sound "uh" and have the child copy it. Tell when a letter is quiet and practice separating and blending the sounds for the following list of words together.
th-uh, the, uh-w-ay, away, c-uh-m, come, wh-uh-t, what, b-uh-n-a-n-uh, banana
Look for the schwa sound in other words.

Teach the Silent e rule. The vowel before the silent e is sometimes long.
Voice the separate sounds and blend together. t-a-pe, tape, l-i-ke, like, p-o-ke, poke, t-u-be, tube
Look for the silent e rule in other words.

Teach two vowels together rule. Sometimes when two vowels are together the first one makes a long sound.
Voice the separate sounds and blend together. m-ea-n, mean, r-ai-n, rain, b-oa-t,
p-ie, pie
Look for two vowels in other words. The ea combination makes a short sound sometimes.

Once a child reads a word from beginning to end and is making individual sounds, more complicated rules and combinations can be shown while reading.
Other rules:
Blends should be taught to be read quickly together. bl, cl, fl, pl, sc, sk, str
An a next to an l or w will make a short o sound. all, want, walk, water, watch
The long a in a CV pattern is made with ay. day, say, play, way
The long i in a CV pattern is made with a y. my, try, fly, by, why
The long u in a CV pattern in made with an o or ew. to, do, who, few, chew, grew
Show and say sounds for the following combinations: ou, ow, ir, ur, er, ar, or(makes the er sound after a w, work, worry, worm), aw, au, oo, oi, oy, igh, ew, tion, ould, eigh, ture
The soft c and g happen next to an i, or e. circle, cent, gift, gentle, face, cage

This should be a good start for your beginning reader. Blend Phonics by Hazel Logan Loring and Word Mastery by Florence Akin are available for free on the internet if you want more phonics.

Try to teach rules and letter sound combinations for Fry's Sight Word List. Make flashcards and group by similar rules or sounds as you add and teach new words. Make your own flashcards with paper or notecards.

Happy Reading!

Teach Phonics Before Sight Words