Phonics and Word Study - Seven Hills Charter Public … · As discussed in Phonics and Word Study, Learn to Apply, the deficits students have in the alphabetic principle determine

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Phonics and Word Study

Learn About OverviewOnce students begin to grasp the concept that the sounds they hear are representedby letters, they are gaining access to phonemics and graphophonics.1 The relationshipbetween these two systems is known as the sound-symbol correspondence. Accordingto Suzanne Peregoy and Owen Boyle,2 students who are ready to begin phonicsinstruction should have a program that teaches sound-symbol correspondences theyhave not already acquired through meaningful reading and writing experiences.3

Researchers have found that there is a phonics cueing process that occurs whenEnglish Language Learners are acquiring their second language. According to KerperMora,4 this process is visual input, grapheme-phoneme-morpheme relationships,letter-word recognition, then oral reconstruction. The following is a graphic representationof this process.

When teaching phonics and word study, the most important step in this process is thegrapheme-phoneme-morpheme relationship. A grapheme is a written or printedrepresentation of a phoneme, such as b for /b/. A phoneme is a minimal sound unit ofspeech that, when contrasted with another phoneme, affects the meaning of words ina language. For example, /b/ in book contrasts with /t/ in took. A morpheme is ameaningful linguistic unit that cannot be divided into smaller meaningful elements, suchas the word book, or that is a component of a word, as s in books.5

The relationship between these three features of language is the backbone of readingbecause it ties reading text to oral language.6 It is vital that students who are learningEnglish as a second language be instructed explicitly and systematically in the use ofthe sound-symbol correspondence as it relates to making and reading words. This is alsowhere confusion and linguistic interference can occur because of phonological andspelling pattern differences in students’ primary language and second language.7

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Visual Input

Letter

Word

recognition

Grapheme

Phoneme

Morpheme

relationships

Oral

reconstruction

Cautions for Phonics InstructionIn her article Helping the Nonnative English Speaker with Reading, Christine Sutton8

gives three cautions about teaching phonics skills to English Language Learners:

• English is not a phonetically consistent language, particularly with respect tovowels. In the words women and fish, for example, the sounds represented by thefirst vowel of each word are identical. English is replete with examples of phoneticirregularities that confuse English Language Learners.

• It is sometimes difficult for English Language Learners to differentiate sound variations in English, especially if such distinctions do not exist in their native language. It is more difficult still for students to produce such sound differencesin the early stages of language acquisition.

• Phonics drills, like any language drill, may focus on such a narrow aspect ofthe language process that the total message gets lost. Phonics instructionintegrated with other approaches can help students decode print in context.

Word Recognition and Oral LanguageWhen students are acquiring a second language, they are developing their orallanguage. This oral language develops most readily when it’s done through the use oflanguage in context.9 When moving students from oral language development toreading development, it is important to remember that word recognition is best taughtin a contextualized environment. Integrating print into students’ classroom environmentprovides a vehicle in which to contextualize these words.10

Sutton11 provides seven suggestions for integrating print into students’ classroomenvironments:

• Label items, locations, and activities in the room on bulletin boards and ondisplay tables.

• Write instructions, schedules, calendar information, names, and work duties onthe board and refer to them as the information is discussed orally.

• Use language experience activities to describe events in the classroom. Thesecan be the basis for developing sentence strips and student books.12

• Include simple reading-writing activities for beginning-level students as reinforcement for language practiced orally. Include copying of languageexperience information, penmanship, dictation, labeling, vocabulary matchingactivities, word puzzles, and following simple instructions.

• Write familiar dialogues and stories, and have students practice reading them as creative dramatics, choral reading, role-playing activities, and interviews.

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• Have students identify words they would like to know in print. This key-word approach to the development of sight word vocabulary has been quite effectivewith English Language Learners.13

• Provide students with a place, such as a notebook or word cards, to keep track of important words. Students can use a combination of cues to remember meaning, such as an English word plus a picture for definition or English words andnative language definitions or their equivalent.

Link to ComprehensionFor any reader, phonics and word study skills are a direct link to comprehension.If students do not have a solid foundation in these skills, they will have problemscomprehending text. A strong foundation in phonics and word study is even moreimportant for English Language Learners. If possible, the foundation should be providedin their native language to help facilitate their learning to read and comprehend intheir second language. When it is not possible to build this foundation in their firstlanguage, the teacher must provide them with contextualized, explicit, and systematicinstruction in their second language and make connections to their first languagewhen possible.

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Learn to ApplyOverviewFor students to be able to read for understanding, they must first develop four setsof skills:14

• Awareness and appreciation of the variety of purposes reading and writing servein everyday life

• Understanding of relationships between print and oral language, including thealphabetic principle

• Knowledge of print conventions, such as left-to-right, top-to-bottom sequencing• Ability to recognize a growing number of words on sight

This list of skills demonstrates the need for instruction in each of the Five Big Ideas inReading Instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics and word study, fluency, vocabulary,and comprehension. Of these four sets of skills students must develop to begin to readin English, two of them focus on phonics and word study. Understanding therelationships between print and oral language is the main skill identified with phonics.The ability to recognize a growing number of sight words is one of the goals of wordstudy. Students who are acquiring English must be systematically taught the skills in allfour areas.

Phonics Phonics instruction for native English speakers and English Language Learners is basedon the same premise. When delivering phonics instruction to either group of students,the teacher is teaching them about the alphabetic principle. As mentioned in Phonicsand Word Study, Learn to Apply, the two important aspects of phonics instruction areteaching specific letter-sound correspondences and teaching students to sound outwords. The following are critical features of effective phonics instruction:15

• Work with letters and sounds begins in kindergarten.

• Letter-sound correspondences are taught in a systematic fashion.

• Instruction is differentiated to provide the appropriate amount of instructionalsupport. Some students catch on to the code quickly. Others need much morework with letters and sounds to grasp the alphabetic principle.

• Students apply letter-sound knowledge in daily reading and writing.

Instruction in English should begin with a systematic phonics program. This instructionmust be research-based and should fit students’ needs. The teacher needs to befamiliar with the sounds and symbols that might be the same in the primary languageand second language, as well as the ones students will possibly find difficult. Anexcellent resource for these similarities and differences can be found online athttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-native_pronunciations_of_english.

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As with all students, an explicit and systematic plan of instruction for phonics and wordstudy is important to ensure that students are learning all the skills they need to readwith fluency and comprehension in their native language and in English. As the teacherbegins to plan instruction, it is important that he or she remember that it is fruitless toteach phonics and word study isolated from meaningful texts.16 To make the newinformation comprehensible and to have the ability to add it to their existing schemata,or conceptual systems for understanding, students must have something to relate newinformation to. When the teacher presents the skills he or she would like students tolearn, it can be done explicitly through meaningful texts such as poems, songs, chants,and predictable texts.17

AssessmentThe first step to designing an instructional plan that will be effective in teaching all areasof phonics to English-language learners is to assess students’ knowledge. The EnglishDynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills™ (DIBELS™) measures can be used toassess English Language Learners. These measures will provide a snapshot of whatstudents know in English and help the teacher begin to design an effective phonicsprogram. These measures are Letter Naming Fluency (LNF) and Nonsense Word Fluency(NWF). Both measures provide sound data to use when designing an instructional plan.

It is important to remember that LNF is a risk indicator only for reporting purposes. Letternaming is an important skill in phonics instruction for English Language Learners andshould not be ignored. However, the goal of phonics instruction for all students is letter-sound correspondence, which is measured by NWF. Achieving the benchmark in NWFindicates a student has phonemic awareness, alphabetic knowledge, and knowledgeof the alphabetic principle because all these areas of phonics must be used to decodeand read unfamiliar words.

Once an initial assessment to determine a starting point for instruction is complete, useassessment to measure what has been taught. Continue to teach new skills andreinforce skills that have already been taught.

SequencingAs discussed in Phonics and Word Study, Learn to Apply, the deficits students have inthe alphabetic principle determine the sequencing of instruction. This is the same forinstruction in students’ primary language as well as their second language.

When designing an explicit, systematic program for English Language Learners, refer tothe following list from Phonics and Word Study, Learn to Apply. Remember to take intoaccount letters and sounds students may have difficulty with because of their nativelanguage skills. It is important to consider the list and adapt it to meet specific needs.For example, if teaching students whose primary language is Korean, do not introduce/l/ and /r/ on the same day because they are difficult for students.

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Letter Naming Instructional StrategiesThe instructional strategies discussed in Phonics and Word Study, Learn to Apply, aregreat for second language learners as well. When using any instructional strategies, theteacher should use modeling frequently and make the material comprehensible. Whenworking in students’ second language, the teacher will have to provide more extensivescaffolding. Scaffolding is the amount of support that students require to achieveindependence in a specific skill or set of skills. Scaffolding is often provided by usingmodeling during a lesson.

Language-Experience ApproachThe language-experience approach is the most frequently recommended approachfor English Language Learners.18 It can be used to create a comprehensible context inwhich students can learn letter names. This approach is done by having students eitherdictate or help dictate a story about their lives or a personal experience. Once thestory is written, the teacher targets letters students need to practice. The following areways to use these stories to teach the names of letters:

• Use highlight tape to have students highlight a letter being focused on.

• Have students be letter detectives and find all of the target letters in the story.

• Underline all the target letters in the story.

Because these are primarily teacher directed, students who are in their silent phase oflanguage acquisition can still participate and begin to learn the names of letters evenbefore they can say them.

Picture DictionariesStudents create picture dictionaries as they study different letters. This gives students anitem to connect to the letter cognitively. When introducing a letter, the teacher createsa page in the dictionary and gives students pictures that begin with the letter. The teacher

KINDERGARTEN/FIRST GRADE

m/m/

t/t/

s/s/

f/f/

d/d/

r/r/

g/g/

l/l/

h/h/

c/k/

b/b/

n/n/

k/k/

v/v/

w/w/

j/j/

p/p/

y/y/

z/z/

q/kw/

x/ks/

As consonants are introduced, the vowels can be added. It is betterto introduce two or three consonants, then a vowel.

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tells students the names of the pictures and has them glue the pictures on the correctpage. Students can use the dictionaries to become more proficient with the letters bypracticing the names of the letters and pictures.

Applying the Alphabetic Principle to Letter NamingOnce students have begun to learn just a few letters, it is time to apply the alphabeticprinciple to their letter naming skills. By learning a few consonants and a vowel, studentscan begin learning simple consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words.

Alphabetic Principle Instructional StrategiesWhen teaching English Language Learners to sound out words it should be done in anexplicit and systematic progression. It is important that the teacher use consistentlanguage each time a task is performed. The language should also be brief. Thefollowing instructional strategies, found in Phonics and Word Study, Learn to Apply,can be used with English Language Learners.

Instructional Strategies

Letter-Sound Correspondence

Initial Presentation

When presenting letter-sound correspondences, make the task

explicit and use consistent and brief wording.

Example (Point to the letter s.)

This is s. The sound of this letter is /sss/. Tell me the sound of s.

Cumulative Integration

Follow these recommendations for integrating sounds and

reviewing them.

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When a student knows four to six letter-sound correspondences and can recognizethem at the rate of 2 seconds per sound, begin using these letter sounds to formdecodable short vowel-consonant (VC) and consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words.

N K N K K N N K K K NN = new sound K = known sound

Instructional Strategies

Sounding OutModeling the Task

Teaching students to sound out words should follow a systematic

progression. Model and practice each sound.

Example Display the word map.

First, I’ll sound it out. Move your finger under each letter as you

say the letter sounds, extending those that can be extended,

/mmmmmmaaaaaap/.

Then, I’ll say it fast. Move your finger quickly under the whole

word as you say, map.

Now you do it. Sound it out. Move your finger under each

letter as students say the letter sounds with you,

/mmmmmmaaaaaap/.

Say it fast. Move your finger quickly under the whole word as

students say the word with you, map.

• When a student has identified the sound of a new letter on two successive trials,add that sound to the students’ repertoire of known sounds and use letter-soundrecognition and blending activities.

• Integrate new sounds with known sounds in the following pattern:

Word StudyWord study is a natural transition from learning the alphabetic principle in English. Oncestudents have acquired some sounds and symbols of either their native language orEnglish, they need to begin to put those letters and sounds together to make words.Students need word recognition skills to move from phonics to fluency. For students tobe able to read fluently in any language, they must be able to read words withoutconcentrating on decoding. When students are able to move their focus away fromdecoding, they are able to concentrate on comprehending what they are reading. It isimportant to deliver word study instruction within a meaningful context.

SequencingInstruction in word study should remain explicit and systematic. Within an explicit andsystematic program, the teacher needs to make sure the words are used in a realcontext for students. The teacher should move through a set of skills in a predictableorder. Students must move from letter-by-letter decoding to recognizing and using suchlarger orthographic units as letter combinations, spelling patterns, and syllables toread words.

When teaching English Language Learners, the sequencing found in Phonics and WordStudy, Learn to Apply, should be used. This begins with basic skills and moves to morecomplex skills as students’ fluency improves. It is important to teach these skills in anauthentic, meaningful context, remembering that students are acquiring a secondlanguage so some concepts may need to be taught again.

Instructional StrategiesEnglish Language Learners need to participate in instructional strategies that allowthem to interact and manipulate words. The following instructional strategies need tobe done in a meaningful context. One of the best ways to create a meaningful contextfor word learning is to use the language-experience approach. By selecting the wordsto use with these strategies from stories students have dictated, the teacher canpersonalize their word study experiences.

Word Sorts

This strategy is done in a similar way as discussed in Phonics and Word Study, Learn to

Apply. This is an open-ended activity that can be adapted to each individual student.

When students are in Level 1 of language development, the activity can also be done

using pictures. There are two different types of word sorts, closed and open.

Closed Sorts

This type of sort causes students to look for a specific feature of a word. For example,

have them sort words that follow a specific spelling pattern or a specific prefix. In this

type of sort, students use deductive thinking.19

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Open Sorts

This type of sort also can be called a discovery sort. Students sort the words by features

that they create. These shared features could include the inflectional ending -ed they

learned about in class. Upon sorting these words for the ending, they might make a

discovery about words that have this ending, some of them have a double consonant.

In this type of sort, students use inductive thinking.20

Personal Word BooksStudents can create personal word lists that include new words they have beenlearning This is an excellent way for students to keep track of all the new wordsthey learn and see their progress as they acquire a new language.

Word MakingAs discussed in Phonics and Word Study, Learn to Apply, students are activelymanipulating letters to form words when given clues about the words from the teacher.This strategy should be used with students who are in Level 2 and above in theirlanguage proficiency. Students should be able to use their knowledge of graphophonicand orthographic features of the language to make words for this strategy to be effective.

Part by PartThis strategy teaches students how to use word parts to read larger words, making theskill more concrete. To use this strategy with students, the teacher would have studentsmake a word and then use small cards with the word part the teacher wants them toadd. For example, when teaching prefixes and suffixes the word parts could be addedto base words to create new words. Put the new words into an authentic context forstudents. This can be done using a language-experience story, acting out the words,or by adding the words to a personal word book.

Word WallsWord walls can be used in a variety of ways to teach word study skills to secondlanguage learners. They can be used to display high-frequency words, vocabularywords, content specific words, and other words students are learning. They can also beused to display cognates, which are words that sound the same and have the samemeaning in two different languages, and false cognates, which are words that soundthe same in different languages but have different meanings. Students could also maketheir own smaller, more personalized word walls as their language proficiency develops.

Reading PracticeWhen acquiring a second language, students will need to see words in context.Reading practice at the correct level will help students encounter words in a numberof contexts, and those words will become comprehensible to them. Students’ readinglevel should be determined before having them practice reading. Any assignedindependent reading needs to be done on a student’s independent level. A text is ata student’s instructional level if the student knows or can decode easily 90 percent ofthe words.21 The following chart will help when determining students’ reading level.

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When listening to a student read, the teacher has an opportunity to assess his or herinstruction. Students’ errors or difficulties give insight into where they need moreinstructional support.

Reading-Writing-Language ConnectionEnglish Language Learners are constantly assimilating new information. They areacquiring oral language and incorporating it into their existing vocabulary for theirsecond language. They are learning the connection of that language to the symbolsthe sounds represent, and they are taking visual input and making meaning with thatinput to be able to read words in a text. Continual assessment of these areas is vital tohelp students become literate.

Having English Language Learners write provides insight into their language andreading development. The teacher is able to see how students are applying the phonicsand word study skills and strategies they have been taught. Their language developmentwill also be clear. Students tend to write how they speak.22 By keeping a collection oftheir writing, the teacher is able to see students’ progress over a period of time.

This is especially helpful as students progress through the emergent stage of languageacquisition. During language acquisition, students typically go through a silent phase inwhich they are not speaking, but just absorbing the language in preparation forproduction of language. Students may just be producing picture writing, but theteacher will get an understanding of what students are comprehending if they areunable to communicate it through oral language.

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INDEPENDENT LEVEL INSTRUCTIONAL LEVEL FRUSTRATION LEVEL

Relatively easy text Challenging but Difficult text

Children know manageable text Children know or

or can decode Children know or can can decode less

easily 95 percent decode easily 90 than 90 percent

of the words. percent of the words. of the words.

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Endnotes1 Peregoy, S., & Boyle, W. (2005). Reading, writing and learning in ESL: A resource book for k–12 teachers (4th ed.).Boston: Pearson.

2 Peregoy, S., & Boyle, W. (2005). Reading, writing and learning in ESL: A resource book for k–12 teachers (4th ed.).Boston: Pearson.

3 Peregoy, S., & Boyle, W. (2005). Reading, writing and learning in ESL: A resource book for k–12 teachers (4th ed.).Boston: Pearson.

4 Mora, J. K. (2001). Effective instructional practices and assessment for literacy and biliteracy development. InS. R. Hurley & J. V. Tinajero (Eds.). (2001). Literacy assessment of second language learners. Boston: Allyn Bacon.

5 Harris, T. L. & Hodges, R. E. (Eds.). (2005). The literacy dictionary: The vocabulary of reading and writing.Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

6 Sutton, C. (1998). Helping the nonnative English speaker with reading. In M. F. Optiz (Ed.). (1998). Literacyinstruction for culturally and linguistically diverse students: A collection of articles and commentaries.Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

7 Mora, J. K. (2001). Effective instructional practices and assessment for literacy and biliteracy development.In S. R. Hurley & J. V. Tinajero (Eds.). (2001). Literacy assessment of second language learners. Boston: AllynBacon.

8 Sutton, C. (1998). Helping the nonnative English speaker with reading. In M. F. Optiz (Ed.). (1998). Literacyinstruction for culturally and linguistically diverse students. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

9 Krashen, S. D., & Terrell, T. D. (1983). Language acquisition in the classroom. Oxford, UK: Pergamon Press;Krashen, S. D. (1981). Effective second language acquisition: Insights from research. In J. E. Alatis et al. (Eds.),Second language classroom: Directions for the 1980s. New York: Oxford University Press.



12 Feeley, J. T. (1983). Help for the reading teacher working with LEP children. The Reading Teacher, 36, 25–27.

13 Hudelson, S. (1984). Kan yu ret an rayt en ingles: Children become literate in English as a secondlanguage. TESOL Quarterly, 18, 221–238.

14 Peregoy, S., & Boyle, W. (2005). Reading, writing and learning in ESL: A resource book for k–12 teachers(4th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

15 Institute for the Development of Educational Achievement. (n.d.) Teaching the alphabetic principle:Critical features of alphabetic principle instruction. Retrieved October 17, 2006, fromhttp://reading.uoregon.edu/au/au_features.php

16 National Research Council (Eds.). (1998). Preventing reading difficulties in young children. Washington,DC: National Academy Press.


18 Peregoy, S., & Boyle, W. Reading, writing and learning in ESL: A resource book for k–12 teachers (4th ed.).Boston: Pearson.

19 Pinnell, G.S., & Fountas, I.C. (1998). Word matters: teaching phonics and spelling in the reading /writingclassroom, (p. 155). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

20 Pinnell, G.S., & Fountas, I.C. (1998). Word matters: teaching phonics and spelling in the reading /writingclassroom, (p. 155). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

21 Definitions of independent level, instructional level, and frustration level text are modified from Armbruster,B. B., Lehr, F., & Osborn, J. (2001). Put reading first: The research building blocs for teaching children to read.Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, National Institute for Literacy.


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Phonics and Word Study - Seven Hills Charter Public … · As discussed in Phonics and Word Study, Learn to Apply, the deficits students have in the alphabetic principle determine