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The question is what is phonics? Well, it is about understanding the relationship between the sounds of spoken words, and the letters that represent those sounds in the words.

There are 40 phonemes for all 26 letters in the alphabet!

For example:
This chart shows us the different types of phonemes we use when we speak.

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Linnea Ehri's Model of Reading and Bottom Up Approach 

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Linnea Ehri's Model of Reading and Bottom Up Approach 

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My chosen theorist is Linnea Ehri. Her theories are based on reading and spelling, cognitive and language development and many more. The theory of development is focused on the Stages Model of Reading.  More specifically, I am going to be focusing on Ehri’s Four Phases of Word Reading. In this theory, Ehri’s focal point is about the different stages the child goes through when they begin to start reading words. The first phase is pre-alphabetic, which is when the child reads words by memorising the visual cues that represent the word. The second phase is partial-alphabetic- the child is able to recognise some letters of the alphabet and are able to put them together to remember words. Thirdly is the full-alphabetic phase- the child begins to analyze letters by using phonemes and graphemes. “They can decode unfamiliar words and store fully analyzed sight words in memory” (Ehri's Four Phases of Word Reading). Finally the consolidated-alphabetic, when the child is able to make connections between phonemes and graphemes to coordinate into a larger element of words.

Linnea’s theory is relevant to the resource that I have created because it has the different stages where a child can begin their reading. The activity can be used for multi-purposes. It can help the child with writing, reading and oral language. It is related to my resource because the game involves visual cues, which stimulates the child’s memory into thinking about what the image is, which results into them pronounce the word (Stage 1- Pre-alphabetic). “ Our view is that there is an intermediate stage between visual cue reading and deciphering.We call this stage phonetic cue reading. It is like visual cue reading in that only one or a few specific cues, not the entire spelling, are selected and associated with the word in memory.” (Linnea C. Ehri, Learning to read and spell words, 1987, pg 14).

The flash card for the game has printed letters on the top of the image, which again encourages the child to know what the letter is and speak it out (Stage 2- Partial-alphabetic). “The evidence that invented spelling activities simultaneously develops phonemic awareness and promotes understanding of the alphabetic principle is extremely promising” (Developing Early Literacy, 2012, pg 266). The challenging part for the child with this resource is to figure out what sounds go with what letter. In the flashcards section, it gives the child a chance to see whether they know what sound goes with the letter. (Stage 3- Full alphabetic). “Once learners know letter names or sounds, they can begin to form phonetic associations between printed words and their pronunciations in memory to read words.” (Linnea C. Ehri, Learning to read and spell words, 1987, pg 14). After completing this activity a couple of time, and when the child is able to make sense of phonemes, the parent can assess their child in what they have learnt over a series of questions. At this point, the child should be able to identify the sounds to most if not all the letters and begin to spell out words (Stage 4- Consolidated-alphabetic.) The approach that I have chosen to take is the bottom up theory. The reason why I’ve chosen this theory instead of top-down is that phonics is related to the beginning of oral language, the first learning of the “alphabetic principle (grapho-phonic-the rules of sound and symbol relationships)” (EDF3034- Steps for creating your resource, 2018, pg 3). It is also what will begin a child’s learning into literacy and additionally develop the of oral language. The bottom up approach is also very relevant to the Linnea Ehri’s 4 stages of reading. This is because Ehri focuses on the little detail that a child should start with when beginning to read. As stated in Developing Early Literacy by Susan Hill, it states that the “pronunciation of words and knowledge about word is important because it affects children’s comprehension of spoken and written language”. Again Hill is argumenting that the pronunciation of words it important that as educators we should start from the very detailed aspects of phonics. However it it not necessary to teach children about phonics, nevertheless it should not be completely ignored as it will help the development of speech in children.

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My chosen area of literacy is focusing on phonics and my audience are parents and caregivers.  I have chosen phonics because it is a topic that I am interested in learning more about as well as having ideas and activities that I could use on my students. The resource that I have created is a combination of a game and an assessment. The game is called Bingo Phonics and it teaches children how to recognise the sounds that come with the letters as well as recognising words to the pictures. This is also then followed by a writing activity, were the child writes the sounds of the letters in the word and the parents ask questions to prompt the child’s thinking. The mode of communication I have chosen is to do a Padlet. It is an interactive way for parents and caregivers to have their input in it and, it is a fun and different way of portraying the information on phonics.

When teaching phonics to children, it can become very repetitive and lack variation, however with this resource it enables the child to have fun while they learn phonics, they can play in pairs or make it a classroom game and also they can test each other. The resource is an also an interactive way of engaging parents and their children together in learning phonics. It teaches them the very detailed pieces of phonics. Phonics is about the relationship between sound and the letter, combined together it creates the English language. As stated in Victoria Education and Training “Phonics is one of many focuses of literacy teaching, along with phonological awareness, vocabulary, comprehension, fluency, literature, visual literacy, and literacy across other curriculum areas”. Using this method also supports oral language, reading and writing skills. The child is exposed to visual cues which are the flashcards; the child is understanding the image of the word to the letter sounds of the work. It helps the child to identify what letters go with what sounds, and how many letters are required to make the word which is evident in the activity with the flashcards and blank spaces; the child is able to have a guess of what letters and sounds make up the word. This certain approach to phonics is phonics through spelling.  “Phonics through-spelling programs teach children to segment and write the phonemes in words. Phonics in context teaches children to use letter-sound correspondences along with context cues to identify unfamiliar words they encounter in the text.” (Systematic Phonics Instruction Helps Students Learn to Read: Evidence from the National Reading Panel’s Meta-Analysis, 2001, pg 395).

Oral language is the foundation for development and communication in literacy. It involves both speaking and listening. It is important to emphasise oral language from a young age. It can later determine what level the child is when they approach schooling age. In Jennifer Whorral and Sonia Q. Cabell article about supporting children’s oral language, they argue that the development of oral language is “critical” in a child’s reading abilities. It also states that kindergarten teachers spend are spending less time communicating with children to enhance their development in “rich oral language skills”. Introducing phonics in a fun and exciting way for children can help the child develop their oral language skills as well as their knowledge of words. There are many opportunities for teachers as well as parents to engage with their child to help grow their sense of speech. Everyday conversations, asking your child how their day was at school and also in their work they do, the pictures they paint and materials they build. “Studies have shown that rich language experiences before school play an important role in developing children’s literacy and vocabulary skills.” (Developing Early Literacy, 2012, pg 37)

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BINGO-PHONICS with flash cards to help your child understand phonics 

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BINGO-PHONICS with flash cards to help your child understand phonics 

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Learning Literacy has created a resource that it not only fun to play with your child but also gives you insight on what your child understands about phonics.

You can either choose to do this step before the game or after the game. With the attached documents, it is a way to see where your child is heading with their reading skills of words. The following activities include  a series of flash cards and an assessing form with guided questions to ask your child. You can choose to follow the questions on the form or even make up ones on your own.

How to play Bingo Phonic!
1) Each player will have a bingo board, a set of counters and flash cards with images.

2) Option 1: Let the child pick out the picture card and have them sound out the first letter of the image.
EXAMPLE: The child picks out a card with a star. The child will sound out the letter S, if it is on their bingo card, a counter can be placed.

Option 2: Have the parent sound out the letter for the child, while showing them the flash card. This will give them a opportunity to think carefully about what sounds they have on their bingo card.

3) After the game is over, have your child repeat the letter sounds they have on their bingo board.

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Welcome to our free online blog of literacy resources for parents. We create the best resources for the best outcome in your child's literacy abilities.

Any comments or suggestions are welcomed to be shared with the community, to greater our knowledge on all things LITERACY!

In this section, the topic is PHONICS! Now you must be wondering what are phonics? Keep reading to find out more.

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ENGLISH
CHINESE
FRENCH
ITALIAN
GERMAN
JAPANESE
SINGHALESE

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Printable flash cards for  assessing your child.

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Printable flash cards for  assessing your child.

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Resource 2- Assessing Phonemic Awareness 

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Resource 2- Assessing Phonemic Awareness 

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“A child’s linguistic environment can influence the development of oral language” (Supporting Children’s Oral Language Development in the Preschool Classroom, 2016, pg 336).