# data[].attributes.body
Children can begin reading within three to six months using the phonics method. Phonics is a method of teaching reading whereby the letters of the alphabet and their sounds will be taught to the children first. Next, they are taught to blend the sounds phonetically to form words, and then to naturally build vocabulary, and increase fluency and comprehension.

According to Nurturing Early Learners Framework (2019), it is important as it is

Crucial for the development of children's thinking and learning

Important for making meaning from interactions with peers, adults and texts

Allows for expression of needs, feelings, thoughts and ideas

Builds confidence and contributes to personal growth

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Armstrong, Thomas (1994). Multiple intelligences in the classroom. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Balanced Reading.com. Retrieved November 16, 2004, from: http://www.balancedreading.com/assessment.html

Big Ideas in Early Reading, University of Oregon. Retrieved November 16, 2004, from: http://reading.uoregon.edu/cia/assessment/index.php

DeBruinParecki, A. (2004). Evaluating early literacy skills and providing instruction in a meaningful context. High/Scope Resource: A Magazine for Educators, 23(3), 510.

Fuchs, L. S., & Fuchs, D. (1992). Identifying a measure for monitoring student reading progress. School Psychology Review, 21(1), 4559.

Gardner, Howard (1983). Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences. New York: Basic.

High-stakes assessments in reading: A position statement of the International Reading Association. Retrieved November 16, 2004, from: http://www.reading.org/pdf/high_stakes.pdf

Rhodes, L. K., & Shankin, N. L. (1993). Windows into literacy: Assessing learners K8. Heinemann: Portsmouth, NH.

Skiba, R. J., Simmons, A. B., Ritter, S., Kohler, K. R., & Wu, T. C. (2003). The psychology of disproportionality: Minority placement in context. Multiple Voices for Ethnically Diverse Exceptional Learners, 6, 2740.

Torgeson, J. K. (1998). Catch them before they fall: Identification and assessment to prevent reading failure in young children. Retrieved November 16, 2004 from: http://www.readingrockets.org/article.php?ID=411

Wren, S. (2004, November). Descriptions of early reading assessments. Southwest Educational Development Laboratory. Retrieved November 16, 2004 from: http://www.balancedreading.com/ assessment/assessment.pdf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Early Reading Assessment: A Guiding Tool for Instruction

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
How do you choose the best method for measuring reading progress? This brief article describes which assessments to use for different reading skills so that you can make sure all students are making progress towards becoming readers!

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: the body of words used in a particular language

Basically, having sufficient vocabulary will aid in comprehension especially at the stage where they start to form sentences. It also gives them the confidence to speak the language as well.

# data[].attributes.headline
What is Vocabulary? How is it important?

# data[].attributes.subject
What is Vocabulary? How is it important?

# data[].attributes.body
It shares some extremely important strategies of teaching vocabulary explicitly when teaching primary learners. The video that is shred through the pin helps the ’Learning Teachers’ experience the teaching and learning that is happening in a real classroom setting. According to Fellowes and Oakley (2014), it is necessary to include explicit, structured teaching and scaffolding of vocabulary that educators have exposed the children to.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
More resources: Vocabulary: self-paced course Target the Problem: Vocabulary Vocabulary Apps Topics A-Z: Vocabulary Vocabulary refers to the words we must understand to communicate effectively. Educators often consider four types of vocabulary: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Listening vocabulary refers to the words we need to know to understand what we hear.

# data[].attributes.body
Sight words are essential in reading as well. Sight words are "commonly used words that young children are encouraged to memorise as a whole or by ‘sight,’ so that they can automatically recognise these words in print without having to use any strategies to decode." (Ravitch, 2007). It is also known as key knowledge and skills required for children as stated in NEL framework.
https://www.moe.gov.sg/docs/default-source/document/education/preschool/files/nel-edu-guide-language-literacy.pdf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Whether you call them sight words, popcorn words or high frequency words, they are, by definition, "commonly used words that young children are encouraged to memorize as a whole or by 'sight,' so that they can automatically recognize these words in print without having to use any strategies to decode." [1]

The Reading Teacher's Book of Lists claims that the first 25 most frequent words make up about one-third of all printed material in English, and that the first 100 make up about one-half of all written material. Let that thought sink in. 50%! The obvious advantage of learning sight words is that it can have a powerful impact on student's reading fluency.

'Sight Word' is a bit of a misnomer because it implies that a word is learned simply by seeing it in its complete form. For this reason, flashcards are the most common way teachers will try to 'drill' the recognition of given words simply by repetition. If students are developmentally not ready in their spoken or orthographic skills, no matter how hard you may try, the words will not stick in their brains.

One problem with sight words is that many, though not all, lack dependable letter-sound correspondences ( of = /uv/ and is= /iz/). Most words are more regular than not, especially in the consonant features. For example, the high-frequency word saidis 50 percent regular; what would otherwise be a dependable ai digraph is irregular compared to the pronunciation of words like tail or paint. Nonetheless, it's important teachers address these irregularities with students rather than avoiding them or assuming that students will eventually 'pick up' the differences.

In addition, high frequency words can be abstract, difficult if not impossible to represent using pictures, and especially difficult to understand where meaning may have an inferred understanding through context (something a second language learner doesn't have the advantage of in early language development.) It can be very elusive to create a clear mental model of words like have and get, both of which can cross several different word choices in a language learner's native language. Just as complicated is a word like was which refers to a past existential state of being. I remember trying to explain to students that "I win a prize" infers that if I win a game, I will get a prize, whereas, in Japanese, it is akin to saying "I prized a game."

This is why students of English need to be exposed to the patterns of speech and inferred meaning of sight words early on in oral exercises, chants, and songs. Inevitably, as you move children from decoding individual words to decoding language in connected text, sight words should be a regular part of your ESL program.

Two popular sight word lists you might want to check out are Dolch's Sight Words (by frequency) and Fry's Sight Words (by grade level). Both of these lists are offered for free on sightwords.com.

When to Teach Sight Words

If you are teaching ESL students with the eventual goal of reading (and you should be), you need to begin thinking about sight words long before students encounter them in writing exercises. Building a vocabulary base that includes high frequency words that is not exclusive to nouns and verbs, contributes to a sense of word and meaning in context. Vocal chants and early Q&A exercises should include sight words in anticipation that these words will be encountered again in written text. Reading story books in class is also important for showing children how you read in English and, where possible, should include picture prompts and word cues so children can participate in the reading of the story.

Before teaching children sight words orthographically, it is necessary that children have a solid foundation of the ABCs, phonemes and understand concepts of word. From there, learning sentence structure and decoding meaning in context should be taught in that order.

In other words, you can't teach kids the concept of word without first teaching the ABCs. Trying to use flash cards to teach sight words, like visual designs, out of context and with no relationship to connected meaning, will NOT make the words stick nor will they transfer to automatic written understanding. Likewise, expecting a child to write and rewrite a sentence when they can't yet decode the individual words is not going to eventually impart meaning.

When students understand the ABCs and their associated sounds, can combine those sounds into a concept of word, and are capable of understanding sentence constructs, THAT is the time to begin teaching and exercising sight words. The good news is that many children learn these concepts in their own language at a very young age and have the ability to transfer that understanding to a new language and a new set of rules.

How to Teach Sight Words

There are many ways to strengthen your students' knowledge and recognition of sight words in text and out of text.

How do you begin to teach sight words? Again, start early by reading to your classes, and importantly, showing kids how you are reading. By simply pointing to each word as you read, you're teaching them much more than just the words associated to colorful illustrations. You're also teaching them about print concepts, moving from left to right, top to bottom, and the return sweep. All of these concepts can operate very differently in a child's native written language.

Anticipating future exercises by building a targeted vocabulary and sentence pattern base is helpful when it comes time to introduce students to orthographic exercises. You will rely on that knowledge base to help them transition to written text and a speech-to-print match.

Keep in mind that eventually you're going to be taking students beyond decoding words and into the realm of decoding sentences. The reading goals you set for your students should begin long before they start reading and writing.

If you have been teaching phonics and simple CVC words and your kids are ready to start using those words in easy sentences, you're ready to begin teaching easy sight words. Along with your regular phonics exercises, start throwing sight words into the mix! If you want more ideas for working with flash cards, check out my 41 Flash Card Activities post or download the pdf from the Kinney Brothers Publishing Web site.
Writing Phrases and Patterning Mentor Texts
Children can write phrases that include high frequency words that build off patterned mentor (sample) texts. With ESL students, offering prompts and spelling can help children build sentences and understand the importance of the sight words in their placement amongst already learned words from their phonics lessons.
Matching
Using flash cards, line up a sentence and have students read the sentence until they are familiar with the order and meaning. Then cover up the sight words or pull them out and have students replace or match the words of the original sentence. This same activity works well as a worksheet with cutting and pasting to replace the missing words.

Matching is also an excellent way to reinforce learned words in out-of-text activities. The pages below, including Bingo, when reduced to their most basic skill, are simply matching activities. But, don't tell the kids this! They think they're playing a game or doing a puzzle! When you combine sight word matching with writing, coloring, counting, spinners, dice, random choice, and memory skills, you have activities that will engage and entertain students on a variety of levels.
Highlighting
In this example of an in-text exercise, students use a marker to highlight sight words. Like the sample at the beginning of this post, you can hand out highlighters, choose any random text, and have students highlight the words being learned. This is also a great cool down exercise for the whole class or activity for early finishers!
Pick Up
Pick Up is a super simple activity that keeps students engaged. Ask students to pick up all the words that begin with a particular consonant, vowel, or capital letter. Or have students listen to a spoken sentence and line up the words in order. Sentence Fishing is simply a pick-uptype game and kids can't get enough of it! Remember, when errors are made, it's a rich opportunity to lead children to helpful conversations so they can articulate why a word doesn't fit.
Sorting
Another out-of-text activity for developing sight words is sorting.Have children sort their word cards based on letters, sounds, or key words.Guide students in reflecting on what's the same and what's different. Grouping words with their beginning letters and then putting them in alphabetical order is another sorting plus ordering activity that will serve future dictionary work! Remember, always think ahead!
Flash Cards
Making sentences is a great way to get kids to review and use learned words to make more orthographic connections. Here, using flash cards not as a means to drill, but a way of exploring new connections gives students a creative way to build on lessons learned. Challenge your kids to see who can make the most surprising sentences!
Word Games
Word games are a fun way to reinforce sight words and can include I Have/Who Has activities, word search and crossword puzzles, and many board game type games. Introducing and playing these kinds of games in class is important. Students may be playing these kinds of games in their own language, but the only opportunity to do so in English may be in your classroom.

Sight words promote confidence. Because the first 100 sight words represent over 50% of English text, a child who has mastered the list of sight words can already recognize at least part of a sentence. Sight words provide clues to the context and promote reading comprehension.

As you move from ABCs through emergent reader activities, you'll want to have reading goals in place. As a teacher, it is important to be able to recognize when a student has a command of the sounds of the alphabet, achieves the concept of word, is displaying rudimentary reading ability, and finally, capable of decoding and deriving meaning from connected text. These concepts must be developed in this order to achieve reading fluency. You won't get there without teaching sight words. The habits that you build into the children's learning activities will help them to acquire new words more quickly, build on their knowledge base to infer meaning, and progress more confidently in their studies.

If you are interested in more of the same kinds of exercises illustrated in this post, check out my Easy Sight Words worksheets for ESL students. If there are activities that you use in class that are not listed here, help a teacher out and leave a comment!

As always, best of luck in your classes!

Donald Kinney

Kinney Brothers Publishing

[1] Ravitch, Diane. (2007). EdSpeak : A Glossary of Education Terms, Phrases, Buzzwords, and Jargon. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development, ISBN 1416605754.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sight Words: What, When, and How - Kinney Brothers Publishing ESL

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Whether you call them sight words, popcorn words or high frequency words, they are, by definition, "commonly used words that young children are encouraged to memorize as a whole or by 'sight,' so that they can automatically recognize these words in print without having to use any strategies to decode."

# data[].attributes.body
Simple CVC words are 'words that is made up of a consonant, short vowel, and consonant sound. It's the fundamental of reading and the child must have a grounding in the ABCs and their phonetic associations.' (Kinneybrothers, 2018). This video shows how to teach children to read simple 3 letter CVC words. "Alphabet knowledge refers to the ability to name the letters of the alphabet and recognise the letter symbols (both upper and lower case) in print. Being able to name the letters of the alphabet quickly and correctly helps children in learning to read and write words." (NEL, 2013)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to teach a child to read: Three letter words

# data[].attributes.body
This pin can be shared with parents for them to learn how to support their child in gaining a wider range and larger vocabulary through play and hands on activities. It can also be done through direct teaching and with the use of texts. According to Fellowes & Oakley (2014), vocabulary is learnt  best in a social context through interactions, engagement in activities, games and play. Its effectiveness is compatible to the direct modes of instruction and reading. Additionally, it also known that "the vast majority of words are learnt informally and incidentally" (Fellowes & Oakley, 2014).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

# data[].attributes.body
Definition: the ability to understand something / being familiar with something

Comprehension have 2 components to it, It is both the understanding and the interpretation of the subject matter. As beginners of any language, kids are bound to succumb to fear due to unfamiliarity. In order for them to understand and give meaning to the language, they have no choice but to practice speaking. This is where phonics is used as a stepping stone to aid them in their journey in mastering the language and giving them confidence through comprehension.

"Reading comprehension is a complex meaning- making process that needs explicit and intentional teaching involved that involve children's knowledge of syntax and vocabulary. However, it is also evident that teachers can teach children comprehend through play based activities if carefully chosen and taught. It is wrong to assume that children learn to comprehend by merely listening to stories read aloud" (Fellowes and Oakley, 2014, p.295).

# data[].attributes.headline
Comprehension Strategies for Children with disabilities

# data[].attributes.subject
Comprehension Strategies for Children with disabilities

# data[].attributes.body
This article supports the teacher to develop her or his teaching strategies in teaching comprehension to children with Autism. I feel that it is integral that all children get an equal rights of learning despite their differences. Thus, the teachers should be increase their knowledge about this and be trained to apply different strategies to support children with different learning styles and those with who needs even more assistance. Through the sharing of this article, I hope to bring light into the tunnel by showcasing some practical approaches and tools.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Many a teacher has asked a student to "tell about the story" only to be met with a blank stare. This may be particularly true for students with autism. Some students with autism simply do not have the communication skills to be able to answer the question, others don't know how to communicate the information they do have, and still others don't understand enough about the story to respond.

Reading comprehension is often a concern for the teachers of students with autism. Many teachers tell me that their students with autism can read but that "they don't understand anything." It is always tricky to respond to such statements as many students with autism do understand what they read but cannot effectively express what they know. That is, some students with autism only appear incapable of comprehending text. Because students with autism have movement and communication differences, they may struggle to answer questions and express ideas in traditional ways. Some students might be unable to "find" the words needed to answer comprehension questions (or any question for that matter). Others may know the words but be unable to answer questions when directly asked to do so. It may be hard for some teachers to understand that a student could fluently read a text, know exactly what it means, and be unable to communicate that information. And those who do understand these gaps may be stumped at how to engineer other ways to help the student show what she knows.

If a teacher is confused about a student's ability to comprehend, he or she should give the students many ways to demonstrate understanding. When asking comprehension questions, teachers may want to try the following strategies: give students plenty of time to answer (even a minute or more); say the questions and present them in written form; or let the student write their answer or circle it rather than saying it. The teacher might also try approaches that make the interaction more informal and less direct. Some learners are more successful when questions are asked using a funny voice or foreign accent or when a prop such as a puppet or microphone are used in the lesson (Williams, 1996).

If students seem completely unable to answer comprehension questions, teachers might offer other ways to show understanding. They might ask students to draw or point to pictures (which may also be challenging for students with autism), use signs, gestures, or pantomime to "illustrate" a scene from a book, make diorama of a key scene, or create a collage or painting related to the text.

If a teacher uses all of these strategies and still cannot assess a student's comprehension, the student should not lose access to books, reading, and opportunities to learn academic content. Students with autism often demonstrate understanding in their own way. For instance, a high school teacher who works with a young man with significant disabilities, began reading him Thinking in Pictures(Grandin, 1995), the autobiography of a woman with autism. Before he was introduced to the book, the student was able to remain seated for no more than fifteen minutes at a time (for reading purposes or for any activity). When the teacher read him a book on autism, however, the student sat rapt for more than fifty minutes. The teacher reported that she had never seen him sit so still or so quietly. The teacher interpreted this behavior to mean that he was interested in and able to understand the text. She then chose other books to read to the young man and found that the student had a similar positive reaction to other texts she chose- especially those related to autism and disability studies. While she continuously worked to assess his comprehension of the text, the student did not lose access to books while she searched for new ways to learn about what he understood.

But what about those students who do need comprehension support? Having shared some information about students who know more than they can demonstrate, it must be acknowledged that many students with autism (and those without) need help comprehending text (Rosinski, 2002). Students with autism, for instance, may have problems making predictions; visualizing the events of a text; and identifying a purpose for reading. As one mother learned, some students with autism also have a hard time separating main ideas from details:

In fifth grade my son was assigned to write a paper on Benedict Arnold. When I looked at his rough draft, I noticed that he had included all of the important facts about Arnold's life except for one - the fact that he had betrayed the Revolutionary Army to the British for 10,000 pounds and a commission in the Royal Navy! I asked him whether he hadn't left out something important, to which he replied, "But all of it is important!" (Rosinski, 2002)

The following comprehension strategies may help some students gain comprehension skills and improve their ability to read and communicate about written material.

Build background knowledge

Student comprehension can also be boosted when the teacher helps the learner build background knowledge. Many students with disabilities, in particular, need this type of support as these learners are often excluded from the very activities that help students build background knowledge (e.g., socializing with peers, field trips).

Presenting background information related to the focus topic can help students better understand the text. For example, teachers might show students a movie related to the text, tell the learner a story related to the text, or help the student create connections between his or her experiences and the topic of the text. The teacher might also:

brainstorm with the learner and write ideas on chart paper

share personal stories on the topic

ask questions about the topic

make connections between the topic and a student's special interests

share other books related to the text

Perhaps the most significant support that can be offered is to include the student in the typical routines and activities of school life. Students will build "background knowledge" daily when they are included in the social life (e.g., recess, art class, locker routines) and the academic life of the school (e.g., math class, orchestra, academic clubs) and when their instruction is provided alongside their same-age peers.

Think aloud

To boost comprehension, teachers can help students monitor their own understanding as they read. One common strategy teachers often use in a whole-class format is the think-aloud (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000). A think-aloud involves the teacher reading a text to the class and modeling his or her own comprehension strategies such as asking questions, making inferences, determining importance, and making connections to personal background knowledge. The text or selected passage should contain information, concepts, and words that students may find difficult. The students should be encouraged to read the passage silently as the teacher is reading aloud.

A teacher might start reading a book by saying, "The title of the book is Running for Class President so I think it will be about kids being involved in student council or some kind of student government. When I look at the picture on the cover, I think maybe the main characters will be a boy and a girl. The cover has a picture of a classroom, so I think a lot of this book will take place in a school."

Teachers may even write their thoughts on chart paper so students can see and hear the process.

Drama

Comprehension can also be bolstered when teachers teach a story or a piece of text using drama. A teacher might have students act out parts of a textbook or a passage in a short story.

This technique is often used in lower grades, but it can be very effective in both middle school and high school classrooms as well. When students with autism study literature in the upper grade levels, they may have some difficulty understanding the motivations of characters in a story. This problem occurs because some of these learners have difficulty identifying and articulating emotions in certain contexts. Watching peers act out scenes from literature can help students with autism and others pair dialogue with appropriate facial expressions and voice tone. These scenes, therefore, can help learners better understand the meaning of the story.

Teachers may choose to use different types of drama for different lessons. Pantomime (Keefe, 1996), dramatic reading, and full-story performance are all types of drama that can be used in the classroom to enhance student comprehension and enjoyment.

Reciprocal teaching

Students can also be asked to help each other understand text. Some teachers ask learners to engage in "reciprocal teaching" (Palinscar & Brown, 1984). Reciprocal teaching is essentially a dialogue that takes place between teachers and students. The dialogue is structured by the use of four strategies: summarizing, question generating, clarifying, and predicting. The teacher and students take turns assuming the role of teacher in leading this dialogue.

Once students are comfortable with the strategies, they are invited to become "the teacher" and conduct reciprocal teaching dialogues with new material. At this point the teacher's role shifts from providing direct instruction to facilitating student interaction, monitoring progress, and providing feedback. As students become more skilled with the strategy, they can work in pairs or small groups to coach one another, ask questions, summarize, predict, clarify, and think aloud about what they are reading.

All students, but particularly those with autism, may need to see this strategy modeled more than once. Since students with autism are typically quite visual, the teacher may consider videotaping a reciprocal teaching lesson and allowing individual students to take the tape home for viewing.

Some learners may "fail" comprehension assessments because, in part, they are uncomfortable with the direct nature of question/answer interactions. For this reason, some students may respond well to the retelling strategy. Retelling is a comprehension strategy as well as a tool for assessment.

A retelling is done by the reader after he or she has read or heard a story. The student is asked to "tell everything" he or she can about story or text. Retelling reinforces story structure and the language and imagery used in the text and provides more information about a reader's understanding than comprehension questions or other traditional assessments. By repeating the story with one's own words, a student can learn to attend to the story elements during the initial reading and gain strategies for organizing his or her own thinking.

To help struggling readers engage in retelling the teacher might:

model the strategy

have other students model the strategy

allow the student to doodle or draw part of the retelling

give the student illustrations or photographs to use in the retelling

give the student specific strategies to use in retelling

encourage the student to take notes or draw pictures during the initial storytelling

allow the student to type or write the retelling if this is easier

allow small groups of students to retell a story together

have the student retell the story by completing a story map or other graphic organizer

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tell Me About the Story: Comprehension Strategies for Students on the Autism Spectrum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Reading comprehension is often a concern for the teachers of students with autism. The comprehension strategies described in this article may help some students gain comprehension skills and improve their ability to read and communicate about written material.

# data[].attributes.headline
Learning Vocabulary through different mediums

# data[].attributes.subject
Learning Vocabulary through different mediums

# data[].attributes.body
This document is shared with teachers to give them an idea on how vocabulary can be best taught in an authentic environment. Children acquiring and using the vocabulary in their day to day play and activities offered with supportive instructions is an example. ‘Indirect instructions’ means that the learning of vocabulary occurs through other activities within the classroom or school, and not through just focused, explicit vocabulary instructions” (Fellowes & Oakley, 2014).

# data[].attributes.headline
How to improve children's comprehension skills?

# data[].attributes.subject
How to improve children's comprehension skills?

# data[].attributes.body
Five important aspects in achieving better outcomes for comprehension are introduced. It also mentioned the ways to build and develop children’s ability to comprehend and how to integrate a variety of concepts of reading in a socio-cultural background. This is supported by Rand Model of Reading; “It is the socio-cultural context that influences the children’s background knowledge their experiences and attitudes towards literacy (Fellowes & Oakley, 2014, p. 296).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I received a free online access from and was compensated for my time. All opinions expressed are my own. SNAP! Learning

What is reading comprehension? Why is it important? I know I've said it before, but it's my favorite way to put it. Reading equals thinking. In order to truly read, a reader must also be thinking about the meaning of the text. If she is not, she is simply word calling (or "barking the words", as I like to say). So what exactly is the reader supposed to be thinking about? That's what we will explore today. And as we explore, I want to show you how our latest experience of SNAP! Learning meets these comprehension goals for our readers.

5 Simple Ways to Improve Reading Comprehension

1. Think about and Build their Background Knowledge

For children who struggle as readers (and even for those who don't), comprehension is a big deal. And it starts from the very beginning. Before kids even open the book, we need to encourage them to think about what they are going to read. We can ask them to read the title or look at the cover, maybe even the Table of Contents. What is the topic? What do they already know about the topic? What do they think will happen in the story, based off what they know?

Using background knowledge is also vital as the child reads the text. What would I do in that situation? Has that happened to me before? I remember the time that... These thought patterns rely on what the child already knows to help them comprehend and make sense of the text.

Sometimes readers don't have enough background knowledge (knowledge about the subject). In this case, their background knowledge needs to be built up and supported. Why is this? If the child has little to no background knowledge, it makes it very difficult to predict what will happen next or connect with the text in meaningful ways, interfering with the many comprehension strategies we want readers to use. One of the features of SNAP! Learning that I noticed right away as my 3rd grader read was the way that they integrate building background knowledge, both before and during reading through engaging photographs, charts, maps, illustrations and videos.

2. Introduce Vocabulary

Introducing vocabulary goes hand-in-hand with building background knowledge, as often kids who do not have the background knowledge about a particular subject also do not have the vocabulary that accompanies that knowledge.

A child who has never been to a concert or symphony would probably struggle with words such as orchestra pit or balcony in a text.

SNAP! Learning introduces vocabulary terms in such a visual and hands-on way with each of their texts, providing understandable definitions and examples.

3. Build Fluency

How fluently a child can read the text also affects comprehension. If a text is too hard (especially if the child has little to no background knowledge), fluency is going to be compromised greatly. Most young readers have a hard time focusing on both decoding all the words and thinking about what they are reading at the same time. This pressure is relieved quite a bit if we pick "just right" books for our readers, books that they can both read and comprehend with support from us.

Fluency can be built and practiced by asking kids to re-read texts. SNAP! Learning has re-reading built in to their program. Each text has three lessons built it where students are asked often asked to re-read the same texts. Within each reading, students are taken a bit deeper with comprehension as well.

4. Read Different Kinds of Texts

In the many books and articles I've read about struggling readers (and through my own experiences), I've noticed one trend. Struggling readers tend to shy away from non-fiction texts. Maybe it's because non-fiction is typically more difficult because of its features and structure, but studies show that struggling readers do not read near as much non-fiction as they should.

SNAP! Learning has a great selection of non-fiction texts across genres and subjects, mostly beginning in the 2nd grade. Readers will find illustrations, extra fun facts, photographs, and videos to support their understanding of the text.

5. Provide Meaningful After Reading Activities

After reading, we want kids to be able to do more than remember and recall what they've read. We want them to be able to explain their thinking about the text. Asking them meaningful questions and picking activities that encourage them to be critical thinkers is absolutely key.

One example is using graphic organizers. Graphic organizers help readers organize the information in their head in a thoughtful way that gets them to not only remember, but to THINK about and connect to what they've read.

More About SNAP! Learning

SNAP! Learning's reading program is computer based. It can be used via the web or downloaded onto your computer or tablet (we used our iPad).

You will find reading texts and activities for Pre-K through sixth grades. The level of each text is clearly marked so that you can find the level that's just right for your reader. I was also excited to hear that they will be adding MORE texts to each level soon!

SNAP! is a great fit for both classroom teachers AND homeschooling parents.

Built into the program is a data collection area where you can view the progress of your child.

Still not sure? YOU CAN GIVE IT A TRY FOR FREE!

You can also connect with SNAP! Learning via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest!

If you have a child who struggles with reading comprehension (even if he doesn't), I would definitely recommend SNAP! Learning as a supplementary tool to what you're already using. Their program does such an amazing job of building reading comprehension of our readers before, during and after reading.

~Becky

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I received a free online access from and was compensated for my time. All opinions expressed are my own. SNAP! Learning What is reading comprehension? Why is it important? I know I've said it before, but it's my favorite way to put it. Reading equals thinking.

# data[].attributes.body
Comprehension is one of the key concepts of reading which prompts the reader to monitor and reflect before, during, and after reading. Therefore, reader involves in a reciprocal relationship with the context and uses background knowledge and prior knowledge to make meaning from what is in a text.

# data[].attributes.body
This document allow teachers to reflect on their teaching approaches for comprehension. It is recommended that teachers use the most suitable and appropriate teaching strategies that will assist to cater children needs, for them to acquire the skills much more effectively. Besides, it is essential that children possess a range of word and sentence level literacy that are coupled with knowledge about language, text and world. According to Rand Model, learning comprehension happens best in a socio-cultural context (Fellowes and Oakley, 2014).

# data[].attributes.headline
Comprehension Strategies during Story Time

# data[].attributes.subject
Comprehension Strategies during Story Time

# data[].attributes.body
This document discloses the important facts about teaching comprehension intentionally, how to allow children to build a good habit of reading texts with a purpose, and ways to interact with the text such that it is in a more meaningful manner. In line with the Early Years Development Framework (2011), the program, environment and curriculum should be flexible to meet the needs of young children. It also intentionally promotes children’s development through positive interactions and building warm and nurturing relationships. In addition, materials and resources should be safe, available and easily accessible to children as well.

# data[].attributes.body
This PDF document is a short part of a book. It can be shared with colleagues to allow them to get an insight on how vocabulary can be taught and the importance of using a variety of methods to engage children in the learning process. Methods such as informal and formal approaches. It discusses the pros in using technology (e books and texts) to teach vocabulary in a classroom as well as some cons to take note of. Research suggests that “children’s meta-cognitive process should be developed in order to assist in the learning of vocabulary words in depth (Fellowes & Oakley, 2014, p. 252)” .

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Supporting Young Children's Vocabulary Growth

# data[].attributes.body
This video shows hands on experience on the games to learn vocabulary in a fun and enriching manner. As they are picking out the cards the teacher asked them too, they are able to see the print on the card and memorise them.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
vocabulary boost up game / preschool vocabulary lesson

# data[].attributes.headline
Phonics is both an approach to instruction and a strategy for word identification and spelling (Richgels, 2004). Phonics Cup Game

# data[].attributes.subject
Phonics is both an approach to instruction and a strategy for word identification and spelling (Richgels, 2004). Phonics Cup Game

# data[].attributes.body
The aim of phonics is to equip the children with the skill of breaking down new written words by articulating them out. Through practice, it provides confidence to children in sounding the words out as well as expose them to a wide variety of comprehension towards different forms of word especially in English Language.

# data[].attributes.headline
Phonics Cup Game in relation to the Curriculum

# data[].attributes.subject
Phonics Cup Game in relation to the Curriculum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Phonic Cup Game in relation to the Curriculum

# data[].attributes.body
This article provides useful information for parents and educarers to assist them in teaching children vocabulary. It also shows that multisensory ways will help children learn vocabulary. Depending on the child, the approach will be different.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
There's a strong link between understanding words and understanding what you read. Children with learning and thinking differences do better when they spend more time learning words. Here are some teaching methods to improve your child's vocabulary.

Provide a description of the new word. For example, maybe you're teaching your child the new word merchant, which is common in upper elementary social studies textbooks. You can talk with your child about the local merchants in your town. What kinds of stores are in your town? What do they sell?

Once you've described a new word, ask him to come up with his own way to describe it. For example, after explaining how fortunate you are to have such a nice family, your son might explain how fortunate he is to have the latest video game.

By acting out a word, your child better understands it. This may be particularly helpful if your child has lots of energy and loves to run around. The new word frolic can come alive through jumping around like a puppy, a goat or a lamb. Why not bring it outdoors as well?

Get some pencils and paper. Without using words, draw a quick sketch of the new word. You might decide to represent the new word reluctant by drawing a person standing at the edge of swimming pool with only one toe in the water. Your child, who is reluctant to eat vegetables, might draw of a big bowl of broccoli.

Teach him the meanings of common prefixes, suffixes and root words . For example, the prefix multi- means many and the suffix - less means not or without. Geo is a root word that means earth, as in geo logy. Recognizing these patterns helps with meaning.

Using a list of new words, ask your child to write a story. In order to do this well, your child will need to use all of the words correctly. Bringing words together from a list will take imagination. Encourage your child to be creative.

7. Tell me once, tell me twice...

Use the new word often. For the new word essential, you might talk about what is essential to pack for a camping trip or discuss what is essential for happiness. A checklist of essential chores might help remind your child to walk the dog, do his homework and clean his room before dinner.

About the Author

About the Author

Ginny Osewalt&nbsp

is a dually certified elementary and special education teacher with more than 15 years of experience in general education, inclusion, resource room, and self-contained settings.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
There's a strong link between understanding words and understanding what you read. Children with learning and thinking differences do better when they spend more time learning words. Here are some teaching methods to improve your child's vocabulary. Provide a description of the new word.

# data[].attributes.body
Phonic Cup Game in a School Context

# data[].attributes.headline
Phonetic Approach in a Montessori School context

# data[].attributes.subject
Phonetic Approach in a Montessori School context

# data[].attributes.body
Montessori refers to a mode of education and learning which was developed by Maria Montessori in the year 1897. This learning approach focuses on each child’s independence and within reasonable limits, provides an acceptable degree of freedom. A key recommendation for phonics in Montessori school context is to have a classroom of mixed age and mixed sex children with learning encouraged and directed rather than instructed by a trained Montessori teacher. Learning is achieved through the natural process of discovery rather than instruction. This educational environment favors an independent approach and children are encouraged to be independent, be able to do things for themselves which includes freedom of movement for the children in a structured learning environment.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Phonetic Approach in Montessori Classroom

# data[].attributes.body
It is an online platform that helps to deliver tailored and highly effective educational experiences to help all children to build the literacy skills. Many games in relation to reading such as rhyming, story, vocabulary, etc can be found in there. This means that children can learn through play using this 'high quality' resource. Research has shown that PBS KIDS’ cross-platform content helps increase children’s literacy scores, improves their school readiness and fosters interest in learning (KET Education, 2016). PBS KIDS also increases parent and teacher engagement in supporting children’s learning.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Explore reading and play games with your favorite PBS KIDS characters like Elmo, Molly of Denali, Clifford, WordGirl, and Daniel Tiger!

# data[].attributes.body
There are many types of reading comprehension assessments. One type involves a student reading a passage that is at an appropriate level for the student, and then having the student answer factual questions about the text. A second type involves a student answering inferential questions about implied information in the text. A third type involves a student filling in missing words from a passage. A fourth type is to have a student retell the story in their own words (Fuchs & Fuchs, 1992; Wren 2004). To summarize, we can use literal, interpretive and inferential comprehension questions, retelling method, as well as Bloom's questions to assist in the assessing process. (Hill, 2012)

# data[].attributes.headline
Recognising uppercase and lowercase (phonics)

# data[].attributes.subject
Recognising uppercase and lowercase (phonics)

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/546202261057038675/

# data[].attributes.body
This ‘Song of sounds’ resource allows children to learn phonics in a engaging way with repetitive music. Using songs as a strategy to teach phonic is integral to help children to remember every phoneme, a highly approach with whole-body actions and lots of games to aid learning. This is a multi-sensory resource with kin-aesthetic, auditory and visual activities that reinforce skills through a variety of learning styles making it ideal for children with English as a second language. It brings phonics to life with a fresh, lively, and hands-on approach to teaching phonics with engaging and interactive activities.

# data[].attributes.body
What Phonic Skills Should I Assess in the Early Years?
Decoding (reading) and encoding (writing) require a number of phonics-related skills and each of the following should be assessed:

- Phonological and phonemic awareness
- Letter (grapheme) – sound (phoneme) correspondences (GPCs)
- Blending of sounds (oral and written)
- Segmenting of words (oral and written)
Sentence reading and writing

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
It is the beginning of a new school year, after a school holiday of 6-8 weeks. Have you decided what you are going to start teaching in the area of phonics? Have you thought of the phonics assessment you will conduct this year? One of the great features of Phonics Hero (get your free Teacher Account here) is that it provides child and class progress reports so you can quickly see what a student or class had achieved by the end of term last year.

Watch this video to see how to access these reports:

The Summer Effect

It is dangerous, however, to assume that a student can or should pick up where he left off. In my experience, in the absence of 6-8 weeks of phonics revision and application, some students (in particular, those with specific learning difficulties related to memory deficits) have slipped back in their level of performance by up to a full term. In contrast, other students, who have been revising and/or applying their phonics knowledge and skills over the holidays, may now be performing at a higher level than before.

This 'summer effect' is particularly pronounced with disadvantaged primary students, who have been found to lose 1.5 years of reading skills over the summer months (Cooper et al. 1996). You don't want to start off the year with a frustrated or bored student. How can you know where you should start teaching phonics? By assessing current phonic skills using our phonics assessment resources!

What Phonic Skills Should I Assess in the Early Years?

Decoding (reading) and encoding (writing) require a number of phonics-related skills and each of the following should be assessed:

Phonological and phonemic awareness

Letter (grapheme) - sound (phoneme) correspondences (GPCs)

Blending of sounds (oral and written)

Segmenting of words (oral and written)

Sentence reading and writing

What Phonics Assessment can I Use?

a) Phonological and phonemic awareness

The skills of syllabification, rhyme recognition, and phoneme isolation and manipulation are central to accurate decoding and encoding. There are a number of good Phonological Awareness tests that you can use. These include the Sutherland Phonological Awareness Test Revised, the Preschool and Primary Inventory of Phonological Awareness, and the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing.

A free basic Phonological Awareness Skills Screener is available here.

b) Letter-sound correspondence

To assess letter-sound correspondences, use a checklist drawn from your literacy program. Here are your phonics assessments for Phonics Hero.

To assess phoneme/sound knowledge, show the student the prompt sheet. Point to a letter(s), for example 's' and ask 'When you see this, what sound does your mouth make?' Record accuracy with a 'y' or 'n'. Where multiple responses are expected (e.g. 'c' as /k/ and /s/) note those known. This must be an individual assessment.

For Part 2 and 3, the prompt sheet includes all of the spelling choices within that unit (e.g. 'ea', 'ee', 'y' and 'e'). When assessing Part 2, point to each spelling choice and ask the child: "When you see this, what long vowel sound does your mouth make?" Remember that some letter groups can represent more than one sound (e.g. 'e' as in 'we' or as in 'egg'). If a child gives an alternative sound, ask: "What other sound can your mouth make when you see these letters?"

To assess spelling of the sound-letter correspondence, provide the student with the sound and ask him to provide the possible spelling/s. This can be an individual or group assessment. Where multiple responses are expected (e.g. /s/ spelled 's', 'ss', 'c', 'ce' or 'se'), note the spellings known. You can use the same assessment record we have provided.

c) Blending of sounds

Ability to orally blend sounds is included in many phonological awareness tests.

It is compulsory in all state schools in the UK to administer to Year 1 students a Phonics Screening Check. This is administered again at the end of Year 2 if students have not reached the expected standard in Year 1. The check consists of 20 real words and 20 pseudo-words that a pupil reads aloud to the teacher. Increasingly, the Australian states are looking at the development of an Australian version of this test for Year 1 students - read more about it here.

In both checks, students are given nonsense/pseudo words (words like 'spret' or 'ged') to read to ensure that they use phonic knowledge and decoding skills rather than other word recognition strategies such as remembering the shape of a known word or using pictures to guess the word.

Here are your phonics assessments for nonsense words.

I always record incorrect responses and analyse them later to determine what knowledge and understandings are absent.

d) Segmenting of words

Oral segmentation of words is included in phonological awareness tests. There are a number of standardised spelling tests on the market, but these may not be very helpful in the determination of where to start teaching. Again, here are your assessment tools:

Record any incorrect responses on the sheet in the Result box. This will allow you to analyse the part of the word that is problematic.

e) Reading and spelling of irregular words

Each literacy program has its own list of phonically irregular words to be learned for reading and spelling (containing words such as 'said' and 'friend'). This should form the basis of a checklist. Here are your assessments to align with Phonics Hero:

Part 1: Prompt sheet and assessment sheet

Part 2: Prompt sheet and assessment sheet

Ask the student to read and spell the words on your list.

f) Reading and writing of sentences

Decodable text (containing words made up of only GPCs and sight words explicitly taught) should be used to assess sentence reading and writing. There are a number of commercial decodable reading series from which you can draw sentences. SPELD SA's website provides free-to-download decodable texts. To assess writing, dictate sentences in phrases of about 3 words.

The Phonics Assessment in Phonics Hero

When children start playing Phonics Hero they will be presented with the option to start at the beginning or take a phonics assessment, like this:

If you choose the assessment option, the game uses nonsense words for the phonics assessment, like this:

One thing to remember is your phonics assessment is always going to be better than a computer's so I would recommend you move the children based on your own data. You can move children's levels from your Teacher Account - this video shows you how.

Differentiation

Reading and writing are developmental processes, so within any year group there is likely to be at least a five-year spread in skills and knowledge. This is why an individual phonics assessment at the start of the academic year is so important. Once you have the information about a student's knowledge and skills, you can assign that student to the appropriate starting place. The Phonics Hero program can be used alongside a variety of explicit, systematic phonics instruction programs. It allows you to individualise a student's learning, determining the Part and Level on which he should start work and how long he should spend there.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Phonics Assessment: Don't Assume - Assess Every Student!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
It is the beginning of a new school year, after a school holiday of 6-8 weeks. Have you decided what you are going to start teaching in the area of phonics? Have you thought of the phonics assessment you will conduct this year?

# data[].attributes.body
This article extensively reviewed existing research on vocabulary learning in early childhood, in particular learning from classroom read-aloud experiences, and found that assessments used in the field fell into two main categories:
measures of general vocabulary or knowledge of specific words, either of which may assess the depth or breadth of word knowledge.