# data[].attributes.body
Tovani, Chapters 1 & 2
Lems, Chapters 1 & 3
Hinchman, Chapter 5

# data[].attributes.headline
Reading Strategies for Struggling Middle School Readers : Reading Lessons

# data[].attributes.subject
Reading Strategies for Struggling Middle School Readers : Reading Lessons

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Reading Strategies for Struggling Middle School Readers : Reading Lessons

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Struggling High School Readers: a Solution that Works

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Middle school students at Lakeview School in Durham, NC demonstrate fluent reading.

# data[].attributes.headline
Generating Questions: Thinking about Thinking

# data[].attributes.subject
Generating Questions: Thinking about Thinking

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Fairfax Network - Fairfax County Public Schools

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Best Practices: Questioning in High School

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
High school English students use questioning techniques to better understand their reading.

# data[].attributes.headline
Teaching Reading in High School English 

# data[].attributes.subject
Teaching Reading in High School English 

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Teaching Reading in High School English Classrooms

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The process of my search as I learn how to teach reading in a classroom of students at varying reading levels. By Mallory Stanek - created at http://animoto.com

# data[].attributes.headline
Supporting Developmental Language Disorders 

# data[].attributes.subject
Supporting Developmental Language Disorders 

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Supporting Developmental Language Disorders in the Classroom

# data[].attributes.headline
Writing Skills and Content Area Interventions

# data[].attributes.subject
Writing Skills and Content Area Interventions

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Writing Skills & Content Areas Interventions

# data[].attributes.headline
California Common Core Standards / Mathematics

# data[].attributes.subject
California Common Core Standards / Mathematics

# data[].attributes.headline
Mathematics Word Problems - What are we measuring?

# data[].attributes.subject
Mathematics Word Problems - What are we measuring?

# data[].attributes.body
Article

# data[].attributes.body
English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects

# data[].attributes.headline
National Assessment of Educational Progress

# data[].attributes.subject
National Assessment of Educational Progress

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
NAEP Nations Report Card - The NAEP Reading Achievement Levels by Grade

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
NAEP Nations Report Card - The NAEP Reading Achievement Levels by Grade

# data[].attributes.headline
Definition of Secondary Struggling Readers

# data[].attributes.subject
Definition of Secondary Struggling Readers

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Definition of Secondary Struggling Readers

# data[].attributes.headline
Phonics Instruction for Middles and High School ELLs

# data[].attributes.subject
Phonics Instruction for Middles and High School ELLs

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I recently had the opportunity to teach summer school, and two of my sixth-grade students barely read at a first-grade level. This was very challenging for me, and I struggled to find the right way to address their need for phonics and comprehension instruction. Little by little, however, I began to find some simple strategies that worked for them, such as turning activities into a game. We began to make some progress, and I discovered some new ways to help older students build a stronger foundation of basic reading skills.

Before reviewing those strategies, however, it is helpful to understand where the difficulty lies when teaching phonics to older students.

Challenges

Teaching phonics to middle and high school English language learners (ELLs) poses the following challenges:

There is good news, however. Despite these challenges, there are a number of strategies which can be effective for older ELLs. Give some of these a try! You can also find more research-based strategies and information for adolescents in Key Literacy Component: Decoding by the National Institute for Literacy (featured on our sister site, AdLit.org).

Basic Strategies: Build a Foundation

Enlist extra support: ELLs in 4th grade and above who need further instruction on phonics will be most helped by intensive intervention. Ideally, they should attend a reading remediation class or receive special support to continue phonics instruction from a reading specialist. If such support is unavailable for your students, ask your school's reading specialist and principal for help finding a research-based supplemental or intervention program that you can use with the student.

Use hands-on activities to help teach letter-sound relationships: This can include using manipulatives such as counters, sound boxes, magnetic letters, or Scrabble tiles. Students may also be interested in creating their own materials on the computer or through an art project. Month-by-Month Phonics for Upper Grades: A Second Chance for Struggling Readers and Students Learning English also offers a number of ideas for incorporating phonics activities into the curriculum.

Provide targeted support for students whose native language is non-alphabetic: Language skills transfer from one language to another; students literate in their native language will already have background knowledge of how reading works.

If their native language is non-alphabetic, however, students may need extra practice in the following areas:

Direction: Students may not be accustomed to reading from left to right and top to bottom.

Letter-sound recognition: Students may need extra practice on matching sounds and letters, particularly if they are used to a system of characters that symbolize words rather than sounds.

Use an alphabet chant: If older students need to review their alphabetic skills, look for a jazz or hip-hop alphabet chant that students will find entertaining and engaging. There are many examples online and on YouTube.

Have students write for sound: Say a short sentence that includes one or more words that include the target phonics feature(s). Ask students to listen carefully and then write what they heard. This activity trains students to listen for the individual sounds in words and represent them phonetically in their writing.

Work in small groups: If students are past the age at which phonemic awareness and phonological skill-building have been addressed (typically kindergarten through first or second grade), attend to these skills one-on-one or in small groups with developmentally appropriate and engaging activities. Ask your school's reading specialist for help finding appropriate activities and materials.

Help students make a connection between their first language and English: For students with stronger native language literacy skills (especially in languages related to English like Spanish), help them understand that the process of sounding out words is the same across languages. Explain some letters may make the same or similar sounds in both languages. Knowing this can help Spanish-dominant students, for example, as they learn to decode words in English. Make sure they are aware of cognates as well!

Teach phonics in context: Use authentic text and/or vocabulary words that are known to the ELLs. Using relevant literature and content material you can introduce and reinforce:

letter recognition

beginning and ending sounds

blends

rhyming words

silent letters

homonyms

Integrate phonics and content instruction: When possible, collaborate with the reading specialist and content-area teachers to integrate phonics instruction into content and classroom lessons and texts, as well as into academic vocabulary instruction.

Make it a game: Try activities as simple as looking for a particular sound on the page, or reciting words and having students hold up a sign with the correct sound on it after each word. You may also want to try short games of Scrabble, Hangman, and Memory. These are quick activities but they can effectively reinforce the targeted phonetic concept.

Look for high-low reading materials: "High interest/low readability" texts are books that are written on a first to third grade reading level but treat themes and topics that are of interest to students of middle school or high school age. You can find a number of suggestions in the following resources; many of the books listed may be available in your school's library or in your local public library.

Use poetry, jazz chants, and songs: Find poems, chants, and songs that relate to students' interests, or ask them to bring some of their favorites in that can be included in the lesson. Recite the text aloud, and then give students time to practice reading aloud as well.

Integrate phonics instruction with word study: Teach students how to identify word parts, break words down into syllables, and use word families. Use content-area words for this exercise that students are likely to find in their academic work.

Final Thoughts

While it may seem to be the most expedient solution, it is not appropriate to put an older ELL student in a lower grade - for example, 1st grade - in order to get the appropriate reading instruction. This can be very humiliating for the student and cause behaviors that would be detrimental to learning.

By keeping activities age-appropriate and fun, and by tying instruction to the academic content that middle and high school students need to master, you will give your students the opportunity they need to start making progress as readers and writers. It will be challenging, but the extra effort it takes to engage them may be the key that unlocks the door to their future.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Phonics Instruction for Middle and High School ELLs

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I recently had the opportunity to teach summer school, and two of my sixth-grade students barely read at a first-grade level. This was very challenging for me, and I struggled to find the right way to address their need for phonics and comprehension instruction.