Reading is a crucial skill that begins by mastering the alphabet. However, as students progress, they encounter another milestone in their journey – the transition from recognizing individual letters to seamlessly blending consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words. This is an essential step that helps them decode and read more complex words. In this series, I will share a step-by-step guide on how you can help your students make this transition effectively.
In this blog post, part 1, I’m addressing the skill of mastering letter recognition.
Learning to Recognize Letters
Students must be able to recognize individual letters before introducing them to mixing CVC words and thus beginning to read.
- Students should be able to recognize both capital and lowercase letters in order to be proficient in letter recognition.
- Identify the various print fonts (consider the numerous ways to write an or g).
- Have rapid and accurate sight letter recognition.
Some practice ideas if a student isn’t recognizing at least half of the alphabet’s letters…Reinforce letter recognition with fun activities including worksheets, flashcards, and alphabet games.
Need resources to help teach letter recognition? My Teaching Library has a great variety…
Go to: ABCS TRACE AND COLOR
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Go to: LETTER LAPBOOKS | A-Z
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Go to: LETTER LEARNING A-Z CAPITAL LETTERS | INTERACTIVE COLOR, CUT AND PASTE
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Go to: MORNING WORK FOR KINDERGARTEN | 1ST SEMESTER
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Go to: MORNING WORK FOR KINDERGARTEN | 2ND SEMESTER
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It’s crucial to understand that letter recognition is just one component of the process of enabling students to blend. Acknowledging the need for students to recognize a minimum of 50% of the alphabet’s letters before progressing is essential. This criterion is vital because students could potentially advance to blending at a faster pace than anticipated. Once students grasp letters and their respective sounds (for example, m, a, p, s, t), they are ready to begin blending!
As you practice letter recognition, it’s important to introduce the sounds associated with each letter. As students learn each letter, say when they are completing a lapbook for each letter or working on a letter page, you can you can say, “The letter b makes the /b/ sound heard at the beginning of ball or big.”
Encourage the students to repeat after you or complete the sentence, such as, “this is the letter __ ‘b!‘ It makes the __ ‘/b/’ sound”. This brief daily exercise will help your students learn both the letter names and sounds simultaneously!
It is also always helpful to use multisensory approaches, such as associating sounds with gestures or using tactile materials, to enhance understanding!
Continue reading…PART 2!
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