1+-+Reading

**Early Reading Basics** Phonics helps in word identification because the phonemes become a strategy for children to use when sounding out words and spelling. Having an understanding of phonics leads to greater understanding of how words are structures and what sounds certain singular or grouped letters sound like. A good teacher activity for beginners is getting children to write their own name because it has relevant meaning to the child and also helps them to begin to understand sounds and letters and how they go together to form words. For instance when interviewing my cousin for EEO210, she said she liked to go to Smorgy’s. For the interview, I asked her to write the answers down on a piece of paper. When she came to spell Smorgy’s she asked me how to write the word, I began to explain to her than if she sounded out the word (the phonemes) then she might be able to do it herself. She got the //sm//, the //or//, then the //g//, but on the end she wrote //ies// so that the word was **Smorgies**. I said ‘yes that sounds right, but does it look right?’, but she remembered the sign said ‘oh its Smorgy’s with a //y// because its “personal” word’.

 **Content of phonics** Stage 1: Letters of the alphabet. Stage 2: Onset and rime, word families. Onset and rime examples: media type="custom" key="693077"  

This is a teachertube video on word families, further below is an activity sheet example on the "est" family: media type="custom" key="693083"   Stage 3: Blends Blends or letter clusters are two or more combined letters Stage 4: Diagraphs Diagraphs are two letters making a single sound, they are either consonant or vowel diagraphs. Diagraphs are blends that represent a single phoneme in which neither single letter in the combination can represent such as sound by itself. Stage 5: Structural Analysis Structural analysis can mean adding endings for plural and tenses (prefixes) and compound words (suffixes). A prefix example is play - play//__ed__// and a suffix example is //__pre__//-set.

**Syllables** are an important part to understand in order to analyse the structure of words. An activity that teachers sometimes get children to do is clapping to each syllable in a word. For example marmalade mar-mar-lade there are 3 syllables and therefore students would clap and say aloud each syllable. In analysing words and in speech we find that sometimes we need to contract words. Such as can not, to can't, it means the same but has a different pronunciation and this makes speech flow more readily.

Early readers use the alphabetic principle as a code breaker in order to make meaning of punctuation and new vocabulary. Phonemic awareness for beginning readers helps understanding of syllables, alliteration, rhyme and phonemes. Having knowledge of letter sounds and symbols means that children are able to produce temporary spelling as a means of communication and vocabulary building.   CAT PEOPLE DRIVE

It is often very helpful for teachers to construct word walls that have relative meaning and can build on previous vocabulary. With similar onsets and rimes, and word families, children can recognise similar sounds in words and therefore build vocabulary. Self monitoring is a key way for students when reading, to think about whether or not there were enough words said in relation to the text; whether or not what they said made sense in relation to illustrations; and also questioning stoppages in sentences, what was hard to read and whether or not words sounded right. Positive reinforcement such as ‘you did a good job of working that out for yourself’ also helps children to overcome mistakes.

Using sentence making activities such as the one below demonstrated the concept of a sentence and then children who understand sentences orally and then able to start on printed and written form. Using sentences pieces challenges students to make meaning from words and put those words into a clear sentence, with correct punctuation.  

  <span style="color: rgb(141, 186, 44)"> **Reading comprehension** is having understanding and taking meaning from texts, whether they are in print, illustrativ <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif">e or electronic form. Comprehension involves the reader, text and the activity whereby the cultural experiences, age, gender and kno <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif">wledge can impact on what meaning is taken from certain aspects of text. Some Road blocks and key strategies that children may encounter when a <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif">ttempting activities in order to comprehend texts are; attention, persistence, taking time to reflect and being positive and flexible with learning. When assessing comprehension, three types of questions that children may be asked; Literal – on the line, as in the story “the three little pigs”, Q. how many pigs were there?; Interpretive – Between the lines, Q. Which of the pigs’ houses is the strongest?; Inferential – beyond the lines, Q. What did you learn? Or, Can you invent another ending? These questions allow teachers to interpret whether children have understood the text and whether they have listened and learnt from the experiences of the characters and its plot. Assessment of reading comprehension is important because it allows teachers to determine how well a child can read aloud, how well the child comprehends the text, and also the depth of the child's critical thinking skills in relation to the text and its plot and characters.

- Who were the main characters? - Where did the story take place? - What was the important event that started the story? - What other important events took place? - How did the story end? These types of questions involve the WHO, WHERE, WHAT and HOW scenarios.
 * <span style="color: rgb(141, 186, 44)">Retelling **is one of the most effective comprehension activities. Questions like:

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An effective way to get children to learn how to retell or recount a story is to have written 'retelling' prompts on small cards which certain students have. The teacher may ask the question and the student who has the card e.g. the main characters, would say the main characters. Sometimes the teacher may ask other students as well if there are characters missing or if there are unnoticeable characters, as with The Whales Song book, which has Grandma, Lily, Uncle Fred and the whales; The whales being the unnoticed characters. <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif">

It is always a good idea before reading a text to children to predict what might happen with the plot, characters and what words may be encountered. Asking questions and stimulating children so that they are more open to interpretation and interest in the text will lead to increased comprehension and understanding because they seek to answer such questions. After reading, teachers will often ask students to summarise the story, by retelling the main events, the key ideas, plot and character summaries in order to assess reading comprehension and what kind of meaning children have taken from the text.