heartofdakota.com

Hi Everyone! I have a phonics question I am hoping some of you could help me out with. We are using Phonics Pathways with my 6yoDs. Ds was doing just fine with all the short vowel words, Y suffix, 2 consonant endings, consonant digraph endings, Long vowels. Then we get to words with long-vowel sounds without the "e" at the end(ie old, mild, most, wild, etc.). Now he is sounding out every word with a long vowel sound.

Do I stop at this point and review until he is automatic in recall? Go back to short vowels? I hope you all can give me some insight! Thank you.

Wendy
DH of 15years
DS6
DSnb

We made some flash cards out of index cards with the rule breaker endings and reviewed them before each lesson time every day until she remembered them. My DD even wrote them on our chalk board then drew them in jail behind bars to help her remember. We did this for "ind" , "ild", "ost", "old", "oll" and "olt".

We are also using PP and we will just keep reviewing the words until he's got them without having to sound them out. We read them straight off the page, or in other ways. But we don't go backward, and we definitely don't move on until he's got 'em!

I did not use PP but just wanted to share what I do with the exceptions that seems to work. I let them know it is an exception and make something goofy to go with it. Like if it was wild I may act like a wild animal. Or for the ou sound I will tease them like I am going to pinch them and ask them what they would say if I did. I don't really pinch them of course. I just do a here comes the pincher what are you going to say thing and they giggle and say the sound. Anyway I find something really crazy and over the top to do with each sound they have trouble with and do the same thing every time we get to it. It is amazing how that makes it stick and how quick they get it that way. I used this with my dd with special needs and my children who were on target with their learning. Hope that helps.

You know, it's a wonder kids can learn the English language at all. There are so many exceptions and not enough rules.

Not sure I can be much help, but the program I use has lots of rules and one of the rules that would apply to your situation is I and O may say /I/ and /O/ before 2 consonants. (find, gold). It looks like the examples you listed would follow this rule. The rule specifically says "may say" because it doesn't necessarily always apply.

Hi Edwena! Are you using Phonics Road too?

Any Orton-Gillingham program that I have come across teaches this as a rule for phonics and spelling, not as an exception. How to Teach Spelling lists the rule in this way: The vowels i and o in one-syllable words that end in ld, nd, and st may be long. Words such as scroll and those that rhyme are taught as exceptions, or sight words.

A variation on this rule can be found here at Unit 15:

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Read ... 0rules.pdf

Thank you everyone! This board and HOD is such a blessing. Your advice will help me tremendously!

lovedtodeath wrote:Hi Edwena! Are you using Phonics Road too?

Actually we use Spell to Write and Read. I saw Phonics Road at Convention, but didn't take time to check it out. The rule your wrote had me thinking last night about how I understand the English lanugage so much better now. I was always a good speller, but now I understand the reasoning behind things.

Oh neat! The Phonics Road rule is set to a tune but matches the SWR rule almost exactly. The How to Teach Spelling rules are harder to understand which is why I switched.