1. On the road to SKILLED READING in Kindergarten
PU101 Class 2
September 24, 2015

2. Please take the pre-assessment!

3. What is skilled reading
What is skilled reading? What will my child learn in kindergarten to help him/her become a skilled reader? What can I do to help at home?

5. Word Recognition
Phonological Awareness
Decoding
Sight Recognition

6. Phonological Awareness
Covered in the first PU101 class by Mrs. Mullen.
Pipe cleaner #1

7. Decoding
Decoding is the understanding of the relationship between letters and the sounds they represent and the ability to apply knowledge of these letter-sound relationships to correctly read written words.
What do I do when I come to a word I don’t know? Try a strategy!
Pipe cleaner #2

8. Eagle Eye Use the pictures to help you with unknown words.
Many children’s books include picture clues to help students decode more difficult words.
How do the pictures relate to the text?
Example: I can see the eagle.

9. Lips the Fish Works closely with Eagle Eye.
Focus on beginning sounds. Does the word you are saying match the beginning sound for the word in the text?
If you are stuck, get your lips ready to say the first sound.
Example: Oliver is in the dryer.

10. Stretchy Snake Stretch out the word slowly and then blend it together.
Sound out the word.
Tap and grab.
Can use sound boxes for help/practice.
Example: The cat is fast. /f/ /a/ /s/ /t/ = fast

11. Chunky Monkey Separate words into chunks.
Look for chunks you already know.
Chunking helps students read faster because they are blending chunks of sounds together instead of having to blend each sound.
Example: “flat”, I already know “at” so /f/ /l/ at = flat

12. Flippy Dolphin
Students are currently working on short vowel sounds. Later in the year we will learn the long vowel sounds and maybe sounds for vowel combinations.
If you try the short vowel sound and it doesn’t make sense, flip the vowel, and try the long vowel sound.
Example: kind

13. Skippy Frog
Skip the word, read to the end of the sentence, and then COME BACK to see if you can figure the word out based on context clues.
Example: “The ________has a long neck.”

14. Tryin’ Lion
Keep trying, don’t give up!
Try a word that makes sense.

15. Sight Recognition
Sight recognition is the ability to recognize and read familiar, high-frequency words automatically by sight. Students’ ability to construct meaning from text is dependent on the rapid, automatic, and effortless recognition of words. If students focus their cognitive energy on decoding words, their ability to consider and comprehend text is limited.
Pipe cleaner #3

16. How to practice sight words
Practice the words you already know to build fluency.
Choose a few words you do not know to focus on each week.
When you come to a new sight word in a book, write it on an index card and put it on your fridge to practice.
Fun ways to practice sight words:
Rainbow write
Letter tiles / letter magnets
Word hunt in books or post-its around the house
Pinterest!

17. Word Recognition is increasingly automatic
Phonological Awareness
Decoding
Sight Recognition
Braid these three pipe cleaners.
Can you keep braiding or do you reach an end point?
Can you take one piece out without undoing the braid?
Word Recognition
Increasingly automatic

18. Language Comprehension
Background Knowledge
Vocabulary
Language Structures
Verbal Reasoning
Literacy Knowledge

19. Background Knowledge Use / develop background knowledge at home by:
Talk about information/vocabulary in a text your child may be unfamiliar with
Take picture walks to preview texts
Encouraging curiosity and talk with your child about their questions
Meaningful conversations
Pipe cleaner #4

20. Vocabulary Talk about new words Pipe cleaner #5 Synonyms
Paraphrase meaning
Draw a picture of the meaning
Use the word in a sentence
Pipe cleaner #5

21. Language Structures Phonology Syntax Semantics Text Structure
What phonological patterns and differences do students hear with phonemes, sentence types, and word endings?
Syntax
What understandings of word and sentence structure do students recognize?
Semantics
What do students know about word meanings and relationships?
Text Structure
Do students understand the text structure and how it works?
Pipe cleaner #6

22. What is Prosody?
Examples and non-examples by Mrs. Mullen and Mrs. Vance!
Expressive reading
Includes the timing, phrasing, emphasis, and intonation that speakers use to help convey aspects of meaning and to make speech lively.
Conveys emotions, highlights important information, demonstrates grammatical structure, and influences general memorability of the text
Mira and Schwanenflugel, 2003

23. Why is Prosody Important?
There are strong links between oral reading prosody and general reading achievement. After comparing students’ reading prosody in first and second grade with their reading comprehension at the end of third grade, researchers concluded that early acquisition of an adult-like intonation contour predicted better comprehension. (-Miller and Schwanenflugel, 2008)

24. Verbal Reasoning
Understanding inferences, metaphors, constructing meaning from text.
Asking and answering questions about texts.
Before, during, after
Facts, opinions, connections, predictions, vocabulary, if you were the author
Pipe cleaner #7

25. Literacy Knowledge Print concepts Book genres Text features
Pipe cleaner #8

26. Language Comprehension is increasingly strategic
Background Knowledge
Vocabulary
Language Structures
Verbal Reasoning
Literacy Knowledge
Twist these together.
Keep twisting……is there an ending point or can you keep twisting?
Can you take one out?
Language Comprehension
Increasingly strategic

27. Skilled Reading Skilled reading is like a rope woven of many strands.
Intersection point of Language Comprehension and Word Recognition.
Fluent execution and coordination of word recognition and text comprehension.
What would happen if you pulled out one piece?
Skilled reading

28. The importance of Read Alouds
Reading aloud is often recommended as the most significant activity for adults to support the emerging literacy skills of young children. (-Nelf, 2008)
Reading aloud to young children is not only one of the best activities to stimulate language and cognitive skills; it also builds motivation, curiosity, and memory. (-Bardige, 2009)
Reading texts aloud is the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for successful reading. (- McCormick, 1977)

29. Reading Levels We use Fountas & Pinnell Guided Reading levels.
Your student’s reading level will be shared with you at conferences.
End of year typical kindergarten level is a C/D.
Students are moved to higher level books when they can independently and successfully read with accuracy, fluency, and comprehension.

30. Reading Resources
Mrs. Svarda, our school’s librarian, has many links to online reading resources here:
Storia:

31. Please take the post-assessment! Thank you for coming!!
Some information and research in this presentation taken from TN Department of Education 2015 Summer Training Participant Packet.