Video 1 – General information on the literacy programme we implement at St Angela Schools:
– Children learn how to read and write sounds in groups
– Children learn how to read by blending sounds
– Letter names are NOT used at this phase of the programme but shall be eventually used when they go to primary school
– At St Angela we prepare children to read the simplest of Word Families in the English language (mainly CVC – e.g. cat, hat, dog)
– Using this method child shall be able to use a SKILL to read a large number of words which are mainly CVC
– Read a lot of stories to your children
Video 2 – Using Sound blending to read words
– The flashcards mentioned in this video are the ones parents buy at the beginning of year at St Angela schools
– Sounds are organised in particular groups – the first group is m,a,s,t,d
– As soon as the first group is covered, children will be taught how to blend sounds to read regular words
– Ask the children to look at you while you say the sounds
– First say the sounds (/m/ /u/ /d/) and then say the word mud
– Use the cards (letter side) while you say the sounds and put them together to form a word
– Then ask the children to say the sounds and read the words without your help
Video 3 – Information for Parents – Understanding Phonics
– Cat has 3 sounds (/c/ /a/ t/)
– Ship also has 3 sounds (/sh/ /i/ /p/)
– In KG the children are only taught the simple sounds – this helps them master the skill of reading rather than overwhelming them with a lot of information
– The more complex sounds are taught in the coming years – mainly in year 1 and year 2 – the secret is teaching them gradually and not all at once
– AT ST ANGELA WE FOCUS ON TEACHING OUR YOUNG LEARNERS TO MASTER READING OF SIMPLE CVC WORDS – thus giving them the time to adapt and grow
– Please follow our curriculum to support and develop reading skills in your children
Video 4 – Learn how to say the sounds
– Practice saying the sounds correctly
– Do not add the /uh/ sound at the end
– Sounds are stretchy or bouncy
– Set 1 sounds are the sounds that shall be covered by the end of KG 2 (with the exception of sh, ch, th)
– At this stage, the aim is to give the children the skill to read words by blending – this will empower the children and will not put a lot of effort on their memory
Video 5 – Why read to your children? Teaching Literacy at school is not enough!
– Students whose parents read them a lot of stories, come to school with better skills to develop literacy
– Read aloud to your children to develop love for reading
– Reading aloud with your children helps to develop vocabulary and other important skills
– Reading aloud helps your children to understand the use of punctuation
– Children need to see that YOU love reading too.
Video 6 – 10 things to think about when you read to your child
– Make reading fun
– Find a quiet spot
– Show curiosity
– Read the story several times
– Talk about the story with your child
– Avoid testing your child what they remember
– Link the stories to children’s experience
– Use different voices for different stories and characters
– At this stage use the books indicated by your school – children are just beginning to read, giving them the wrong levelled book may do more harm than good
Video 7 – Reading the stretchy sounds with your child
Video 8 – Reading the bouncy sounds with your child
Other videos you might use to teach reading of cvc words:
You can also follow the Literacy Unit within the Secretariat for Catholic Education Facebook Group by clicking on the the link.