1. Parent literacy workshop March 24, 2016

2. 6 elements required for reading Phonemic awareness (hearing sounds in words) Phonics (letter sound relationship) Vocabulary Fluency Comprehension Oral Language

3. Why teach SSP (Speech Sound Pics) in combination with Sound Waves? SSP is a synthetic phonics program, that means students practice a limited number of letter sound relationships (or spelling choices) at a time, for consolidation and fluency SSP is AMAZING for hearing all the sounds in words, necessary when spelling, and caters for all levels http://www.wiringbrains.com/

4. How does SSP work? Students start at their own level and progress at their own rate Students move up a level when they can read sentences AND spell words in short sentences with accuracy and fluency Students may need to go back to fill in some spelling patterns that they have not mastered, so it may seem easier than you expect, but we are working towards mastery before moving on

5. There are 4 levels

6. Green level rap (students must be able to read it approximately 14 seconds without errors)

11. You may notice Your child’s book may look easier than before. Students should be reading books at least 90-95% accuracy with fluency and comprehension Take home readers are decodable, that means that they only have the spelling choices that your child is working on. The more children read words with that sound and corresponding spelling choices, the more they internalise what those sounds looks like when they are written, and this improves their spelling. Decodable books are designed so that students must “follow the sounds and say the word”. There is no guessing with decodable books. They read every letter/sound and blend them together to make a word. Don’t accept any ……………..guesses from the pictures or errors.

12. How to read a decodable book Check the sounds and their spelling choices on/inside the cover and discuss with your child. As usual, it is a good idea to ask your child, what they think the book will be about, and what they know about that topic. Maybe they have had personal experience with that topic, can see how it relates to something in their world or they may have read a book with similarities in the past.

13. Some of the vocabulary may seem a little stilted because of the limited range of sounds used. Take this opportunity to build your child’s vocabulary and talk about words that have the same meaning. Ask you child to retell the story as you go along or at the end of the book. Ask questions every couple of pages and ask your child to show you where the answer is in the book.

14. Ask you child to recall (or look for) some of the words that used the focus sound and compare spellings of each word e.g. if the focus sound was ‘I’ then compare hi, high, height, bike, my and other ‘I’ words in the story If the book is short, reread it to improve fluency and comprehension.

15. How to spell words with SSP ‘Duck hand’ the word so you can hear every sound Say each sound and write a line for each sound Say each sound and write a number under each line Make your choices. Students will learn to use the spelling clouds but they may ask the teacher to help them

16. Let’s practise together The cars crashed and had an ………? How many sounds can you hear? (Hint: a new sound starts when you mouth changes shape) Duck hand Say the sounds and write a line for each one Check by saying the sounds again and writing a number underneath Make your choices

17. What other exercises are part of SSP? Poster work Brain training videos at your child’s level Reading and writing ‘sight words’ call Duck level words in SSP, at your child’s level Speedy paired decoding Spelling through investigation

18. Questions? But my child is already a good reader and speller … When your child can read and spell using all the Blue Level spelling choices with speed and accuracy, they graduate from the program

19. When can my child start reading the home readers again? When your child is on the final level, Blue Level, they can choose either the decodable of the other readers

20. My child likes to read chapter books … If your child is at Blue Level they can probably already read chapter books and this is fine is they can read with 90-95% accuracy and comprehend by retelling the story and answering questions If your child is at a lower level please continue to read the decodable readers for home practice and read chapter books to them. If your child is not reading the text independently with close to 100% accuracy, they are probably not guessing and not comprehending it fully. It’s OK for students to read other books for pleasure.

21. What else can I do to help my child at home? Duck hand and then blend all of the Sound Waves list words (builds connections in the brain) You can have your child do the brain training videos or Duck Levels (spelling of sight words, using duck hands, lines and numbers) or Learn Speedy Paired Decoding or When asked by your child how to spell a word refer, assist them by referring to slide 15 or

22. Your child may be a brilliant investigator and ask many questions about how words are spelled, so talk with them about this Also, don’t forget that vocabulary and oral language are important for reading at higher year levels, so keep reading to and talking with your children about all kinds of things and enjoying lots of experiences together

23. Why are words in the classroom written in black and grey text? English spelling is very complex. It helps students to see where sounds start and stop to assist with reading and spelling a-e sound: eight vs April l sound: April vs hill vs able ee sound: seed vs seat vs me vs happy

24. What about my younger children? Segment words into sounds will help your younger children to hear sounds in words e.g You want a h-a-m ham sandwich, Here is your d-o-ll doll. Start with short words, segment and blend the word, the progress to just segmenting and have your child blend