How to Teach Phonics | Page 4

with these symbols, they will not call up a definite sound in his mind; but if "l" is taught from "little," "sh" from "sheep," and "v" from "very", (or other familiar words,) there can be no uncertainty and no time need be spent by the child in laboring to retain and associate the sounds with unfamiliar symbols.
Not the method, but the motive, is the essential thing. What we want is that every child should know the consonants thoroly. Get the motive, then use the method that brings the best results with the least expenditure of time and energy.
(2) For variety in reviewing and fixing the consonant sounds, give frequent dictation exercises.
a. With all the consonants on the board, the teacher sounds any consonant, the pupil finds and repeats the sound as he points it out. As the teacher points, pupils sound, occasionally in concert, and in individual recitation of the entire list. Individual work should predominate, to make sure that the pupil is giving the correct sound and putting forth independent effort.
b. Pupils write sounds as teacher dictates. If a pupil fails to recall and write the form, the teacher may pronounce the type word and ask the pupil to sound the initial consonant (tell the first sound in the word). To illustrate: The teacher pronounces "cup", pupils sound "c", then write it. If they have mastered the written forms they will enjoy this exercise.
Children soon acquire the ability and become possessed of the desire to write whole words. Then the teacher should direct this effort, teaching the child to visualize (get a picture of the word as a whole) and write short, simple words.
5. Blending.
When a number of consonant sounds are mastered, practice in blending may begin. When the need arises--when words are met which begin with a combination of consonants the blends are taught, e.g., bright--b, r,--br, br ight, bright. f, l,--fl, fl ower, flower. Keep a separate set of cards for these blends--and drill upon them as the list grows.
(br, pl, fl, sl, cr, gl, gr, bl, cl, fr, pr, st, tr, str, sp, sw, tw, sk.)
gr ow dr aw pl ay s ky sm all sl ay fl ower cr ow st ay st and cl ean fr ay gl ass pr ay tr ay br own sp in str ay bl ue sw ing sl ow st ore sl ack bl ow tr ack dw arf gl ow
The teacher must pronounce the syllables that the children have, as yet, no power to master, e.g., with the word "grow", (1) the children will blend g and r, gr; (2) teacher pronounces "ow"; (3) children blend "gr" and "ow" until they recognise "grow."
Teach also the digraphs sh, ch, th, wh, as they are met in the common words in use: when, they, chick, etc.
sh eep ch ick wh at th at sh ell ch ild wh en th is sh y ch air wh y th ese sh ore ch ill wh ere th ose sh ine ch erry wh ich th ere sh ow ch ildren th en th eir sh e ch urch th ey th ey sh all ch ase sh ould ch est

III. Teach the Short Vowels.
Since more than 60 per cent of the vowels are short, and since short vowels outnumber long vowels by about four to one, they are taught first. Teach one vowel at a time by combining with the known consonants. And what fun it is, when short "a" is introduced, to blend it with the consonants and listen to discover "word sounds." Henceforth the children will take delight in "unlocking" new words, without the teacher's help. She will see to it, of course, that the words are simple and purely phonetic at first; as:
c-a-n, can h-a-d, had c-a-p, cap m-a-t, mat c-a-t, cat m-a-n, man r-a-t, rat f-a-n, fan h-a-t, hat s-a-t, sat
Whole "families" are discovered by placing the vowel with the initial or the final consonants, thus:
ca n r at f an ca p h at an d ca t c at s an d ca b b at st an d ma t f at l an d ma n s at b an d
The children will enjoy forming all the families possible with the known sounds.
Short "a" Families or Phonograms.
at an ap ad ack ag and r ang b ank b at c an c ap h ad b ack b ag b and s ang r ank c at m an g ap l ad h ack f ag h and b ang s ank f at p an l ap m ad J ack j ag l and h ang t ank m at t an m ap g ad l ack l ag s and f ang bl ank p at r