I came across a great resource on what you can say to your child when they don't know a word, other than "sound it out"...because if you've been teaching phonics already, you know that doesn't always work!
Check out all of the ideas and free resources here:
Sight words are words that appear frequently in most of the text kids
read, but can't easily be sounded out. Learning to recognize sight words
through—you guessed it—sight is the easiest and quickest way for early
readers to progress and become confident.
Here is a list of sight words your student should know and be confident in for each grade level:
The k12 curriculum does integrate sight words into language arts instruction. Be sure to check out this list of ideas of fun ways to incorporate sight word practice!
Trouble
learning common nursery Rhymes such as “Jack and Jill”
A lack
of appreciation of rhymes
Mispronounce
words; persistent baby talk
Difficulty
in learning (and remembering) names of letters
Failure
to know the letters in his own name
Kindergarten and First Grade
Failure
to understand that word come apart; for example, that batboy can be pulled
apart into bat and boy, and , later on, that the word bat can be broken
down still further and sounded out as:“b” “aaaa” “t”
Inability
to learn to associate letters with sounds, such as being unable to connect
the letter b with the “b” sound
Reading
errors that show no connection to the sounds of the letters; for example,
the word big is read as goat
The
inability to read common one-syllable words or to sound out even the
simplest of words, such as mat, cat, hop, nap
Complaints
about how hard reading is, or running and hiding when it is time to read
A
history of reading problems in parents or siblings
In addition to the problems of speaking and reading, you
should be looking for these indications of strengths in higher-level thinking
processes:
Curiosity
A
great imagination
The
ability to figure things out
Eager
embrace of new ideas
Getting
the gist of things
A good
understanding of new concepts
Surprising
maturity
A
large vocabulary for age group
Enjoyment
in solving puzzles
Talent
at building models
Excellent
comprehension of stories read or told to him
Second Grade On
Problems in Speaking
Mispronunciation
of long, unfamiliar, or complicated words; the fracturing of words-leaving
out parts of words or confusing the order of parts of words; for example,
aluminum becomes amulium
Speech
that is not fluent-pausing or hesitating often when speaking, lots of um’s
during speech, no glibness
The
use of imprecise language, such as vague references to stuff or things
instead of the proper name of an object
Not
being able to find the exact word; such as confusing words that sound
alike:saying tornado instead of
volcano; substituting lotion for ocean, or humanity for humidity
The
need to summon an oral response or the inability to come up with a verbal
response quickly when questioned
Difficulty
in remembering isolated pieces of verbal information (rote memory)-trouble
remembering dates, names, telephone numbers, random lists
Problems in Reading
Very
slow progress in acquiring reading skills
The
lack of strategy to read new words
Trouble
reading unknown (new, unfamiliar) words that must be sounded out; making
wild stabs or guesses at reading a word; failure to systematically sound
out words
The
inability to read small “function” words such as that, an in
Stumbling
on reading multisyllable words, or failure to come close to sounding out
the full word
Omitting
parts of words when reading; the failure to decode parts within a word; as
if someone had chewed a hole in the middle of the word, such as conible
for convertible
A
terrific fear of reading out loud; the avoidance of oral reading
Oral
reading filled with substitutions, omissions, and mispronunciation
Oral
reading that is choppy and labored, not smooth or fluent
Oral
reading that lack inflection and sounds like the reading of a foreign
language
A
reliance on context to discern the meaning of what is read
A
better ability to understand words in context than to read isolated words
Disproportionately
poor performance on multiple choice tests
The
inability to finish tests on time
The
substitution of words with the same meaning for words in the text he can’t
pronounce, such as car for automobile
Disastrous
spelling, with words not resembling true spelling; some spellings may be
missed by spell check
Trouble
reading mathematics word problems
Reading
that is slow and tiring
Homework
that never seems to end, or with parents often recruited as readers
Messy
handwriting despite what may be an excellent facility at word
processing-nimble fingers
Extreme
difficulty learning a foreign language
A lack
of enjoyment in reading, and the avoidance of reading books or even a
sentence
The
avoidance of reading for pleasure, which seems too exhausting
Reading
whose accuracy improves over time, although it continues to lack fluency
and is laborious
Lowered
self-esteem, with pain that is not always visible to others
A
history of reading, spelling, and foreign language problems in family
members
In addition to signs of phonological weakness, there are
signs of strengths in higher-level thinking processes:
Learning
that is accomplished through meaning rather than rote memorization
Ability
to get the big picture
A high
level of understanding of what is read to him
The
ability to read and to understand at a high level overlearned (that is,
highly practiced)words in a special
areaof interest; for example, if
his hobby is restoring cars, he may be able to read auto mechanics
magazines
Improvement
as an area of interest becomes more specialized and focused, when he
develops a miniature vocabulary that he can read
A
surprisingly sophisticated listening vocabulary
Excellence
in areas not dependent on reading, such as math, computers, and visual
arts, or excellence in more conceptual (verses factoid-driven) subjects
such as philosophy, biology, social studies, neuroscience, and creative
writing
Writing the letters b and d, and p and g backwards are quite common through 1st grade and even into 2nd grade. By halfway through 2nd grade, if students aren't self-correcting, they need more direct instruction and practice with it. Here is a collection of things you can try to help them correct it!
With a pencil, lightly write a capital B at the top of your page. The lower case b will fit inside of it. When you’re done with your writing, erase your B and no one will ever know that you needed it. This is a crutch until he can write it independently without the prompt.
Also, if you google image search "b and dreversals"
there are several visual ideas of things you can draw and make together
to display in your school area at home to help reinforce which is
which! (Like a picture of the word 'bed').
Epic is an online virtual library! What's so neat is they
have a huge variety of picture books and chapter books, and a voice to
text tool that will read aloud to your student. You can also click on
any word in the story and a little pop-up will open that says the
pronunciation of the word, and what it means! This will come in handy if you have a limited number of books at home, or just want even more of a variety!
This is such a fun site for digital storytelling! Students can choose an illustrator's collection of pictures, arrange them in whatever way they'd like to, and write
their own story to the pictures. This is great for student's who
struggle with descriptive writing, since they can use the pictures already there
to help create the details needed in their writing. Students who are
already proficient writers will have a blast with it! What's really cool
about this site is when your student is done, you can print it out as a
PDF, or order it as a soft or hard cover book.
What is it: Print
a coloring page (there are free and paid sheets) and have your student
color the picture. Download the Quiver app and watch the colored picture
come to life with 3D versions of what you color! There is a quick demo
on the website.
How to use it with writing: You can
choose a picture that already goes with a unit or writing prompt you're
doing in k12, or create a writing prompt from the picture chosen. For
example, if your student finds the k12 writing prompts uninspiring (many
students hate to write!) try this:
-Have them choose a favorite picture from the bank of pictures on Quiver. Print it out and have them color it.
-Choose
a writing prompt to go with it. (For example- Explanatory writing: Tell
someone about this animal- their habitat, behaviors, diet, would they
make a good pet? etc. Persuasive writing: Convince your parents why
having this animal would or would not make a good pet. Narrative or
descriptive: Write a story about an adventure this animal takes when it
escapes from its home!)
-Remember, you can supplement or
change k12 lessons to how you'd like to teach them as long as the
objective of the lesson is the same. In other words, as long as the
lesson is about persuasive writing and the prompt you choose to do here
is also persuasive writing--you're good!
Other ideas to implement: Verbs (or synonyms)- have a student watch the 3D version of their picture moving and come up with as many vivid verbs as they can to tell what the character is doing.
Why it's motivating: As
your student is coloring the picture, start asking them questions about
it related to the prompt you will give them. This will start the
brainstorming process and get them excited to write about it. Knowing
they will get to play with a 3D version of their picture after the
writing will motivate them to want to finish it. Have them share their
writing and 3D picture with another family member.
Reading seasonal books can be a fun way to keep your student engaged and interested in reading. Here is a list of winter-related books for the month of January!
Winter/Snow Themed
The Wish Tree by Kyo Maclear, Illustrated by Chris Turnham
Little Penguins by Cynthia Rylant, Illustrated by Christian Robinson
First Snow by Bomi Oark
Bunny Slopes by Claueda
Before Morning by Joyce Sidman and Beth Krommes
The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson Illustrated by Vladyslav Yerko
Best in Snow by April Pulley Sayre
Waiting for Snow by Marsha Arnold
Artic White by Danna Smith
Snow Day? No Way! Back to School Winter Woes by Cheri Khorram
Wonderful Winter: All Kinds of Winter Facts and Fun by Bruce Goldstone
Walking in a Winter Wonderland Sung by Peggy Lee, Illustrated by Tim Hopgood
Sleep Tight Farm: A Farm Prepares for Winter by Eugine Doyle Illustrated by Becca Stadtlander
The Polar Bear by Jenni Desmond
Poetry
The Poet’s Dog by Patricia MacLachlan
A Poem for Peter by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Chapter Books
When the Sea Turned to Silver by Grace Lin (Where the Mountain Meets the Moon series Book 3)
One Truth, No Lie by Lehua Parker (Niuhi Shark Saga Book 3)
Charmed by Jen Calonita (Fairy Tale Reform School series Book 2)
Impyrium by Henry Neff
Non-Fiction
A Voyage in the Clouds: The (Mostly) True Story of the First International Flight by Balloon in 1785 by Matthew Olshan
