Here are some helpful tips to aid in making this a successful year!

1) The phonograms are high priority!  If your child is performing better on spelling tests than the phonogram tests, this may be a sign that they are trying to memorize the look of the words rather than how the words are constructed.  As your child encounters new, more difficult words particularly in reading, they may have difficulty later.  It is far better to know the phonograms first (higher initial scores on phon. tests than spelling).  They are the building blocks to becoming a better reader, writer and speller.

2) When practicing phonograms or spelling words (Math Flash Cards...etc.), eliminate those learned and focus on the more difficult ones.  Practice more often in smaller time increments.  This is a time saver and makes learning much less tedious.

3) When teaching your child how to spell a word, do not say the letter names.  This will cause confusion.  Letter names often relate very little to how a word is spelled.  Have your child say the sounds in the order the phonograms appear in the word.  If there is a particular rule or marking, have them articulate how it affects the word.  For example, ch...ar...g...e (sounds) the e is letting the "g" say its second sound, job 3 (articulation)

4) Please save the spelling lists from each week (quarter word lists also) in the orange folder given out during back to school night.  If your child cannot read past words instantly, practice them frequently.  The more they are exposed to these lists the more likely your child will be able to read and write.

5) Comprehension is a major factor to success in future grades.  A child must be able to read fluently (at grade level or better) in order to focus on the content of what they are reading.  A student with poor reading skills will often focus too much on decoding and making guesses based upon visual clues such as the first letter, the look of the word, and or pictures/illustrations rather than what the passage is actually trying to convey.  Decoding for example, while a very effective tool for learning unfamiliar words can become a hindrance.  Once a student decodes a word they then must begin to transition that word into their sight vocabulary.

Additional helps for grade one students include recognizing the type of passage they are reading.  For example, an informative type passage or book contains a topic and information written to inform or explain something to the reader while narrative (Story) writing contains characters, setting, plot and so on.  A narrative writing is written to entertain/develop an understanding.  There is also a combination of each called an informative narrative, which informs in an interesting way.  Each of these types of writings are read in different ways.  When a child understands and recognizes what they are reading and what to focus on, they will be better able to comprehend.

There are so many factors in reading comprehension (...having a good understanding of the world around you, having a good vocabulary, good visual tracking skills, good attention/focus, motivation, being able to organize your physical environment, room, workspace, maturity, the ability to articulate your thoughts in an organized manner...even a good cup of Starbucks...and on and on). See your teacher for more helps or if you are so inclined, type in "reading comprehension" in your favorite search engine (...google.com)  You will be amazed at how much there is related to this subject.

More to come!