What to do

The next step is to practise the 12 basic words listed above. Follow Step C on page 209 of the Handbook, using all the familiar techniques – moving from blocks to lines to writing-straight-off.  Be sensitive to the way your child handles this. It is a mistake to think that because you are working on more advanced spelling patterns, your child is suddenly more able. He may still need the very thorough preparation with blocks and lines. If this appears to be the case, allow him to use them, giving him all the time you feel he needs. Another child might seem impatient with this time-consuming approach and be anxious to move on. In this case, provided he can cope with the words easily, you can move through the stages quickly. That wise old saying still applies…“Go as fast as you dare – and as slow as you must!”

Don’t be tempted to try other words. The aim here is for children to thoroughly master the set of 12 basic words and no more. It is important that they have a small group of words which they know exceptionally well. These should form a distinct group kept separate from the more complicated ar words they will be encouraged to tackle later on in Units 3 and 4.

Reading practice

You’ll notice that we now have the words for reading on individual cards instead of one card as we did in SoundWorks. This is because they will be used more flexibly than before. It is no longer enough just to learn to recognise the words for reading. Children will be encouraged to look at the structure of individual words, appreciate their meaning and use them in language activities.

You can start this new approach right away by trying some of the ideas that are outlined below.

Ideas for practising reading

A note on the quality of the stories

Notice that you are not actually teaching your child here, just working beside him as an equal partner. It is a shared activity. So whatever contribution your child makes to the story is absolutely fine. Don't let him feel you are judging him in any way. It's worth bearing in mind that children who have missed out on reading experiences may find it hard to think of things to say. So give plenty of help and try to make it a fun activity. You can make the story interesting by being a bit more inventive yourself. In this way, the activity will be more enjoyable and your child will begin to see what is possible when making up stories.

... and the sentences

With sentences, the best approach is this: accept your child’s sentences, however simple they are, without suggesting there is anything inadequate about them. But at the same time, take care to make your own sentences just that little bit more interesting. For example:

If you make this activity a regular part of your teaching, it should have a marked effect on the children’s use of language. Gradually, in their own good time, they will absorb your slightly better sentences and begin to think of more interesting ones themselves. As their sentences improve, you should then make your own sentences just that little bit better. And so on. It is a gentle unhurried process in which children gradually develop their use of language simply by listening to you. This way, nothing needs to be explained in words, and children need never feel that their sentences are ‘not good enough’.

 
Writing sentences

Up to now, the priority in SoundWorks has been to help children develop phonological awareness. The reason for writing sentences was to show children that the work they were doing was in fact ‘real writing’ and that success was within their grasp. Now things have changed. Children have successfully mastered phonological awareness and are ready to move on. So we need an entirely new approach to the business of writing of sentences!

1.  Short easy sentences

The first thing is to bring speed and fluency to children’s writing. This is best done by dictating lots of short easy sentences, simple sentences in which nothing distracts from the actual process of writing. The sentences should be short so that there is no burden on the child’s memory. They should be dictated so that he doesn’t have to think about what to write. And all the words should be easy so that there’s no need to stop and puzzle things out.

What to do
Make up sets of short easy sentences with the ar words you are practising. Only use Key Words that you know your child finds easy, and at this stage try not to use suffixes with any of the ar words. Give your sentences as a dictation, little and often, whenever you feel you can do so.

As well as your own sentences, you could try some of these:

The dog is in the car. The pigs are in the barn. The hens are in the farm yard. It is dark in the park. Can you see the car? It is hard to see in the dark. We are going to a farm. The farm is far away. I will send you a card. Come on Dad!  Start the car!

? !  Question and exclamation marks  ! ?
If you have taught them, this is a chance to practise.
If not, you might like to teach them now.
Otherwise, full-stops will be fine.

With all these sentences, you have one simple aim:
Provide lots and lots of practice - to encourage speed and fluency.

2.  Imaginative meaningful sentences

The second thing to do is write sentences that are really worth writing. The children’s own ideas are the important thing here. Your role is to take an interest in what is being written, ask questions to stimulate ideas and help out with difficult words. This kind of writing should be a joy to do rather than a chore. The need for routine practice has been taken care of in the dictations, and improving the quality of sentences is dealt with in the reading activities - so you are freed from both these tasks. Children can afford to write less here and enjoy it more. One or two sentences will be fine. Hopefully, as fluency and confidence grow, children will want to write more.

The easiest is to base the imaginative writing on a picture, and one is provided here. Do plenty of talking about the picture before children  have to decide what they actually want to write. Ask questions that will draw their attention to interesting details in the picture. If they are struggling for the right word, help out with suggestions. Throw in your own ideas as much as you like – but let the final choice about what to write be your child’s ideas alone.

Copymaster D15 has a farmyard picture with plenty of opportunities to use the ar words you are pracising. If you have a colour printer, it can be printed in colour. Cut out the picture and stick it in your child’s exercise book. Your child then writes one or two sentences next to it. More if he wants to. Two formats are provided for this: (a) picture on the left-hand page/writing on the right or (b) picture at the top of a page with the writing underneath. Perhaps you could let us know which you think is best so that we can settle for just one eventually. There's an email box at the end of this page.

As always, try to make the page look attractive. From time to time, go back and read the sentences again and enjoy them together. And add another sentence or two if you wish.

Your attitude to writing these sentences:  
The more the better… but don’t let it become a struggle!

What next

For children who are finding the ar words difficult, this might be a good time to stop. You could teach something else for a while and come back to Units 3 and 4 later on when things have become a bit easier. But for everyone else, move straight on to Units 3 and 4. These can be taught together - you can begin the exercises in Unit 4 while you are still working on Unit 3.