Tag Archives: phonics

Literacy Resources

The Rabbit Hole



The first use of the phrase falling “down the rabbit hole” comes to us thanks to the great Lewis Carroll who introduced the term in 1865 in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. In the story, Alice literally falls down the hole of the White Rabbit, taking her to Wonderland.

I began searching the internet for resources to give my online students who are in a Masters level course to earn their teaching credential. I have weekly resources for them that coincide with the week’s topic. I took a look at a topic that generally has them confused, the difference between phonemic awareness and phonics. I wanted the clearest information that would be easy to understand. Boy, did I go down a rabbit hole!

I could tell students a thousand times how important it is to know the sounds that make up words, and they always refer to phonics instruction. Most students are able to learn both the letter and the corresponding sound, but for some, the two skills do not stick. That is why it is important to teach sounds first. A child who can recite the alphabet but doesn’t have knowledge of the sounds, will not be able to read. There are important distinctions between phonemic awareness and phonics.

Phonemic awareness refers to the sounds in words. Not the letters, the sounds. The word cat has three phonemes: /c/a/t/. You can practice phonemic awareness in the dark because it does not include sight, just sound.

Phonics is awareness of both the letters and their sounds.

If child cannot read, you must go back and teach sounds. It is the only way they will be able to decode.

So, here’s what I found:

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Learning Apps

Learning Apps

Due to the pandemic, teachers and parents are scrambling to provide educational opportunities to children. I compiled a list of great learning apps. It is my hope that they help during this difficult time.

I compiled a list of great learning apps:

Learn With Homer

https://webapp.learnwithhomer.com/onboarding

Price: Free 

Grade level: Pre-K, K 

Skill: Comprehension, Phonics 

Device: iPad 

A learn-to-read app for kids ages 3 to 6 that incorporates drawing, voice recording, stories, songs, and more, along with more traditional phonics exercises. 

This app can be helpful for kids who have speech production issues and organization of language issues.

•https://www.getepic.com
Epic provides a plethora of children’s books for all ages. The app asks for parents or teachers to create an account,
and allows for them to create four profiles for children readers. You do need to register an email and a password.
The visuals and music contribute to a fun learning experience.
https://opposites.app

The Opposites

Grade level: 3rd, 4th, 4th and above 

Skill: Comprehension 

Device: iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch 

The Opposites app helps children learn vocabulary and the corresponding antonyms by challenging them to match up pairs of opposing words in increasingly difficult levels. The game also helps children understand the importance of word context, and is an opportunity for them to think about how the words they use oppose other words. The Opposites consists of 10 different levels, each stage with a corresponding level of vocabulary. The app also offers a dictionary option that provides definitions and antonyms in a kid-friendly format.

Articulation Station
http://littlebeespeech.com/articulation_station_pro.php
Price: Free 
Grade level: K, 1st, 2nd 
Skill: Dyslexia and Learning Disabilities, Phonics 
Device: iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch 
Articulation Station provides speech professionals, teachers, and parents with ways to help kids improve pronunciation and articulation. Using very specific exercises, games, and stories that focus on just one letter sound for 22 English language sounds, this app can improve pronunciation and understanding of how letter sounds form words. With more than 1,000 target words, kids will likely not get bored with this app. Adults have easy ways to track kids’ progress and can track up to six kids at once. Note: To get full use of this app, you have to purchase the Pro version or buy individual letters with an in-app purchase option.

The Following Apps are for older students:

AnswerGarden – useful for brainstorming

The Answer Pad

Coggle – collaborative

Edulastic -Formative assessments FREE

Formative – upload content to ask questions

FreeOnlineSurveys

Google Forms 

GoSoapBox   – for upper grades

Lino – sticky note and photo sharing

Nearpod – interactive formative assessments

Obsurvey  – create surveys

Padlet – Sticky notes for responses

Pear Deck  – active learning, formative

Poll Everywhere  – interactive

The Queue  – online survey tool

Remind -communication with parents

Seesaw -ability to write and reflect, sample activities

Spiral -discussions, interact with video

SurveyPlanet

Triventy – for quizzes

Vocaroo -voice recording

Zoho Survey – create surveys

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