WORDS THEIR WAY®PHONICS, VOCABULARY, and SPELLING PROGRAM

GLENMAR ELEMENTARY

BRAID OF LITERACY

Spelling- the correct sequence of letters in words

WHAT IS IT?

Words Their Way is a developmental spelling, phonics, and vocabulary program.

It was developed by Invernizzi, Johnston, Bear, and Templeton.

Diagnostic information contained in the students’ spelling inventions reveal their current understanding of how written English words work.

Words Their Way is a developmental spelling, phonics, and vocabulary program. It was developed by Invernizzi, Johnston, Bear, and Templeton.

HOW DOES IT RELATE TO CCSS?

The importance of word knowledge is evident throughout the Common Core State Standards.

It is a central aspect of the Reading Foundational Skills in grades K–5 as these skills relate to the decoding and recognition of words during reading.

Word knowledge is a central aspect of the Language Standards in grades K–5 as these skills relate to the encoding or spelling of words in writing.

Actively engagedManipulating ideas and objectsUsing language to clarify and cement learning

Interacting with peers in directed academic conversations

BRAIN RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT STUDENTS GAIN GREATER LONG TERM MEMORY WHEN THEY ARE…

InvestigatingTesting hypothesis/making predictions

Recording and constructing their own learning

BRAIN RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT STUDENTS GAIN GREATER LONG TERM MEMORY WHEN THEY ARE…

Where is each child?

THE STAGES

Emergent- Early Letter NameLetter NameWithin Word PatternSyllables & AffixesDerivational Relations

EMERGENT-

Emergent Spelling is a period of pre-reading and pretend writing.

Pretend to read by rehearsing and reciting well-known poems and jingles to heart.

Pretend to write. Writing is based on language and can be talked about.

Gradually acquire directionality.

AGES 1-7 GRADES pre-K to mid 1

LETTER NAME-

Letter Name – Alphabetic Stage is the beginning of conventional reading and writing.

They use the sound/letter match to write.

Initially in this stage, the students spell beginnings sounds and ending sounds. By the middle of the stage, students begin to use a vowel in each syllable, and begin to spell short vowel patterns conventionally.

Differentiation between consonants and vowels

Clear letter sound relationships

Frequently occurring short vowel words

AGES 4-9 GRADES K to early 3

WITHIN WORD PATTERN-

Students in the within word pattern stage use but confuse vowel patterns.

Within Word Pattern stage begins by taking a step back with a review of short vowels as they are compared with long vowels then shifts to common and then less common and r-influenced long vowel patterns.

AGES 6-12GRADES 1- mid 4

SYLLABLES & AFFIXES-Beginning in 2nd and 3rd grades for some students and in 4th for most students, cognitive and language growth allows children to make new and richer connections among the words they already know and the words they will learn.

Teachers can establish a firm foundation in spelling and vocabulary development as they facilitate students’ move into understanding the role of structure and meaning in the spelling system

AGES 8-18GRADES 3 to 8

DERIVATIONAL RELATIONS-

The term, derivational relations, emphasizes how spelling and vocabulary knowledge at this stage grow primarily through processes of derivation- from a single base word or word root, a number of related words are derived through the addition of prefixes and suffixes.

There is reciprocity between growth in vocabulary and spelling knowledge and the amount of reading and writing in which students are engaged.

AGES 10 +GRADES 5 to 12

ODDBALLS

Most of the top 200 most frequently occurring words according to Dolch and Fry are covered by the end of the Within Word Pattern Stage.

HOW DOES IT LOOK/SOUND IN THE CLASSROOM?

HOW DOES IT LOOK/SOUND IN THE CLASSROOM?

HOW DOES IT LOOK/SOUND IN THE CLASSROOM?

TYPES OF SORTS

CLOSED SORT: based on predetermined categories

BLIND SORT: picture or word sort with a partner in which students who are responsible for sorting cannot see the word. They must attend to the sounds and sometimes visualize the spelling pattern to determine the category.

BLIND WRITING SORT: one student (or teacher) names a word without showing it to another student, who must write it in the correct category under a key word.

OPEN SORTS: categories are left open; pictures or words are sorted according to student’s own judgment

SPEED SORTS: students try and beat own time

WAYS TO SORT

MEANING SORTS: categories are determined by semantic categories or by spelling-meaning connections.

CONCEPT SORT: pictures, objects, or words are grouped by shared attributes or meanings to develop concepts and vocabulary.

SOUND SORT: categorize by sound rather than visual pattern

Source: Coppell Independent School District