One of the most basic word recognition skills is learning to recognize upper case and lower case letters and to associate each letter with a sound. After students learn these letters, they can move on to learning whole letter patterns and the sounds that they make. This page includes intervention strategies that you can use to support your students in this area. As you read, consider which of these interventions best aligns with your student's strengths and needs in the whole learner domains.
Explicit Instruction
You should explicitly teach each letter or letter pattern by naming the letter(s) and its sound. It's also best practice to pair the letter(s)/sound with a visual keyword that includes that sound. (Ex. This is A. A says /a/. The word aaaaapple starts with /a/. When we see this letter, we can remember its sound by saying 'A, apple, /a/.') Click here for keywords for individual letters and letter patterns, sourced from Wilson Fundations.
Activity A: Visual Drill
In addition to formally introducing each letter or letter pattern with its sound, you will want to incorporate visual drills to give students practice associating the letter(s)/sound pairs. This strategy is modeled after Orton-Gillingham and sourced from Henry, M. (2010). Unlocking literacy: Effective decoding & spelling instruction (2nd ed.). Baltimore, MD: P.H. Brookes.
The teacher should make or purchase 4 x 6 [index] cards for each common grapheme. For visual drills, the teacher shows students the pattern already taught, one pattern at a time. Students can respond individually or as a group with appropriate sound(s). If the sound given is incorrect, students should trace the letter on paper or on their desk with the index finger of their writing hand. This kinesthetic-tactile reinforcement may provide a stimulus for the correct response. If not, the teacher should give the sound and have the students write the pattern and simultaneously say the correct sound.
"I'm going to show you a card, and I'd like to you to say the letter name, the name on the picture, and the sound the letter makes" (A, apple, /a/).
Visual Drill in Action
Watch this clip to see how to execute a Visual Drill. Notice the brisk pace the teacher uses to maximize instruction time and Increase "At-Bats."
Activity B: Auditory Drill
Once you've explicitly taught a letter or letter pattern and it's corresponding sound, you can then teach students to listen to a sound and recall the letter(s) that represent that sound. This strategy is modeled after Orton-Gillingham and also sourced from Henry (2010):
During auditory drills the teacher says the sound and students can respond individually or as a group with the letter name. Students should repeat the sound for kinesthetic and auditory reinforcement. Students should not guess the sound. When students do not know the correct response, they should be shown the appropriate card; they then write the letter(s) while saying the letter sound aloud.
"I'm going to say sounds and you'll tell me what letters make those sounds. What letters say /br/?" "B and R."
Auditory Drill in Action
Watch this clip to see how to execute an Auditory Drill. Notice the brisk pace the teacher uses to maximize instruction time and Increase "At-Bats."
Orton Gillingham Scope and Sequence. (n.d.) Copyright at Relay GSE. New York, NY: Relay Graduate School of Education.
Wilson, B. (2002). Wilson Reading System Overview/Scope and Sequence. Oxford, MA: Wilson Language Training Group.
Think about the following scenario, which takes place after a teacher has explicitly introduced several letters and their corresponding sounds and given students the opportunity to practice:
Teacher: [Holds up the letter b] "What sound?"
Student: "/d/"
In such a case, what might you do?
When you are planning your lessons, you should anticipate that your student will make errors throughout. Here are a series of prompts that you can use to respond to errors. Keep in mind that all students are different, and that students might respond better to some types of feedback than others.
| Level of Support | Description of Scaffold | Script |
|---|---|---|
| Smallest Scaffold | Try again! Allow student multiple opportunities to practice new skill. Ask the student to try the same letter again. | "Try again. What sound?" |
| Medium Scaffold | Provide Resources. Allow the student to use resources to figure out the answer (including helpful supports such as a visual or a prompt).
|
"Write the letter with your finger. What sound?" "What picture do you see next to this letter? What sound?" |
| Highest Scaffold | Model, Lead, Test, Retest. Model for the student using this gradual release correction procedure adopted from Carnine, D.W., Silbert, J., Kame'enui, E. J. & Tarver, S. G. (2004). Direct instruction reading (4th Ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. | 1. Teacher says the correct answer. "/b/." 2. Teacher models: "My turn. What sound?"(Signal) "/b/." (Teacher responds) 3. Teacher leads: "Let's do it together. What sound?" (Signal.) "/b/." (Teacher responds with the students.) 4. Teacher tests: "Your turn. What sound?" (Signal.) "/b/." |
If your student struggles to meet your objective, there are various techniques that you might try to adjust the activity to your student's needs.
| Activity | Description of Strategy | Script |
|---|---|---|
| Visual Drill | Trace it and say it. If a student can't recall the sound that matches a letter, have the student trace the shape of the letter repeatedly in the air, on the desk, on sandpaper, or in shaving cream and say the sound as he traces. Letter, Keyword [Action], Sound. If a student can't recall the keyword that goes with the letter/sound, make up a movement to go with each keyword. |
"b says /b/. Write it five times and say the sound each time you write it." "/b/ /b/ /b/ /b/ /b/" "a, /apple/ /a/, as you say it, take a bite of the apple." "a, /apple/ [bites an imaginary apple] /a/" |
| Auditory Drill | Show it, trace it, say it. Show the student the letter. Have the student trace the shape of the letter repeatedly in the air, on the desk, on sandpaper, or in shaving cream and say that letter and sound as he traces. | "The letter is b. b says /b/. Write it five times and say the letter and sound each time you write it." "b /b/ b /b/ b /b/ b /b/ b /b/" |