Thinking Deeply About
Letter and Word Work
Dr. Janet Bufalino, Trainer
Shippensburg University of PA
1
Teaching Letters
Letter Grouping Chart
a c o d g f e s q a (similar starting points)
l i t j k (similar starting points)
n r m h b p (down, up, over)
v y w x z (angle letters)
u (doesn’t fit a pattern)
Things to Remember
Introduce new letters
1. Letter name
2. Letter formation
3. Access through known word
4. Air/chalkboard/sand/felt/etc.
What child knows should dictate which letter should be taught
Teach a letter from child’s name
Teacher letter from known text – gives students a reason to learn the letter
Create books with letters or have student locate letter in easy books
Alphabet book
Letter Sorts
Heading: Reading Recovery Procedures for Extending Letter Identification
This is a short segment in the lesson in which children must learn fast identification
of all the letter shapes and features. This knowledge must be learned so well that
the recognition is accurate, based on attending to detail in print. Our visual
perception of the details needs to be totally reliable and rapid. It needs to catch the
brain’s attention but require minimal conscious attention. P. 23
Purpose: The critical distinction between any two words will be made at the level of
letters. Two similar words are distinguished by comparing the letters in those
2
words. Fast recognition of letters allows the reader to make faster decisions about
words. Pp. 23-24
***Lesson Requirements – Manipulate magnetic letters. Known range extended in
‘compare and contrast’ tasks. Speeded perception. COTp. 226
Early
 Extend the child’s control from slow identification of a few letters to rapid
response to the entire set of letters. Introduce new letters into an array of
letters the child already knows. p. 24
 TALK DOES NOT HELP MUCH IN MAKING THESE DISTINCTIONS. P. 25
 The learner must attend to familiar letter features until each letter can be
rapidly distinguished from all similar letters. P. 25
 Children need to develop a processing system that will eventually help her
learn ways of remembering the letter name and recalling how to form the
letter. At first use only the letters the child can already identify. Give him
lots of practice with these. Introduce new letters into an array of letters the
child already knows. Add easy-to-see letters first.
 Letters will be easier to identify in isolation and hard when embedded within
words or within continuous text.
Middle
 In the long run, children nee to see and recognize every letter in any setting..
 Move letters closer together in letter sort. Add more letters.
 Child: Shows attention in a focused way to the details of print.
Late



Gathering more concepts about print, more letter knowledge with many
capital/lower case distinctions.
Linked to fast recognition of upcoming new text. …knowing that the reader
will use this during text reading and to pick up visual information in
upcoming new text. There can be no rapid sensory association of letter
forms without working through the visual perception of letters.
Speeded recognition of any form or feature in isolation, among many and
embedded in words.
The Hungry Puppy
Page 2:
Here is the little puppy.
The little puppy is hungry.
“Woof, woof,” said the little puppy.
“I am hungry.”
3
Generating from Known
Words to New Ones
Make sure children can hear the differences between two words before teaching
them to see the difference.
A useful “gradient of difficulty” starts with the known:
 go
me
no
we
 me – we – he – she
 and – hand – band
 day – play – stay
 play – plays – played – playing – player
 hat – has – had
 cat – can – car
 can – man – map
 the – them – then – they
 got – get
 be – behind – before – because
 day – today – yesterday – Sunday
 green – play – gray
 my – tree – try
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5
6
7