excerpt from "conquer the code" by judith cohen

Conquer the Code:Conquer the Code:Sounds, Symbols, and SyllablesSounds, Symbols, and SyllablesConquer the Code:Conquer the Code:

Sounds, Symbols, and SyllablesSounds, Symbols, and Syllables

E. Judith Cohen, Ed.D.E. Judith Cohen, Ed.D.

44 Sounds of the English Language

• Vowels (10)/ă/ /ā//ĕ/ /ē//ĭ/ /ī//ŏ/ /ō//ŭ/ /ū/

• Consonants (18)/b/ /j/ /s//k/ /l/ /t//d/ /m/ /v//f/ /n/ /w//g/ /p/ /y//h/ /r/ /z/

44 Sounds of the English Language

• Vowel Diphthongs (2)/ou//oi/

• Vowel Variants (3)/au//oo/ (moon)/oo/ (book)

• Schwa (1)/ə/

• Consonant Digraphs(7)

/sh/ /ch/ /wh//th/ /th/ /zh/

/ng/

• r-controlled (3)/ar/ /or/ /er/

Phonics• Synthetic Phonics

• Part to whole

• Analytic Phonics• Whole to part• Word families (rimes)

• Vowel Patterns• 6 Syllable types• 85-88% regularity

• Structural Analysis• Root words,

prefixes & suffixes• Compound words• Contractions• Syllabication

Color-Code Vowels

aeiou

-y -w

Digraphsshchthwhph

Blendsbl-cr-st--nd-mpetc.

Orthography: Syllables• Six basic syllable types• 85 – 88% of English language• Vowel Patterns (syllable types)• Structure of our language• Alphabetic code

Vowel Patterns

• Regular• Reliable• Research-

based

• Effective• Efficient• Easy to use

Vowel Pattern ChartClosed Open Silent e

Bossy r 2 VowelsTalkers Whiners

C+le

Vowel Pattern Chart

Closedcatfishbub-

Openmegota-

Silent eridecapehope

Bossy rcargirltur-

2 VowelsTalkers Whiners

boat boymeat

clown

C+leta - blebub - bletur - tle

Vowel PatternsClosed:

A word or syllable that contains only one vowel followed by one or more consonants;

the vowel is short.“One lonely vowel squished in the middle, says its special sound just a little.”

sat bed fin top gum sand bestprint shop lunch

at Ed in on up

Vowel PatternsOpen:A word or syllable that ends with one

vowel; the vowel is long.“If one vowel at the end is free, it

pops way up and says its name to me.”

me she hi go flu fly

Vowel PatternsSilent e [Magic e]:A word or syllable that ends in e, containing one

consonant before the final e and one vowel before that consonant; the vowel is long.

“The magic e is quiet, but it has a claim to fame; it makes the vowel before it say its real name.”

The magic e is so powerful, it gives all its strength to the other vowel so that it can say its real name.

make Steve ride hope cube

Vowel PatternsBossy r [r-controlled]:A word or syllable containing a vowel followed

by r; the vowel sound is altered by the r.The letter r is so bossy, it tells the vowel that it

can’t say its real name (long vowel) or its special sound (short vowel), but must say the r sound (as in car, for, her).

car her girl for curl

Vowel PatternsDouble Vowel Talkers: [vowel digraphs]A word or syllable containing two adjacent

vowels; the first one is long.“When two vowels go walking, the first

one does the talking and says its name.”rain day see meat pie boat toe slow suit blue

Vowel PatternsDouble Vowel Whiners :[diphthongs and variants]A word or syllable that contains two adjacent

vowels; the vowels say neither a long or short vowel sound, but rather a very different sound.

Sometimes when two vowels are next to each other, they make a funny whining sound, like when you fall down and say “ow,” “aw,” “oy,” and get a “boo-boo.”fault saw foil boy loud cow moon new book

Vowel PatternsC+le: [consonant + le]This syllable ends with “le” preceded by a

consonant, and occurs in two-syllable words.

When a word ends with a consonant and “le,” the “le” grabs the consonant before it, and the word breaks into two parts right before that consonant.bub–ble ca–ble ea–gle poo–dle pur-ple

Vowel Pattern “Prediction Power”

The prediction power of the patterns ranges from 77 to 89%, each of which is much better than

predictions on the basis of chance alone. Teaching children vowel patterns can make a difference in

their fluency and comprehension (May, 2002).

Closed86 – 89%

Open77%

Silent e81%

Bossy r 2 VowelsTalkers Whiners

77%

C+le

Irregular / “Memory” Words

• About 12 – 15% of English words do not conform to the regular patterns

• Can be taught through context, repetition, multisensory techniques, and learning games, e.g., Word Wall activities, VAAKT (associative word cards), BINGO

Structural Analysis

• Root words and affixes• Compound words• Contractions• Syllabication

Root Words and AffixesPrefix Root Suffix un friend ly re heat ed in spect or• Color-highlight or draw a box around

affixes (prefix = green; suffix = red)• Make charts for similar affixes

Compound Words• Begin with whole word, e.g.,

doghouse• Segment and blend• Use fists, puzzles, linking blocks• Make lists of compound words• Use color-coding (doghouse)• Practice deletion (say doghouse

without dog)

Contractions• Compare “long” and “short” forms, e.g.,

do not (long – 2 words)

don’t (short – contraction)• Highlight apostrophe (use elbow

macaroni) and deleted letter/s in red• Use a rubberband to show long and

shortened forms (same meaning)• Make lists of contractions from stories

Syllabication Patterns• C+le turtle tur – tle• VC/CV rabbit rab – bit• V/CV tiger ti – ger• VC/V camel cam –

el• V/V lion li - on

Strategy for Syllabication

• “Spot and dot” the vowels• Connect the dots• Look at the number of consonants

between the vowels• If 2 – break between the consonants• If 1 – break before the consonant; if it

doesn’t sound right, move over one letter

Apply and Transfer• Provide many opportunities to use

these skills and strategies, both in isolation and in connected text– Fiction and non-fiction– Poetry and songs– Decodable text– Learning games and activities

Why?

When students have the MEANS to conquer the code,

they will reach the GOAL, and master the meaning!

Contact information E. Judith Cohen, Ed.D.

For more information, see:

Focus on Phonics: Assessment and Instruction,

Wendy Cheyney & E. Judith Cohen (1999) The Wright Skills Program (PreK – Grade 3) Fast Track Reading Wright Group/ McGraw-Hill www.wrightgroup.com

Websites of Interestwww.aft.org American Federation of Teacherswww.ascd.org Association for Supervision and

Curriculum Developmentwww.educationworld.com Education Worldwww.fcrr.org Florida Center for Reading Researchwww.idafla.org Florida Branch - IDAwww.interdys.org International Dyslexia Associationwww.nifl.gov National Institute for Literacywww.nationalreadingpanel.org National Reading Panel www.reading.org International Reading Associationwww.readingrockets.org Reading Rockets