Routine · Phonics and decoding
Spot the vowel pattern, then read
Find the vowel spelling first, decide its sound, then read the whole word.
- Time
- 3 to 6 minutes
- Skill
- Phonics and decoding
- In a session plan
- Word reading
When to use it
From silent e words onward, for vowel teams and r-controlled vowels. Use it when a student reads cake as cack or ignores the second vowel.
Materials
- The word list
- A pencil or highlighter
Steps
Shown with example words: pattern a with a silent e; word cake; words cake, made, game.
Get ready
Remind the student of the vowel pattern in today's lesson: a with a silent e.
I do
With cake, find the vowel letters first and mark them. Say what the pattern tells you about the sound, then read the word.
Say: First I find the vowel. Here there is an e at the end, so the a says its name. Cake.
We do
Do the next two words together: find the vowels, mark them, name the sound, read the word.
You do
The student marks the vowel pattern in each word, then reads it: cake, made, game.
Student: Marks the vowel spelling, says its sound, reads the word.
Mix in two words with a short vowel. The student decides which way each word goes.
Check
Read the list once more without marking. Listen for the right vowel each time.
If the student...
Reads the vowel with its short sound when the pattern makes it long.
Point to the part of the word that makes the vowel long. Ask what it tells us. Say the vowel sound together, then the student reads the word again from the beginning.
Say: Look at this e. What does it tell the a to do? Read it again.
Reads the vowel letters one by one in a vowel team.
Scoop under the team and say that the letters work as one. Say the sound together, then reread the word.
Tips
- Marking the vowel is a scaffold. Drop it once the student reads the pattern without stopping.
- Contrast pairs such as cap and cape show the student exactly what the pattern does.
- In a group, give each student their own copy of the list to mark.
Example words
- Pattern
- a with a silent e
- Word
- cake
- Words
- cake, made, game
Original routines written by Literacy Trail. In the app, every routine is filled with your student's lesson.
Related routines
- Sound-by-sound blendingRead a new word one sound at a time, joining each sound to the ones before it.3 to 6 minutes · Word reading
- Flexible routine for big wordsA step-by-step way into any long word: circle the parts, find the vowels, split, read, flex, check.4 to 7 minutes · Word reading
- Stretch and readHold each sound and slide into the next without a break, then say the word.2 to 5 minutes · Word reading
- Count the beats before readingSay a long word, count its beats, then match each beat to a vowel in the written word.2 to 4 minutes · Word reading
Have this routine filled in for every lesson
In Literacy Trail, the session plan picks a routine for each block and fills it with the words, sounds and sentence from your student's lesson. Every plan starts with a 15-day free trial.