Entry #7: Teaching Phonics

    I have previously learned about phonology while I was enrolled in a speech pathology class that I took during my undergraduate studies at the University at Buffalo. Sadly, I did not enjoy this class and thought that I did not enjoy phonics. This week’s readings have clarified the significance of phonology for me, especially in the early primary grades. After reading Tompkins and Everything You Wanted to Know About Phonics (but were too afraid to ask) by Steven A. Stahl, Ann M. Duffy-Hester, and Katherine Anne Dougherty Stahl, I am shocked to learn the difference between phonemic awareness, phonics, and spelling along with their importance. 

    An important quote that stuck out to me while I was reading this week’s assigned article highlighted the importance of balance in phonics instruction. Stahl et al. said, “at the same time, children will not enjoy reading if the only reading they do is sounding out words. Good reading instruction contains a balance of activities around these different goals” (Stahl et al., 1998, p. 344). I wanted to pay special attention to this quote because I am extremely interested in cultivating a love for reading in all of my future students. Love for reading is something that took work to acquire in myself. I have come to develop some unique lesson ideas about teaching phonemic awareness, phonics, and spelling. However, I now know that I will need to pair these skills lessons with some real application for my students as well. The instruction must be balanced to be effective and genuine.

    Tompkins confirms and expands on these ideas when he says, “Reading is a complex process, and the phonological system works in conjunction with the semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic systems, not in isolation” (Tompkins, 2017, p. 166). Tompkins draws on the concept that there are other systems involved in reading and writing that require different types of attention from teachers. Multimodal instruction is necessary to successfully teach these systems. For example, direct and indirect instructional approaches must be used by teachers. They must explicitly teach sounds and letters, but also balance read alouds, peer dialogue, whole group conversations, and more. This can seem like a daunting task, but these texts help guide teachers in strategies to teach students important concepts.  

    These texts align with Muhammad’s ideas in Cultivating Genius because without looking inward at what you are doing as a teacher and what your students need, you cannot adequately teach phonemic awareness, phonics, or spelling. Additionally, students should practice reading words that they come across in their daily routine in their everyday lives. The texts that teachers choose to expose their students to matters. The vocabulary and the cultural representation matters. 

    Honestly, phonology is still something that intimidates me as a teacher. I know that I will need to continue to research phonology and will definitely browse over the additional readings offered for this topic. However, the readings from this week have dramatically improved my perceptions on phonology and how I will tackle the topic in my future classroom. 

Muhammad, G. (2020).  Cultivating genius:  An equity framework for culturally and 

     historically responsive literacy.  New York, NY:  Scholastic. 

Stahl, S.A., Duffy-Hester, A.M., & Stahl, K.A.D. (1998). Everything you wanted to know about phonics 

     (but were afraid to ask). Reading Research Quarterly, 33(3), 338-355. 

     https://doi.org/10.1598/RRQ.33.3.5

Tompkins, G.E. (2017). Literacy for the 21st century: A balanced approach (7th ed.). Boston, MA: 

     Pearson