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Knowledge and Skills Statement

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking--beginning reading and writing. The student develops word structure knowledge through phonological awareness, print concepts, phonics, and morphology to communicate, decode, and spell.

Both decoding and encoding skills are needed to build a foundation in reading. Decoding is sounding words out according to letter-sound relationship conventions. Encoding is the process of using letter-sound knowledge to write or spell words. Students must understand the various spelling patterns and rules of the English language to correctly construct words in their written products. It is important that students apply or demonstrate these rules consistently instead of using invented spelling because they may unknowingly write a real word that they did not intend, causing confusion for their reader.
Students are expected to spell multisyllabic words that include closed syllables, or a syllable containing only one vowel, spelled with one vowel letter and ending in one or more consonants that closes off the vowel. The vowel makes its short sound. Examples of multisyllabic words with closed syllables include basement, solid, or protect.
two successive letters that represent a single speech sound (e.g., oo in moon and ow in how)
Note that there are both vowel digraphs and consonant digraphs.
also known as vowel blend, the combination of two vowels in one syllable where two sounds are heard (e.g., /ou/ in cloud, and /oi/ in boil) Note that the ou combination can function as a diphthong or digraph depending on the sound: it is a diphthong in the word couch /ou/ and a diagraph in the word cough /aw/).
Students are expected to spell multisyllabic words with a final stable syllable, which is an unaccented final syllable containing a single consonant and silent e. These combinations are called "final" because they are found in the final position of words and "stable" because the pronunciation of each is very similar. For example, a student should be able to successfully spell puzzle, tangle, or bundle.
a syllable that ends with a vowel (e.g., the words we and go)
Students should spell multisyllabic words containing an r-controlled syllable, a syllable with a single vowel letter followed by r (e.g., or, er, ur, ar, ir). Vowel pronunciation changes before r. For example, a student should be able to successfully spell interrupt, report, or starve.
Students must correctly spell words with multiple syllables and multiple-syllable types. There are six main types of syllable types with which students should be familiar and able to spell: closed syllable, open syllable, VCe syllable, vowel teams (including digraphs and dipthongs), r-controlled syllables, and final stable syllables. Learning syllable types and the rules surrounding them can help students become stronger spellers and stronger readers as this is a key tool in decoding and spelling independently.
Students are expected to spell multisyllabic words with vowel-consonant-e (VCe) syllables, that is words with a long vowel spelled with one vowel, one consonant, and a final silent e. Some examples include compete, explode, and reptile.
Students should correctly spell multisyllabic words with syllables containing vowel teams. Vowel teams consist of two or more vowels that make one phonemic sound. Students who have mastered this skill would be able to spell words such as counselor, although, or ceiling.

Research

1. Powell, D. A., & Aram, R. (2008). Spelling in parts: a strategy for spelling and decoding polysyllabic words. The Reading Teacher, 61(7), 567+. Retrieved from https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A178084044/PROF?u=tea&sid=PROF&xid=2d1bc52e

Summary: This article introduces the "Spelling in Parts" strategy to help students break big words into smaller chunks, giving students the chance to discover new spelling patterns. Children who learn to spell primarily with sound strategies may be successful with words that fit common spelling patterns. For example, children will be successful spelling consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC or closed syllable) words and consonant-vowel-consonant-silent e (CVCe) words, and consonant-vowel (CV or open-syllable) words (e.g., pro in propel), and closed two-syllable CVC-CVC words (e.g., dentist).

2. Gates, L., & Yale, I. (2011). A logical letter-sound system in five phonic generalizations: this article introduces a strategy for teaching systematic phonics with a logical system of grapheme-phoneme relationships. The Reading Teacher, 64(5), 330+. Retrieved from https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A249869571/PROF?u=tea&sid=PROF&xid=02914556

Summary: Researchers look at phonetic knowledge and show teachers an approach to basic vowel words, providing examples of one-syllable CVC words, one-syllable VCe words, and one-syllable CVVC words. The article provides guidance on individualizing phonetic instruction and connecting it with daily reading to build students' phonetic knowledge.

3. Heggie, L., &  Wade-Woolley, L. (2107). Reading Longer Words: Insights Into Multisyllabic Word Reading. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. SIG 1 2(2). Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Lindsay_Heggie/publication/318848767_Reading_Longer_Words_Insights_Into_Multisyllabic_Word_Reading/links/5985064da6fdcc75624fc329/Reading-Longer-Words-Insights-Into-Multisyllabic-Word-Reading.pdf

Summary: This study considers the value of and approaches to building readers' multisyllabic word skills through explicit  instruction in syllables and morphemes.