Substantial evidence exists suggesting that access to articulatory gestures during instruction improves students' phonological awareness skills, but researchers have yet to explore the role of articulatory gestures in initial phonics instruction. The purpose of this study was to examine if visual access to articulatory gestures (i.e., mouth cues)…

We describe the rationale for- and content of- a freely available, novel, theoretically driven and evidence-based approach to improving the teaching of word reading in reception classrooms called 'Flexible Phonics'. Flexible Phonics (FP) adds measurable value to-, rather than wholly replacing, existing synthetic phonics programmes. The rationale…

The problem addressed in this study pertained to two elementary schools whose kindergarten teachers encountered challenges in meeting phonological awareness and phonics standards. This basic qualitative study aimed to explore the experiences of kindergarten teachers regarding effective strategies for enhancing children's phonological awareness and…

In elementary school, an important goal of reading instruction is to enable children to read most words automatically by sight so that they can focus on learning from and enjoying what they are reading. But becoming a strong reader takes several years. Parents and caregivers need to know if a child is making good progress in learning to read.…

The purpose of this study was to determine current kindergarten teacher understandings of early phonics instruction and how teachers are meeting readers' early phonics needs during guided reading instruction. Using Vygotsky's (1979) social constructivist theory and Ehri's (1995) connectionist theory and by focusing on age-appropriate instruction,…

Kindergarten teachers must balance the competing interests of meeting grade level standards, including teaching students to be literate, and integrating developmentally appropriate practices. Students need to have opportunities to read, write, listen, and speak; however, a didactic, teacher-centered approach is not in the best interest of young…

This article reviews literature published between 2010 and 2022 on the integration of tablets in phonological awareness and phonics instruction in kindergarten and the elementary grades. Studies involving phonological awareness skills compared traditional methods with tablet instruction and investigated tablet integration with teacher guidance,…

Australian early childhood education positions literacy learning as a set of social practices contextualised by one's unique experiences and knowledges. Despite widespread agreement about the need to teach phonics and other code-breaking practices, the ways early childhood educators integrate "constrained" skills are not well understood…

Background/purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore three null hypotheses regarding the association between Greek preschool teachers' professional features with their knowledge and views of the official standards of early writing teaching which emphasize on real communicative purposes. Materials/methods: 494 teachers participated in an…

The decades-long and contentious debate over how students are taught to read centers around the role that phonics and alphabetic code-related skills have in reading instruction. Some claim that these skills are not prioritized in most elementary classrooms because teacher education programs do not adequately prepare preservice teachers (PSTs) to…

This transnational comparative study between Costa Rica and the United States provides an in-depth understanding of the similarities and differences of the early literacy practices of educators in the Pre-Kindergarten to Kindergarten classroom settings. Drawing upon Costa Rica's curricular approach to Early Childhood Education, based upon the…

This authoritative text and PreK-12 teacher resource is now in a substantially revised seventh edition with 80% new material, foregrounding advances in inclusive, equitable instruction. Teachers are guided through every major component of reading, as well as assessment, motivation, teaching bilingual learners, strengthening connections with…