During the initial stages of learning to read and write, first-grade students are in the process of developing their ability to recognize and sound out letter sounds, which is referred to as phonemic decoding (Otto, 2018). As a result, a considerable portion of instruction in kindergarten and first-grade classrooms is dedicated to enhancing phonemic awareness skills. In many public schools' first-grade classrooms, textbooks or worksheets are commonly used to teach children how to recognize letter sounds, even though research suggests alternative approaches (Nell et al., 2011; Zhang et al., 2019). The worksheets often feature activities like matching letters to images that start with the same sound, which students complete through cutting and pasting or drawing lines to connect letters to the appropriate image.
To tackle this problem, the author of this article took the initiative to aid three first-grade teachers in converting mundane worksheets and textbook exercises into interactive and engaging learning methods. One of the methods we used for teaching young children to read and write basic words and sentences involved the use of blank booklets. Students were provided with letter cut-outs and flashcards to aid in the construction of words, sentences, and stories that they could record within their personalized booklets. See Fig. 1 for the resources used for the activity described.
The students were provided with a variety of materials, including blank booklets (Fig. 1a), letter cutouts (Fig. 1b), word flashcards, glue sticks, markers, crayons, and pencils (Fig. 1c). We provided students with word flashcards for different reading levels. For students who were still developing their letter recognition and blending skills, we placed simple consonant vowel consonant (CVC) words accompanied by corresponding pictures, such as 'cat', 'bus', and 'fan', on each table. For more advanced readers, we provided longer word flashcards with images, including words like 'tent', 'spoon', and 'sheep'. All the words on the flashcards were phonemically decodable, meaning that children could sound them out based on their understanding of letter sounds and combinations.
Phonemically Decodable and Non-Decodable Words
To illustrate the distinction between phonemically decodable and non-decodable words, let us consider the examples 'spoon' and 'are'. 'Spoon' is phonemically decodable (s-p-oo-n), whereas 'are' is not because the first letter does not have the 'u' sound as in 'umbrella', and the last letter is silent (silent 'e'). This can pose challenges for young children in correctly spelling 'are'. Although 'are' may initially appear easier than 'spoon', 'spoon' is simpler because the child only needs to know the letter sounds from 'a' to 'z' and the 'oo' sound combination to sound out the entire word.
It is crucial for early childhood educators to grasp the distinction between phonemically decodable and non-decodable words when utilizing flashcards to enhance children's writing skills. Additionally, it is worth noting that we did not group children based on their literacy levels, but rather provided a variety of resources for them to choose from according to their preferences. This approach aimed to foster autonomy in their learning and book creation process.
After providing the students with the required materials, we offered them clear instructions. We informed students that they could choose to use the word flashcards and letter cutouts provided or, if they preferred, come up with their own ideas for words or situations to incorporate into their booklets, accompanied by suitable illustrations. Figure 2 in the article displays illustrations that highlight a sample of the work produced by a first-grade student during a literacy lesson.
During a single literacy lesson, the individual responsible for Fig. 2 accomplished the impressive feat of both writing and illustrating a 21-page book. At the conclusion of the lesson, the child shared his creation with his peers by reading it aloud. Upon requesting permission to borrow his book for a week for a conference presentation, he was hesitant to lend it, and only did so after receiving a promise that it would be returned to him. If it had been a textbook or worksheet activity, he would have readily provided it to me without any reluctance or expectation of it being returned. I found it delightful to learn that his work was highly valued by him, as he had dedicated his creativity and diligence to produce a book that he referred to as his food book. In Fig. 3, the images depict at least three levels of writing complexity (a) being more advanced, (b) grade level, and (c) less advanced in writing.
The classroom consisted of 24 students, each of whome created a one-of-a-kind book featuring distinct content, illustrations, and writing complexity. During the lesson, the students’ books varied in the level of written complexity. Some children created books with single-letter words accompanied by illustrations (e.g., Fig. 3c), while others wrote one-sentence (Fig. 3a and b) or even full-paragraph stories (Fig. 4), also including corresponding illustrations. As the children worked on their books, the teacher was struck by the diverse levels of performance and creativity displayed in their writing. Additionally, the teacher observed that the students were actively communicating with one another, exchanging ideas and resources to help them develop their books. One of the students showcased advanced literacy abilities in a 45-minute literacy lesson by utilizing his imagination and personal background, as depicted in Fig. 4.
The text depicted in Fig. 4 can be read from Fig. (a) to (f) as follows:
It was a sunny day on the beach. We were picking [pikeing] up trash. It got late [laet] so we went [wit] to bed. Gloster [Gloslere] picking [piking] up trash [tash] is inspiring [inporing] because it helps the earth [erth]. Then [thin] we woke [wok] up and picked [pike] up more [mor] trash [tash]. We want [wit] to go get dog to protect [pertek] our [are] house [hout]. The end [ent].
In this instance, the child employed a mixture of both conventional and invented spelling. It is apparent that most of the sentences have been capitalized and end marks have been used, with spacing between words also being present. The child has also made use of invented spelling (Hand et al., 2022), for example, ‘pikeing/piking’ instead of picking, ‘laet’ instead of late, ‘wit’ instead of went and want, ‘pertect’ instead of protect, ‘hout’ instead of house, ‘wok’ instead of woke, and ‘ent’ instead of end. It is worth noting that the child used the invented word ‘wit’ for both went and want (Fig. 4b and e) and we know that because the researcher asked the child to read the writings for her.
The child may not have created this story if the researcher had not explicitly instructed them that correct spelling was not crucial, and their focus should be on writing what they wanted to say. As noted by Bingham et al. (2017) teachers often prioritize children's handwriting and spelling accuracy, unconsciously overlooking the crucial aspect of writing: appreciating the significance of effectively communicating the child's intended message in their writing endeavors. By the end of the literacy class, we had 24 distinct pieces of work created by the children. They were able to express their interests and life experiences within their own comfort levels. Throughout the class, they were free to move around the classroom, seeking assitance from each other, exchanging ideas, and sharing the resources they needed to create their books. At the conclusion of the lesson, the students presented their work to each other by taking turns reading their books aloud while seated together on the carpet. Figure 5 is a selected examples of diverse writing performances as a result of differentiated writing session.