2015
CANNONVALE STATE SCHOOL CURRICULUM
Reading and Spelling Warm Up
The Reading and Spelling Warm Up covers reading and spelling skills. This warm up should
run for 30 - 35 minutes. The Warm Up should consolidate content and allow it to be
automatized by transferal into students’ long term memories.
The Reading and Spelling Warm Up aligns to the Reading Hierarchy:
1. Alphabet – letters and sounds
2. Blending/ segmenting/ phonemics – putting letters together
3. Sight vocabulary – recognizing words immediately
4. Syllables – breaking words into chunks
5. Comprehension – making sense of text
6. Fluency – reading with good pace and flow.
The teacher uses the outline below to implement the Reading and Spelling Warm Up. The
Reading and Spelling Warm Up is intertwined with our whole school SSP approach and is
applied to weekly class spelling words as detailed in our Spelling overview.
Each Warm Up includes:
reading and recognising words, putting sounds together (blending), using duck hands to
hear and place individual phonemes (segmenting), spelling words, finding and writing
speech sound pictures and following from first to last sounds with eyes (tracking).
Skills/concepts which may be added when appropriate include: tenses –
past/present/future, definitions, rhyming words, creating nonsense words with spelling
sounds, antonyms/synonyms, matching words to definitions, syllables, dictation,
alphabetical order, cloze activities.
Types of activities to use during warm ups: slideshows, flashcards, Show Me Boards, games,
quizzes, speed tests, chants, songs, actions
Activities should be completed and checked in unison with the teacher paying careful
attention to ensure that all children are engaged and accountable.
HOW TO IMPLEMENT YOUR READING AND SPELLING WARM UP
Monday/ Day 1 of Warm UP
1. Whole class recite SSP chants in unison. Use SSP Sound Pics cards as a second
alternative, or for extra revision.
2. Look at your spelling overview to get the sound focus and some word examples for the
week. Introduce Speech Sound Pic focus and show cloud if applicable to your weekly
spelling/sound focus.
3. Brainstorm with students words containing the sound focus- list, read and then identify
those with the ‘common representation’ of the sound pic focus for the week.
4. Teacher should show a pre-prepared word list of support, benchmark and extension
words following the 30/40/30 pattern applied to the weekly sound
focus. Read through these words using read, sound out phonemes (duck hands) and re-read
word strategy.
Rest of the week –
• Chants - whole class recite SSP chants in unison. (Peel off extension students who do
their own coded sight words during this activity)
• Recite - read through weekly spelling words using read, sound out phonemes (duck
hands) and re-read word strategy.
• Apply the SSP Speedy 6 to spelling words.
1. Say a spelling word to your students. The students use the SSP Spelling Strategy up to
the lines and numbers (say the word, listen for speech sounds and work out how many
there are, draw the lines and numbers) Stop. Model and discuss with whole class, agree on
placement of lines and numbers. Make choices. Discuss. Explore Sound clouds and find
correct choices. Put the word in a sentence. Change the tense – is the word meaningful to
the students?
2. Write a spelling word on the board. Tell the students what it is. Put it in a
sentence. Visualise. What does it mean? Is it meaningful to you? Students use Duck
Hands to work out the speech sounds. Write the word on their board. Underline
the sound pics and number. Discuss.
3. Students listen for the focus speech sound (teacher will say it). Teacher reads a
sentence (prepared) twice. Students work out the word/s with that speech sound, the word
number in sentence and the number placement of sound pic/s in each word. Eg. ‘I was
rushing to the beach to build a sand castle’ ‘sh’ – word – rushing- number 3 word, number 3
sound pic r/u/sh/i/ng. Teacher might ask some students to do it orally, and for others to
write the word and underline the sound pic.
4. Hold a sentence – Tell students to listen to their level sentence (you can use Speedy
Sentences at first, or create your own). Teacher reads aloud a sentence twice. Students
“Hold It- Write It- Read It -Check It -Change It.”
Some students may do this orally if outside of their Code Level, and others write it.
However it is easier if you give a sentence at their Code Level, and all write them.
5. Manipulating Speech Sounds –
Part 1. This is an oral task. Teacher asks students questions to manipulate sounds in words
“If I change the X in the word XXXXXXXX to a Y – what is the new word?”
eg. If I change the ‘r’ in frog to an ‘l’…flog.
“What is the new word if I take the X from the word XXXXX?’
eg. If I take the ‘l’ from the word plant – what is the new word?
“What is the new word if I add X to the word YYYY?”
eg. What is the word if I add ‘p’ to the beginning of the word ‘lump?’
Encourage students to always use duck hands – it helps.
Part 2. Tell the students a spelling word to write on their board. Ask them to underline the
sound pics. Tell students, ‘When I say go you can change one sound pic at a time, to make a
new word.’ Student’s write the new word underneath the one before and show the sound
pics so students begin a list with lines underneath to indicate that they have changed the
speech sound pics, not just a single letter.
eg. fish
dish
din
pin
pan
6. Give students a made up word! They use the Spelling Strategy (say the word, listen for
speech sounds and work out how many there are, draw the lines and numbers) but add as
many speech sound pic choices as they can in the time for each sound that is lined and
numbered.
This will improve the time it takes for them to find the right clouds, reinforce the spelling
choices they already know, and show them new ones.
Coded Sight Word Independent Practice
• 5 mins for students to independently read and spell own coded sight words. (Extension
students are available to lead a group of students on the same level sight words)
Remember students must say each word aloud, sound out phonemes (duck hands), reread word and spell word using lines and numbers strategy to assist.
Each day teacher should work with one student to check off and record progress of
coded sight words as needed.
SSP Speedy 6!
Activity 1 – SSP Spelling Strategy.
Activity 2 – Write a word on the board. Underline the
sound pics and number.
Activity 3 – Listen for the focus speech sound in a
word and sentence.
Activity 4 – Hold a sentence. Hold it, write it, read it,
check it, change it.
Activity 5 – Manipulating Speech Sounds.
Activity 6 – Made up words!
Resources
Year Level Spelling Overview
Cannonvale State School Sight Words – saved in Curriculum Folder on G Drive
Warm Up Video Example
Words Their Way List – saved in Curriculum Folder on G Drive
Reading Warm Up Document
Coded Sight Words Booklet
Coded Sight Words Record Sheet
Speedy 6 A4 outline