Phonology Unit 6 Interactive Guide: Digraphs

She sells seashells by the seashore.

First off, my definition of a digraph: Two or more letters that make one sound. Some scholars make this more specific and only include an unique phoneme (e.g. /th/) but I include any two letters that make one sound (e.g. <wr> = /r/, <ff> = /f/). In this unit, I'm solely focusing on consonant digraphs. I lump vowel digraphs into vowel teams.

This poster is included in the zip file!

Any decent science of reading based program teaches digraphs <ch>, <sh>, <th>, and <wh> in primary grades. However, many of the programs used in primary grades don't go beyond those basic digraphs or teach the alternate sounds of <ch> (/ch/, /sh/, and /k/). Plus, let's not forget many of our students were not taught using the science of reading and/or basic

phonology patterns. I introduce all 11 digraphs depicted in the poster to the right. While I expose students to <rh>, <gn>, and <gh> = /g/, I don't spend a great deal of time on them. These digraphs are rare. Using a wordsearcher I can see that they appear in less than a dozen common base words each. Just not worth it.

Below is the interactive Unit Plan where you can find links to my suggested procedure and explanation for each activity. All resources are conveniently zipped here! You can pick and choose what works for you.

Digraphs Mastery Goal:

Recognize and apply consonant digraphs.

Day	Blog Posts	Objectives
tool	None	Provide the instructor with a bank of words for dictation and brainstorms.
1	How To: Introduce a New Phonology Concept	Use Vocabulary Squares to develop shared definitions of key terms.
2	How To: Short Vowel Intensive	Build fluency with short vowel sounds through auditory, visual, and kinetic responses.
2	How To: Explain Why	Apply phonological knowledge to analyze patterns in words
3	How To: Word or Syllable Only? (Collaborative)	Review grapheme to phoneme relationships in order to build blending automaticity and accuracy.
3	How To: Look Alike & Analysis	Build fluency and accuracy through orthographic mapping.
4	How To: Sand Spell the Phoneme	Review known phoneme to grapheme relationships in order build automaticity.
4	How To: Syllabication	Apply phonological knowledge to syllabicate words.
5	Identify the Vowel by Mouth Position	Identify the mouth positions unique to each short vowel sound.
5	How To: Spell & Sort	Recognize and apply phonological knowledge.
6	How To: Short Vowel Intensive	Build fluency with short vowel sounds through auditory, visual, and kinetic responses.
6	How To: Spell & Sort	Continue from day 6.
7	How To: Identify the Grapheme	Review phoneme to grapheme relationships in order to build automaticity.
7	How To: Rime Drill	Recognize and use common rimes to build blending automaticity, accuracy, and fluency.
8	How To: Bags of Rimes	Recognize and use common rimes to build blending automaticity, accuracy, and fluency.
9	How To: Marker Spell the Phoneme	Review phoneme to grapheme relationships in order to build automaticity.
9	How To: Dictation	Encode new phonological patterns.
10	How To: Identify the Vowel by Mouth Position	Identify the mouth positions unique to each short vowel sound.
10	How To: Syllabication	Apply phonological knowledge to syllabicate words.
11	How To: Read & Sort Phonology Passages	Identify and sort phonological patterns in a story.
12	How To: Dictation	Encode new phonological patterns.
13	How To: Syllabication	Apply phonological knowledge to syllabicate words.
13	How To: Look Alike & Analysis	Build fluency and accuracy through orthographic mapping.
14	How To: Pre-Quiz Power-Up	Review content in preparation for the quiz.
15	How To: Quiz	Assess understanding of the unit objective.