This one-day training focuses on teaching advanced word study so students can spell and read multisyllable words in any subject. Beginning in grade four, after students have developed knowledge of letter-sound correspondences and basic decoding skills in the primary grades, they need to learn how to combine those skills with knowledge of syllable patterns, syllable division principles, and morphology (roots, prefixes, suffixes) to read accurately unfamiliar multisyllable words.
Participants in this training will learn instructional practices for teaching advanced word study skills that combine knowledge about both the sound-spelling correspondences and the meaning units (morphemes) that make up most English words. This is essential for reading beyond grade 3 because both sound and meaning are used when representing words in print, especially multisyllable, academic words that are derived from Latin and Greek.
The training covers these topics:
- Syllable awareness: six types of syllables found in words
- Schwa vowel sound
- Syllable division principles
- Morphological awareness
- Layers of English: Anglo Saxon, Latin, and Greek derived words
- Prefixes, suffixes, roots
- Spelling rules for adding endings
- Structural analysis to read and spell multisyllable words
Professional development for this course is available as live training onsite at schools, or virtual-live format using Zoom.
Who should participate?
- All grade 4 and 5 educators
- Intervention educators who work with students in grades 4-12 who have difficulty with spelling and fluent reading of multisyllable words