Powerful Vowels - For Parents

For Parents

The English spelling system is complex!

Be patient and encourage your child’s efforts. We don’t want our children to lose confidence and give up in pursuits of reading and writing.

Follow the steps here to get started with Powerful Vowels at home.

Or, click here to download and print the steps.

Powerful Vowels - Spelling List

Step 1:

Use your child’s spelling list from school. These words should follow a systematic phonics sequence.

Spelling lists should only include words with letters and spelling patterns already taught in class. If children are asked to read or write words using graphemes they have not been taught, this will lead to guessing and frustration. If your school, does not follow a phonics-based spelling program, then click here for support.

Powerful Vowels - Grapheme Tiles

Step 2:

Your child should have their kit open and be ready to listen for the words.

TIP: To make it easier, set out just the letter tiles that they need to spell their words.

TIP: To make it harder, don't lay out the grapheme tiles. Let the child find the tiles they need themselves.

Powerful Vowels - Read the Word Aloud

Step 3:

Clearly read a word out loud from their spelling list. It's beneficial to repeat the word, then ask the child, "What's the word?" When children repeat the word themselves, they are practicing each sound in the word.

Powerful Vowels - Count the sounds

Step 4:

Ask your child to count how many sounds they hear in the word. You can model this step for the first few words.

TIP: They can use their fingers or counters to track each sound.

Powerful Vowels - Mark the sounds

Step 5:

Your child can draw a line for each sound they hear in the “Make It” space.
This helps them to keep track of each sound in the word while they search for the matching tiles.

TIP: If your child is not counting each sound, model for them by saying each sound more slowly. You can talk about how funny the word would sound without that phoneme.

Powerful Vowels - Sound Tiles

Step 6:

Your child then chooses the letter tiles that match each sound. Each sound should be represented by a tile.

TIP: If your child chooses an incorrect tile, use your finger and read aloud as you match each phoneme to their grapheme. Make it clear which sound is incorrect and what needs to change.

Powerful Vowels - Read the Whole Word

Step 7:

Once each sound is correctly represented by a grapheme tile, ask your child to read the whole word.

TIP: Encourage your child to run their finger under the tiles to practice blending the sounds and saying the word correctly.

Powerful Vowels - Write the Word

Step 8:

Once they have correctly represented the word using the grapheme tiles, your child can copy the word in the “Write It” space. Ask them to check that their written word matches the tile representation. This gives them immediate feedback and scaffolds them for success!