This week I was able to observe a group of 1st grade teachers as they implemented the Pathway Read/Writing Program with a small group of students. These teachers had carefully: completed all of their paper work (plans), gathered the materials that they needed to follow the program’s instructional steps, and evaluated the reading lessons of the students that were in their group. They incorporated the words kitchen and studying within the lesson.
But, they had not researched the reasons/rules, why we spell kitchen with a “k” and not a “c” and/or why studying is spelled with the “y”. So the students who can learn through quick memorization learned how to spell the words and the students who do not learn through quick memorization continued to misspell the words.
Neither group of students received a lesson that was designed afford them knowledge to reach beyond these given words and learn that words with the soft “c” sound have a “snake vowel” (e, i, y) that follows the letter “c” so, kitchen must be spelled with a “k” and not a soft “c”.
The teachers who I observed are good teachers but you can only impart the knowledge that you know to your students.
Every teacher should be a life long learner who is willing to, “Live what you learn and learn what you live.”.
After the lesson I asked the teachers if they would be open to me explaining the “snake vowel” spelling rules that relate to their lesson and they walked away explaining that, “This is the way they have always taught spelling.”
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