Multisensory Monday- Syllable Division V/CV or VC/V
Posted by Tammi Brandon on 9th Aug 2017
Welcome to Multisensory Monday! The V/CV and VC/V syllable division pattern is a difficult, yet essential skill, in the decoding process. Today Tammi Brandon shares a great activity to help encourage students to try both options when decoding.
Once our students have mastered V/CV syllable division and VC/V syllable division in isolation, they are invited to “play” with the words and decide if a word uses the V/CV or the VC/V syllable division pattern. To encourage students to try both options, I like to use a page divider that I found among my pile of office supplies. It is a yellow-colored, transparent, pocket folder that serves to divide pages in a binder…and syllables in a word.
Simply make a word card with a VCV word on it. The student inserts the word into the pocket of the transparent folder so that it shows the V/CV division pattern. The student should now read the word with the first syllable having an open or long vowel sound. In this case “mu…sic”.
Students should continue this activity for several words, trying and pronouncing both choices. For this next choice, students would read “ra…bid” with a long A sound in the first syllable and then “rab…id” with the short A sound in the first syllable.
As students progress and become more confident reading words with both patterns, you can transfer this activity from a larger motor skill to a smaller motor skill by moving the activity to the colored tab on the edge of a page divider. In this example, students would read the word as “ro…bot” (long O) and “rob…ot” (short O).
This activity is inexpensive and simple to create. In the classroom, it could easily be set up as a Center Activity. Teachers can use this in a small group, too, giving each group member his/her own word pile and colored divider, offering individual feedback as needed.
Tammi Brandon, M.Ed., CDP
Tammi Brandon is a Master Instructor and Education Consultant with Brainspring Educator Academy.