Reading Intervention for Struggling Readers: Consonant Blends

This is the second in a series of books written to provide intervention for struggling readers.

Struggling readers often have gaps in their phonic knowledge or have started to guess. These books help to retrain the child. They start back at the beginning with CVC words to ensure the child can read fluently at this level and to build shattered confidence. Sometimes children think they can read the easy books, but find that they have learnt to guess words which interrupts fluency and excludes them from comprehending what has been read.

They build up, from CVC words, through consonant blends words with a short vowel sound, to ck, oo words. More are coming!

They are useful for reading intervention for older pupils, maybe even of 11+ who are struggling to read fluently.

Pupils should be able to blend fluently and have some phonic knowledge, though it may not be secure.

Who is this book for?

Older pupils who can read, but who have a reading age well below their chronological age. such children may struggle to read simple text with accuracy/fluency and thereby lack comprehension.

It is not for pupils who are just beginning to read with phonics. Please see my Consonant Blends readers for such pupils.

It is convenient enough for parents to use with their children, as well as for use by teachers and private tutors.

Outline and steps

This book begins follows work with CVC words with a short vowel sound and only three sounds. In my remedial work with older struggling readers, I often find that these children need help to distinguish between similar words, such as trip and tip, and by retraining the child to read accurately using these simple texts - that do not look babyish - and then rebuilding from the bottom up, much progress can be made.

Please find the next book in the series, More Consonant Blends Words, in my store.

I thought that my pupils would look with disdain on these books. I found the opposite; they were so relieved that at last somebody had actually given them a book they could read!

Purpose

These books have been written and tried and tested on some of my older pupils (mainly boys I admit), and they have proved very helpful. Most of my pupils have a dyslexic type problem, involving poor processing skills. It is crucial that they build a secure foundation for reading ability to build upon. This book, used as described will help to build that foundation.

I am finding more and more such pupils desperate for help. You can help too! It is not hard but just needs a little understanding of the problem.

PowerPoint

While using this book, use the exercise on the included PowerPoint to strengthen the child's phonic blending skills and to re-train the child not to guess but look at all sounds in a word.

Do have the child recite the vowel sounds at every lesson as these are often weak.

Before giving the pupil this book to read, ensure that the child is able to easily blend two consonant letters and to see them in words.

There is a PowerPoint included with this book with some editable teaching resources.

What is included?

1 book with 8 reading passages and fluency chart.

1 PowerPoint with instructions under each slide.

This is a growing series of books. Find more here:

Book 1

Book 2

Book 3

Book 4

Book 5

Book 6