SOUND CITY READING
  • A Sequential Phonics Program
    • How To Navigate This Site
    • What Happened To The Old Site
    • Can I buy physical copies of the books?
    • How Was This Program Developed?
    • Information About The Author
    • Copyright Information
    • Information About Reading Street
    • How To Use The PDF Files
    • Using A Print Shop
    • Other Recommended Sites
    • How To Get Started
    • Understanding Vowels
    • Understanding Consonants
  • Materials
    • Step Charts
    • Flow Charts
    • Program Overview
    • Overview Of All Of The Phonics Books
    • Level 1
    • Level 1. Learning The Alphabet Overview
    • Level 2. Exploring Sounds In Words Overview
    • Level 3. Short Vowels Overview
    • Level 4. Phonics Patterns Overview >
      • Phonetic Words And Stories, 1-8
      • Basic Phonics Patterns, 1-8
      • Basic Phonics Patterns Lesson Outline
      • Know The Phonetic Code, 1-3
      • Color-Coded Phonetic Lists
  • PDF Files
    • How To Work With PDF Files
    • Baseline Assessment PDF
    • Sequence Charts PDF
    • Sound Story PDF
    • Phonemic Awareness PDF
    • Manuscript Handwriting PDFs
    • Cursive Handwriting PDFs
    • Level 1 - Learning The Alphabet PDFs
    • Level 2 - Exploring Sounds In Words PDFs
    • Level 3 - Short Vowel PDFs
    • Level 4 - Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • Level 5 - Advanced Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • Large Picture-Word Pages PDF
    • Flashcards PDF
    • Wall Charts Newer PDF
    • Wall Charts Older PDF
    • Activities And Games PDF
    • Older PDF Files
  • Pictures
    • Sound Story Pictures
    • Keyword/Sound Chart Pictures
    • Level 1 And 2 Pictures
    • Level 3 Pictures
    • Level 4 Pictures
    • Consonant Blends
    • Level 5 Pictures
  • Audio
    • Sound Story Part 1
    • Sound Story Part 2
    • Individual Sound Pictures Part 1
    • Individual Sound Pictures Part 2
    • Individual Letter Sounds ABC Order
    • More Letter Sounds - sh, th, ch, wh, ck, tch, ng, oi, oy, ou, ow
    • Sound Pictures And Letters Part 1
    • Learning The Alphabet And Exploring Sounds In Words Charts
    • Level 3 Short Vowel Sound Charts
    • Level 3 Advanced Short Vowel Sound Charts
    • Sound Blending - Short U
    • Picture-Word Page Short U
    • Level 4, Book 1 Sound Charts
    • Level 4, Book 2 Sound Charts
  • Video
    • Sound Story Part 1 Videos
    • Robot Game a_e/safe
    • Advanced Sound Charts
  • Reading Street
    • Reading Street Stories
    • Reading Street Tests
    • Spelling Worksheets For Reading Street
    • Decoding Practice Pages To Use With Reading Street
    • Word Cards And Phonogram Cards
  • Blog
    • Contact Me
    • Share Your Experience
    • Take This Expanded Survey

5/23/2017

Cursive Handwriting On Letter Sized Paper

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Today I put together a cursive handwriting book that is printed on letter sized paper.  You can find it on the page with PDF files for books and workbooks.
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5/22/2017

Two-Page Short Vowel Words And Sentences

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Older Version 2012
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Newer Version Of The Same Book 2017

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Other Current Short Vowel Books 2017
Today I uploaded the Two-Page Short Vowel Words And Sentences book.  To differentiate it from the Rhyming Short Vowel and Mixed Short Vowel books, I've given it the Two-Page name because it has only two pages of words for each short vowel, plus sentence pages. This makes it substantially shorter than the Rhyming and Mixed Short Vowel books.  I used this short vowel book in my first grade classroom before I retired, and it is posted to my old web site under an earlier title, Basic Short Vowel Words.  I can't use that title any more for this book because I'm using the title Basic Short Vowels for the current book that has illustrated rhyming and body-coda lists in all black print.  Definitely confusing!

In the newer Two-Page Short Vowel Words And Sentences book version I've made a number of changes to the older version which I think make it better and easier to use.
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  • I moved the short o words before the short i words, since the short o sound is easier to hear for beginning readers.  This delays the more difficult short i words until after students have studied both short a and short o words.
  • I revised the workbook to match the new short vowel order.  
  •  I moved the sentence pages so that each set follows immediately after the related short vowel picture word pages.  I had to revise the short o sentences because some of them previously  contained short i words. 
  • I revised the sound charts so that all the sound pictures from part two of A Sound Story About Audrey And Brad are on the same "Beyond The Alphabet Chart."  This makes it less confusing for the students and the teacher.
  •  I revised the sound blending "Silly Sounds" pages so that students only read vowel-consonant combinations (ab, ac, ad, af, ag).  In the previous version they also read consonant-vowel combinations (ba, ca, da, fa, ga).  I think it was too difficult for the students trying to do it both ways.  And I didn't want to set up students to be confused later on when they learn about open syllable.  Vowels generally represent their short vowel sounds in syllables where the vowel is followed by a consonant (ab, ac, ad, ag).  On the other hand, vowels that come at the end of a syllable usually have the long vowel sound.
  • I revised parts of the instructions for the teacher and added new lesson outlines and spelling lists.  In particular, in the instructions about handwriting and spelling dictation, I've explained how to use plastic letters to spell words at the beginning of the school year for words like fuzz, yak, and quit which have letters that students have not yet learned to write.  This allows students to proceed through the book quickly, while taking the time to learn (or review) how to write the alphabet letters.
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In the Two-Page Short Vowel Words And Sentences book, about half the pages are student pages and the other half of the pages explain how to teach students to read and write short vowel words.  If you are making multiple copies of the books for students, you may want to print just the student pages. 
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​I'm very happy to finally get this book put together because now I have all the missing pieces so that I can finish the materials overview in the sequence charts book.

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5/17/2017

Today I Added A New Handwriting Book

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I added a new handwriting book as a PDF file today.  You can see the description and sample pages in the overview of materials handwriting section.  This book has smaller letters than the introductory books printed on legal paper and ledger paper.  It would be best used to review letter formation at the beginning of the year for students who have already learned to write the letters.  Or it could be used as extra practice after beginning students have been introduced to the letters using the larger patterns.
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I'm still trying to finish the book of sequence charts with an overview of teaching materials.  I keep having to add pieces like the new handwriting book described above.  Hopefully soon....  
​I do  apologize for the delay. 

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5/13/2017

I Added An Overview Of Sound City Reading Books And         Two Cursive Handwriting Books

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Today I added a page to this site that shows an overview of all the Sound City Reading books.  You can find it under these menu headings: A Phonetic Reading Program - Teaching Levels And Materials - Overview Of Teaching Books.  I've listed the books by levels with a brief explanation of how they relate to each other.  I hope this is helpful. I'll be adding it to the Sequence Charts Book.

I also added two cursive handwriting books.  The first one is to be printed on legal paper.  Students trace and copy large cursive letters in this book.  The second one is to be printed on 11 by 17 inch ledger paper, if you have that printing capability.  Students trace large letters only in this book.  To find the books go to PDF Files For Phonics Books And Workbooks - Scroll down to the cursive handwriting heading.  I've used large handmade cursive patterns in my second grade classroom years ago.  I've used the handwriting books I just uploaded with my grandchildren and students that I've tutored.  If you're willing to take the time to have students trace these large letter patterns, I think you'll be pleased with the results.  

My granddaughter was very slow to pick up manuscript handwriting, so I used the cursive patterns for a few weeks before she started third grade to prepare her for her initial cursive handwriting instruction at school.  We had to work very hard together to get to the point that she could write the letters accurately.  We didn't get through the whole alphabet, but we managed to cover enough letters so that she did well when she began third grade.

I tutored a student who went through the large manuscript handwriting patterns and then the following year he went through the large cursive patterns. It has taken a lot of practice but he is now writing cursive very nicely.

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5/2/2017

Trying To Finish The Sequence Charts Book

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I have been trying for weeks now to finish a book of sequence charts so that I can put it on this site.  I usually don't see how time consuming a job will be until I'm in the middle of it.  The book has been helpful for me to use when planning, and I know it will be helpful for others.  The charts include a list of the letters and phonics patterns taught in each book, in the order in which they are taught.  I decided I needed to add a short description of each book to provide a better idea of what is taught at each level.  This has slowed me down quite a bit.  I thought it would be helpful to provide a few small pictures, including the cover and some sample pages for each book. I think this will be worthwhile but it is taking much longer than I expected  - with me this is usually the case.  

The first set of sample pages I inserted had a resolution far too high - the file became so large it crashed repeatedly.  So I had to redo the pictures in a lower resolution.  In order to provide the small cover pictures I had to finish revising the covers so that they're all in color, and I still have a few left to do.  

Before I can finish making the sample page images I have to make sure all of the books are complete and the pages are up to date and accurate.  There are several books that still need to be completed, including some handwriting books and a short vowel workbook.  I'm too stubborn to leave out those things because I want anyone who downloads the book to get a complete picture of what is available and be able to see how all the parts of the program fit together.  I've been working with the materials for years, but there are many pieces to the program and it is truly challenging to explain them all. 

I am continuing to work on all of this as much as possible and still hope to get the book finished soon.


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    Kathryn J. Davis
    B.S. 1973 Southwestern At Memphis (Rhodes College)
    ​M.A.T 1992 East Tennessee State University

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Sound City Reading

All Materials Copyright 2021 by Kathryn J. Davis, All Rights Reserved
Teachers, parents, tutors, and schools may download and print PDF files to use with the students they teach.  They are not to make a profit from distributing the materials.  
​Teaching videos are free to watch, and they may be downloaded for personal use, at home or in the classroom. 

In special cases I may grant written permission to individuals to use the material in other ways.  

You can contact me at kathjdavis@gmail.com.
  • A Sequential Phonics Program
    • How To Navigate This Site
    • What Happened To The Old Site
    • Can I buy physical copies of the books?
    • How Was This Program Developed?
    • Information About The Author
    • Copyright Information
    • Information About Reading Street
    • How To Use The PDF Files
    • Using A Print Shop
    • Other Recommended Sites
    • How To Get Started
    • Understanding Vowels
    • Understanding Consonants
  • Materials
    • Step Charts
    • Flow Charts
    • Program Overview
    • Overview Of All Of The Phonics Books
    • Level 1
    • Level 1. Learning The Alphabet Overview
    • Level 2. Exploring Sounds In Words Overview
    • Level 3. Short Vowels Overview
    • Level 4. Phonics Patterns Overview >
      • Phonetic Words And Stories, 1-8
      • Basic Phonics Patterns, 1-8
      • Basic Phonics Patterns Lesson Outline
      • Know The Phonetic Code, 1-3
      • Color-Coded Phonetic Lists
  • PDF Files
    • How To Work With PDF Files
    • Baseline Assessment PDF
    • Sequence Charts PDF
    • Sound Story PDF
    • Phonemic Awareness PDF
    • Manuscript Handwriting PDFs
    • Cursive Handwriting PDFs
    • Level 1 - Learning The Alphabet PDFs
    • Level 2 - Exploring Sounds In Words PDFs
    • Level 3 - Short Vowel PDFs
    • Level 4 - Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • Level 5 - Advanced Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • Large Picture-Word Pages PDF
    • Flashcards PDF
    • Wall Charts Newer PDF
    • Wall Charts Older PDF
    • Activities And Games PDF
    • Older PDF Files
  • Pictures
    • Sound Story Pictures
    • Keyword/Sound Chart Pictures
    • Level 1 And 2 Pictures
    • Level 3 Pictures
    • Level 4 Pictures
    • Consonant Blends
    • Level 5 Pictures
  • Audio
    • Sound Story Part 1
    • Sound Story Part 2
    • Individual Sound Pictures Part 1
    • Individual Sound Pictures Part 2
    • Individual Letter Sounds ABC Order
    • More Letter Sounds - sh, th, ch, wh, ck, tch, ng, oi, oy, ou, ow
    • Sound Pictures And Letters Part 1
    • Learning The Alphabet And Exploring Sounds In Words Charts
    • Level 3 Short Vowel Sound Charts
    • Level 3 Advanced Short Vowel Sound Charts
    • Sound Blending - Short U
    • Picture-Word Page Short U
    • Level 4, Book 1 Sound Charts
    • Level 4, Book 2 Sound Charts
  • Video
    • Sound Story Part 1 Videos
    • Robot Game a_e/safe
    • Advanced Sound Charts
  • Reading Street
    • Reading Street Stories
    • Reading Street Tests
    • Spelling Worksheets For Reading Street
    • Decoding Practice Pages To Use With Reading Street
    • Word Cards And Phonogram Cards
  • Blog
    • Contact Me
    • Share Your Experience
    • Take This Expanded Survey