SOUND CITY READING
  • Sequential Phonics Program
    • Welcome
    • Copyright Information
    • How To Navigate This Site
    • Information About The Sound City Reading Program
    • Information About The Author
    • How Was This Program Developed?
    • Why Are There So Many Different Books?
    • How To Get Started
    • What If I Can't Do Everything In This Program?
    • Information About Reading Street Materials
    • Reading Readiness
    • Understanding Consonants
    • Understanding Vowels
    • What Happened To The Old Web Site
    • Other Recommended Sites
  • Program Overview
    • Step Charts
    • Flow Charts
    • Teaching Levels
    • Books Used At Each Level
    • Color-Coded Vowels
    • Skill Sequence
    • General Information About Instruction
    • Integrating Phonics And Whole Language
    • Sound Story
    • Level 1 - Learning The Alphabet Overview
    • Level 2 - Exploring Sounds In Words Overview
    • Level 3 - Short Vowels Overview
    • Level 4. Phonics Patterns Overview
    • Level 5. Advanced Phonics Patterns Overview
    • Phonemic Awareness Picture Pages Overview
    • Handwriting Books Overview
    • Charts, Flashcards, And Games Overview
    • Newer Wall Charts
    • Previous Wall Charts
  • PDF Files
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    • PDF Files For Any Level
    • PDF Files For Handwriting
    • Level 1 - Learning The Alphabet PDFs
    • Level 2 - Exploring Sounds In Words PDFs
    • Level 3 - Short Vowels PDFs
    • Level 4 - Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • Level 5 - Advanced Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • PDF Files For Flashcards
    • PDF Files For Activities And Games
    • PDF Files For Newer Wall Charts
    • PDF Files For Older Wall Charts
  • Reading Street
    • PDFs Decoding Practice Pages
    • PDFs Spelling Worksheets
    • PDFs Word And Phonogram Cards
    • PDFs Reading Street Tests
    • PDFs Reading Street Stories
  • 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 - Alphabet Sounds
    • Sound Story Part 2 - Beyond The Alphabet Sounds
    • Sound Pictures With Letters - Part 1
    • Sound Pictures With Letters And Letter Patterns - Part 2
    • Individual Sound Pictures - Part 1
    • Individual Sound Pictures - Part 2
    • Individual Alphabet Sounds - ABC Order
    • More Letter Sounds - sh, th, ch, ng, oi, oy, ou, ow
    • Level 1 And Level 2 Sound Charts
    • Level 3 - Short Vowels - Sound Charts
    • Level 3 - Advanced Short Vowel Sound Charts
    • Level 4 - Book 1 - Sound Charts
    • Level 4 - Book 2 - Sound Charts
    • Two-Letter Sound Blending - Short U
    • Picture-Word Page Short U
  • Video
    • Sound Story Part 1 Videos
    • Robot Game a_e/safe Video
    • Advanced Sound Charts Videos (All SCR Patterns)
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A Sequential Phonics Program - Materials - PDF Files - Pictures - Audio - Video - ​Reading Street - Blog.

Phonics Books - Summary


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 Scroll down to see the books for each level with a short summary of each one.  


Books That Can Be Used At More Than One Level

A Sound Story ​
​About Audrey And Brad​​

This book introduces sound pictures within the framework of a story.  Each picture represents a speech sound in the English language.  Students learn the sound for each picture along with the related letter or letter pattern that represents that sound.  
The sound pictures are used on the sound charts found in most of the phonics books.  The charts provide a quick daily review of the patterns already learned.  Even at the advanced level, the sound pictures are useful when teaching less common patterns and when teaching ending syllables such as tion/addition and ture/nature.
A small version of the sound story is included in many of the student books.  The larger version shown below has two full pages for each section of the story, with the text of the story on one page and a large sound picture with the related letter symbols on the facing page.  The format works well when reading the story aloud to a group.  Charts showing the phonics patterns that represent each sound are included at the end of the book.  If desired, the charts can be removed from the book and posted on a wall, easel, or bulletin board.  These charts are not as large as the regular wall charts.​
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​Phonemic Awareness
​Picture Pages​

This book teaches phonemic awareness skills along with several phonological awareness skills, including oral blending, segmenting, rhyming, identification of beginning and ending sounds, and syllable awareness.  A knowledge of the alphabet is not required to do the exercises. 
These exercises are also included in the Learning The Alphabet books and the Exploring Sounds In Words books.  However, some students who are learning to read may not have had a chance to work with those books.  Or they may need extra practice.  This book is designed to serve that purpose.
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​Dictionary A-Z

Use With Level 2

This book is used to familiarize students with the concept of beginning and ending letter sounds at the Exploring Sounds In Words level.  With students who have completed both of the Learning The Alphabet books, the Picture Dictionary is optional. ​  
The book contains one or two illustrated word lists for each letter of the alphabet.  The first list has words that begin with the same sound.  The second list has words that end with the same sound.  Beginning sound lists are included for both the short and long vowel sounds. 
Use With Levels 4 And 5
For older students, the book can be used as a picture dictionary to help students spell words while they are doing creative writing.  There are no written definitions - a picture provides the meaning for each word. Students can also practice reading the words with the teacher as a mixed decoding review.  
​The book includes a second list showing the most common three hundred words. This list does not have pictures.  Students can practice spelling and reading the words to develop instant word recognition.  
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Level One - Learning The Alphabet

This is the starting point for beginning students.  There are two readiness level workbooks.  Students complete book one first, and then book 2.  The letters that are the easiest to write are taught first, with letters that are more difficult to write taught later.  The books are recommended for the kindergarten level, but older students who do not have a good mastery of the alphabet, handwriting skills, and phonemic awareness skills can start here as well.  I think that these books would be a good starting point for adults who are learning the English alphabet for the first time.  Students do not have to master each new lesson as they work through the book.  Continuing review and support from the teacher allow students to learn gradually, without pressure.  Each book contains the following elements.  There are several learning games available to use at this level.   

Learning The Alphabet, Book 1 And Book 2​

  • Oral Blending/Segmenting Pages
  • Sound Story Pages
  • Handwriting Readiness Picture Pages
  • Handwriting Letter Tracing Pages - Large Letters​​
  • Handwriting Letter Tracing Pages - Small Letters
  • ​Letter Discrimination Pages
  • Beginning Sound Awareness
  • Ending Sound Awareness
  • Rhyming Awareness
  • Print Awareness Lessons

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Level Two - Exploring Sounds In Words

This is the next step for students who have completed Level 1.  These books are at the advanced readiness level.  They can be used in the second half of the kindergarten year or at the beginning of the first grade year.  At this level, students must be able to master the material in each lesson before going on to the next lesson.  Students are again introduced to the alphabet letters and their sounds.   Handwriting pages are included in the books.  Students do more advanced oral blending and segmenting exercises, and continue doing rhyming exercises.  Students learn to write each letter on lined paper, learn to write letters to show beginning and ending sounds in words, and begin spelling short vowel words with plastic letters.  They also learn to pronounce two-letter combinations, such as ab, ac, ad, af, ag, and ba, ca, da, fa, ga.    

Exploring Sounds In Words, ​Book 1

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Exploring Sounds In Words, ​Book 2

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Exploring Sounds In Words
​Manuscript Handwriting

This pages in the Exploring Sounds In Words Manuscript Handwriting book, shown below, are included in the two Exploring Sounds In Words books shown above.  This is a separate handwriting book to use with students working at a higher level who need easy handwriting instruction.  
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​Picture Dictionary
​A-Z

This book has illustrated word lists that begin or end with the same letter.  It can be used in Level 2 to demonstrate beginning and ending sounds in words.  The book is optional if students have already completed Level 1.  It can also be used as a spelling reference by students at Level 4 and Level 5.     

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Level Three - Short Vowel Words And Sentences

There are three different books with color-coded vowels that teach short vowel words.  Each vowel is printed in a different color.  This makes the vowels stand out in the words.  Note: Basic Short Vowels, a book with all black print is also available.  It is described below.  
  • Very Large Color-Coded Print
  • ​Ten Words And Pictures Per Page 
  • Students Do An Oral Blending Activity With Each Set Words
  • Includes Easy Sentences
  • The Suffix _s Is Introduced For Nouns And Verbs
  • Students spell new words before they read them.

Rhyming Short Vowel
​Words And Sentences

Each word list is made up of rhyming words.  Students study short vowel words in this order: short a, short o, short i, short u, and short e. Students learn all of the short a words, then all of the short o words, and so on.  There are several  picture/word pages and sentence pages for each short vowel.  Students must be able to write all the letters of the alphabet before beginning short a words. 

An optional set of introductory pages, which begin with short u words, may be used if desired while students are still learning to write the letters of the alphabet.  In this case, the instruction can be coordinated with the Exploring Sounds In Words books. 

This book has 5 introductory word lists, 30 regular word lists, and 18 sentence pages.
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Mixed Short Vowel
​Words And Sentences

The order in which words are taught in this book is related to the handwriting sequence.  After students learn to write the first eight letters, t i h l n w u b, they will be ready to study the first short u word list.  The words on this list contain only the letters that have been taught so far in handwriting.  As more letters are taught in handwriting, students learn new sets of words that contain those letters. Because of this, the words for each short vowel are not all taught at the same time.  The word lists are mixed, changing from one short vowel to another as needed, based on the letters students have learned in handwriting.  Within each list, rhyming words are grouped together as far as possible.

This book has 24 word lists and 10 sentence pages.
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Two-Page Short Vowel
​Words And Sentences

This book has the same format as the other books but teaches only two sets of words for each short vowel. Within each list, words have been selected that begin and end with as many different letters as possible.  To begin this book, students should be able to write all of the alphabet letters.   

This book has 10 word lists and 12 sentence pages.
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More Short Vowel Books

The following books also teach short vowel words.  The Basic Short Vowels book can be used in place of any of the color-coded short vowel books shown above.  It could also be used for extra practice when using any of those books.  The word lists in Basic Short Vowels are in the same order as the word lists in Rhyming Short Vowel Words And Sentences.  You can use the Rhyming Short Vowel Workbook with either book.   
The second book, Color-Coded Short Vowel Lists, can be used for extra decoding practice with any of the short vowel books.  It is a perfect supplement to help students learn to put the letter sounds together smoothly and automatically when reading short vowel words. 
The third book can be used to review short vowel words and words with phonics patterns with older students.

Basic Short Vowels
  • All Black Print
  • ​Illustrated Short Vowel Words And Sentences
  • ​Rhyming And Body-Coda Word Lists​
This book has many words to read for each short vowel.  They are arranged in both rhyming and body-coda (same beginning sound) lists.  Reading both types of lists helps students become more fluent when reading short vowel words.  They learn to pay attention to both the beginning and the ending consonants in words.  And they learn to slide the sounds together smoothly as they read.  Each word is illustrated.  Students also learn a few sight words and begin reading simple short vowel sentences. 

Students are also introduced to the use of the suffix _s after nouns and verbs.
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Color-Coded Short Vowel Lists
  • Color-Coded Vowels
  • Rhyming And Body-Coda Word Lists
  • Words Are Not Illustrated​
Students read rhyming and body-coda (same beginning sound) word lists to develop their decoding skills. This book helps students begin to "sound out" words smoothly, without a break between the sounds in the words.  With rhyming lists, students just need to change the beginning letter sounds as they read.  With body-coda lists, they just need to change the ending sounds.  By changing just one sound at a time, students are able to read more fluently as they pronounce each word.  With practice, they learn to slide the sounds together automatically.  Because they learn to change both beginning and ending sounds as they read the two types of lists, they learn to pay attention to both the beginning and ending sound when they read.
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Know The Phonetic Code, Vol. 1
  • Smaller Black Print
  • Rhyming And Body-Coda Short Vowel Word Lists
  • ​Words Are Not Illustrated
  • Also Includes Phonics Patterns From Phonetic Words And Stories, Book 1 and Book 2
  • ​The Same Lists Are Included In Know The Phonetic Code, No Stories​​​​
This book has all black print and the words are not illustrated.  ​
At the beginning of this book students study short vowel words and short vowel sentences. Students practice reading both rhyming and body-coda (same beginning sound) short vowel lists.  This helps students to become more fluent when they read short vowel words.  
Then students study words with the phonetic patterns taught in books one and two at level four, for example, sh/ship, or/horse, ai/rain.  The book one and two  practice stories are also included.
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Short Vowel Booklets

These small booklets are 5 1/2 by 4 1/4 inches when assemble.  They are printed on letter sized paper.  The pages are cut in half horizontally to make two sets of books.  Students read short vowel words from brief rhyming lists, turn the page, and then read the same words paired with pictures.  After learning a few sight words (a, A, was, as, has, is, his, I) students read simple short vowel sentences, which are also illustrated.  
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Level Four - Phonics Patterns

After students learn to read short vowel words, they will be ready to begin reading words with various phonics patterns, such as sh/ship, ee/feet, ow/cow, and ar/car. 
In this program there are three different sets of books to teach the phonics patterns needed for students to begin reading real books and stories.  Each set of books teaches the same phonics patterns in the same order, however each set is printed in a completely different format.  This allows teachers and parents to choose the format best suited for their students.  It also provides additional materials to use as extra practice, either at school or at home.

​Phonetic Words And Stories
​
Books 1-8​

  • Very large color-coded print
  • Word lists are printed in two columns.  The first column has directional arrows between each sound unit.
  • Ten new words are taught in each lesson.  All of the words include contain the new phonics pattern.
  • The words and pictures for each lesson are on facing pages.  This set up allows students to do phonemic awareness exercises with the words and pictures.
  • Easy, illustrated practice stories are included.  Each story is printed in both color-coded print and all black print.

The Phonetic Words And Stories books are ideal for students who are just learning to read.  They also work well with older students who would benefit from extra practice with phonemic awareness, decoding, and word recognition skills.  Students study one new phonics pattern at a time.  They study ten new words for each phonetic pattern.  First students spell the words during a daily dictation period.  Then students do a phonemic awareness exercise with the new pictures and words.  Next they practice reading the same words phonetically, using a process called decoding.  Developing these skills helps students begin to read more confidently and with greater fluency.    
Sight words are taught as rule breakers that cannot be decoded as expected.  Sight words are only taught after students have learned to read phonetically regular words with the same pattern.  For example, the sight word said is taught after students have already learned to read words with the long ā pattern ai :  rain, wait, hair. 
After students have studied several new patterns, they read a short practice story that contains words with the new patterns and any previous patterns that have been studied.  As students work through the books in this series, they also learn to read and write words that are contractions, words with common suffixes, and words with more than one syllable.  ​

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​Basic Phonics Patterns
Books 1, 2, 3, 4, 5-6, 7-8​

  • Large, all black print
  • Illustrated words and sentences
  • Illustrated practice stories​
Students read illustrated lists of words for each new phonetic pattern.  The patterns are taught in the same sequence in which they appear in the Phonetic Words And Stories books.  Unlike the Phonetic Words And Stories, Books 1-8, these lists have more than ten words, with the number of words depending on the pattern being studied.  Students then read a few illustrated sentences to practice reading some of the same words in context.  Lessons that teach contractions, suffixes, and syllable patterns are included.  After students have studied several new phonetic patterns, they read a short practice story that contains words with the new patterns and any previous patterns that have been studied.  These are the same practice stories found in Phonetic Words And Stories, Books 1-8, presented in a smaller format.

If you don't use the Phonetic Words And Stories books to teach level four, you will use these books. 

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Know The Phonetic Code
Volumes 1-3

  • Smaller all black print
  • The words are not illustrated.
  • Volume 1 teaches short vowels and the phonics patterns taught in Phonetic Words And Stories, Books 1 And 2
  • Volume 2 teaches the patterns taught in Phonetic Words And Stories, Book 3, 4, And 5
  • Volume 3 teaches the patterns taught in Phonetic Words And Stories, Books 5, 6, And 7
  • The same illustrated practice stories​ are included.
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Students read word lists for each new pattern.  Both one and two-syllable words are included for each phonetic pattern.  After learning several new patterns, students read an easy practice story with words that contain those patterns.

Know The Phonetic Code
No Stories​

  • Smaller all black print
  • The words are not illustrated
  • These are exactly the same word lists found in Know The Phonetic Code, Volumes 1-3.
  • Students study words with all of the patterns taught in ​Phonetic Words And Stories, Books 1-8.
  • Short vowel words are also included at the beginning of the book.
  • This book does not have practice stories.
  • You can use this book as a review/reference book when teaching the advanced phonics patterns.
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Color-Coded Phonetic Lists

  • Color-Coded Vowels
  • Rhyming And Body-Coda Word Lists
  • No Pictures
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Students read lists of words for each phonetic pattern taught in Phonetic Words And Stories, Book 1-8. ​
The words have color-coded vowels.  Each vowel sound is printed in a designated color.  For example, patterns with the long ā sound are printed in dark red, and patterns with the long ē sound are printed in dark green.  The colors do not have to be taught.  Students automatically internalize the colors as they practice the vowel charts each day.
There are three reasons for the colors. ​
Students can see the vowel pattern clearly, since it stands out in the word. 
  1. Patterns that represent more than one sound can be printed in different colors to show that.  For example, the ea pattern in eat will be dark green to show the long ē sound, whereas the ea pattern in head will be light green to show the short e sound.  This is a visual way to help students intuitively understand that sometimes a letter pattern can represent more than one sound.  If students are reading and see the words bean and head, the different colors will tell them that the vowel sounds are different.
  2. Sometimes two or more different letter patterns can represent the same sound in words, such as ai/ rain, a_e/safe, and ay/play.  The ai, a_e, and ay patterns are all printed in the same dark red color because they all represent the same sound.  If students are reading the words plain, stay, and cake, it will be intuitively clear that the vowel sound in each word is the same, because the vowel patterns will printed in the same color. ​
Whenever possible, the words are presented in both rhyming and body-coda (same beginning sound) lists.  When students practice reading both types of lists, it helps them learn to decode words more automatically, without a break between the sounds.

Level Five - Advanced Phonics Patterns

Advanced Phonics Patterns From Children's Books
  • Smaller all black print
  • No pictures with the word lists
  • Pictures are included on the sound charts.
  • Students read twelve new words with each new phonetic pattern.
  • Students read sentences with each new pattern.
  • ​Students read trade books that coordinate with the phonics instruction.
  • Students study new prefix and suffix patterns.
  • Previous syllable patterns are included for review.
  • Advanced ending syllables (addition, nature, vision) are taught in two different formats.
Use this book after students have studied all the patterns in Phonetic Words And Stories, Books 1-8.  Students learn less common phonetic patterns, more suffix patterns, new prefix patterns, and new advanced ending syllable patterns.  As students work though the book, they will be able to read eighty one children's trade books, from the first grade to the fourth grade reading level.  The trade books must be purchased separately or checked out of the library.
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Handwriting Instruction

Manuscript Handwriting 
​Tracing Pages


  • Students Trace Inside Large Capital And Lower Case Letter Outlines
  • Students Trace Inside Small Capital And Lower Case Letter Outlines   On  1 1/4 " Lined Paper​
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Manuscript Handwriting
​On Letter Sized Paper

Students Trace And Copy Large And Small Letters


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Cursive Handwriting
On Letter Sized Paper

Students Trace And Copy Large And Small Letters

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Exploring Sounds In Words
Manuscript Handwriting

  • Students Trace Large Capital And Lower Case Letters
  • Students Trace And Copy Small Capital And Lower Case Letters On 1" Lined Paper 
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Manuscript Handwriting
​On Legal Paper 

Students Trace And Copy Large And Small Letters
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Cursive Handwriting
On Legal Paper

Students Trace And Copy Large And Small Letters
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Manuscript Handwriting
​On Ledger Paper
Cursive Handwriting
​On Ledger Paper

Students Trace And Copy Large Letters
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Students Trace And Copy Large Letters
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To see more detailed information about any of these books, click on the desired level under Program Overview . 
To download free PDF files for any of the books, click on PDF Files on the main menu and then click on the desired subheading.
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Sound City Reading

All Materials Copyright 2023 or earlier 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.     
If you download one or more PDF files from this site, you may not make the files available from a different site.  However, you may share links to any of the pages on this website, including the pages that have PDF files.    
​Teaching videos are free to watch, and they may be downloaded for use with your own students, at home or in the classroom.  

In special cases I may grant written permission to individuals to use the materials in other ways.  
You can contact me at kathjdavis@gmail.com.
  • Sequential Phonics Program
    • Welcome
    • Copyright Information
    • How To Navigate This Site
    • Information About The Sound City Reading Program
    • Information About The Author
    • How Was This Program Developed?
    • Why Are There So Many Different Books?
    • How To Get Started
    • What If I Can't Do Everything In This Program?
    • Information About Reading Street Materials
    • Reading Readiness
    • Understanding Consonants
    • Understanding Vowels
    • What Happened To The Old Web Site
    • Other Recommended Sites
  • Program Overview
    • Step Charts
    • Flow Charts
    • Teaching Levels
    • Books Used At Each Level
    • Color-Coded Vowels
    • Skill Sequence
    • General Information About Instruction
    • Integrating Phonics And Whole Language
    • Sound Story
    • Level 1 - Learning The Alphabet Overview
    • Level 2 - Exploring Sounds In Words Overview
    • Level 3 - Short Vowels Overview
    • Level 4. Phonics Patterns Overview
    • Level 5. Advanced Phonics Patterns Overview
    • Phonemic Awareness Picture Pages Overview
    • Handwriting Books Overview
    • Charts, Flashcards, And Games Overview
    • Newer Wall Charts
    • Previous Wall Charts
  • PDF Files
    • How To Work With PDF Files
    • Printers And Printing Supplies
    • PDF Files For Any Level
    • PDF Files For Handwriting
    • Level 1 - Learning The Alphabet PDFs
    • Level 2 - Exploring Sounds In Words PDFs
    • Level 3 - Short Vowels PDFs
    • Level 4 - Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • Level 5 - Advanced Phonics Patterns PDFs
    • PDF Files For Flashcards
    • PDF Files For Activities And Games
    • PDF Files For Newer Wall Charts
    • PDF Files For Older Wall Charts
  • Reading Street
    • PDFs Decoding Practice Pages
    • PDFs Spelling Worksheets
    • PDFs Word And Phonogram Cards
    • PDFs Reading Street Tests
    • PDFs Reading Street Stories
  • 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 - Alphabet Sounds
    • Sound Story Part 2 - Beyond The Alphabet Sounds
    • Sound Pictures With Letters - Part 1
    • Sound Pictures With Letters And Letter Patterns - Part 2
    • Individual Sound Pictures - Part 1
    • Individual Sound Pictures - Part 2
    • Individual Alphabet Sounds - ABC Order
    • More Letter Sounds - sh, th, ch, ng, oi, oy, ou, ow
    • Level 1 And Level 2 Sound Charts
    • Level 3 - Short Vowels - Sound Charts
    • Level 3 - Advanced Short Vowel Sound Charts
    • Level 4 - Book 1 - Sound Charts
    • Level 4 - Book 2 - Sound Charts
    • Two-Letter Sound Blending - Short U
    • Picture-Word Page Short U
  • Video
    • Sound Story Part 1 Videos
    • Robot Game a_e/safe Video
    • Advanced Sound Charts Videos (All SCR Patterns)
  • Blog
    • Contact Me
    • Share Your Experience
    • Take This Expanded Survey