The purpose of decodable readers is to develop phonological decoding skills, and this is the focus of the text construction. However, comparisons of decodable and other leveled texts (opens in a new window) (Dixon, 2016) show that some decodable books have more vocabulary variety. This is sometimes true, as it is equally true of predictable or ‘leveled’ texts. Once the alphabetic principle is secure and children have acquired a sufficient level of phonics to independently and successfully decode unfamiliar words, other books can be introduced for reading practice ( Explainer: what’s the difference between decodable and predictable books, and when should they be used? (opens in a new window)).Ĭheatham and Allor (2012) examined seven high-quality peer-reviewed studies and found decodability to be a “critical characteristic of early reading text as it increases the likelihood that students will use a decoding strategy and results in immediate benefits, particularly in regard to accuracy.” They also highlighted the need for students to apply phonics skills in connected text and found that decodable text positively impacts early reading progress.ĭecodable books are sometimes criticized for having a limited vocabulary and simple storyline. Some students will move through the sequence of decodable books quickly whereas other students, such as those who are at risk of reading difficulties, will take longer to develop automaticity and fluency with simple text. Providing children with opportunities to read successfully and relatively independently as soon as they can is highly motivating for beginning readers.Ī sample page from Red Ted from the InitiaLit readers (opens in a new window) series. Leveled texts are organized according to formulas that been found to be mostly ineffective at predicting ease of readability (Begeny & Greene, 2014).īeginning decodable books contain words that are simple in structure such as VC and CVC words, and progressively introduce words with more complex structures. This gives children the opportunity to hear good reading models, as well as develop the vocabulary and syntax that will support their reading development.ĭecodable books are sequential in nature and build phonic knowledge gradually, allowing students the opportunity to practice grapheme–phoneme correspondences and quickly build their confidence and ability to read connected text. Decodable readers, unlike predictable or repetitive ‘leveled’ texts, minimize the inclusion of grapheme–phoneme correspondences or high-frequency words children have not been taught. Teachers and parents should read high quality children’s literature that contains more complex vocabulary and sentence structures with students every day. Of course, decodable texts are not the only texts to be included in the beginning reader’s diet. Mesmer (2005) found that children were more likely to apply their phonics knowledge, read more accurately, and needed less assistance when reading decodable books. Decodable readers that enable students to ‘sound out,’ rather than guess, unknown words develop this reflex and lead to more successful independent reading. The type of reading material we first give to students sets their ‘reading reflex’ - the habit of using knowledge of letter–sound relationships as the first strategy for reading unfamiliar words. For beginning readers, the only books that are truly decodable are those that contain the alphabetic code they have learned. They can be introduced once beginning readers have learned some simple grapheme–phoneme correspondences and can blend from left to right.Īll books and text are ‘decodable’ in the sense that they can be read, but only if the reader has sufficient reading ability for the complexity of the text. This provides learners with the opportunity to use their developing segmenting and blending skills to read words in order to develop automaticity, or the ability to recognize words quickly and effortlessly, and experience independent reading success.ĭecodable books encourage children to sound out words using decoding strategies rather than guessing from pictures or predicting from other cues. Decodable books are simple books that are written for the beginning reader and contain the specific grapheme–phoneme correspondences students have learned.
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