Word Patterns

Word Patterns
Explain why it is important to teach word patterns.
It is crucial to teach word patterns because this helps students see the connection that
exists between letters and the sounds that they represent. Students discover how words work and
can decode as many single-syllabic and multisyllabic words as possible (Rasinski & Padak,
2013). Also, learning word patterns enables students to decode and understand words that they
are unfamiliar with, specifically those that are new words in English. Additionally, teachers
provide students with strategies that enable them to decode unknown vocabularies. They expand
their vocabularies and are better placed to identify meanings of unfamiliar or new words
(Rasinski & Padak, 2013). As students learn new words, their appetite for exploring more
vocabularies grows, and they expand their knowledge.
Also, describe how you will teach word patterns in your classroom.
I would use games to teach word patterns in my class. I will have students write twelve
words on their board. The words should follow a particular pattern. For instance, words that end
with the letter ‘e.’ such words may include blade, take, pace, mate, date, grate, date, and cake.
They will create word cards. Students will then select headwords and place them at the top of
their working spaces. The rest of the words are placed down in a pile and shuffled. Students take
turns in picking words, reading them, sorting them, and crossing them off from their board. The
first student to cancel out all their words from the board becomes the winner. The games change
depending on the letter of the day or the sound that I will be aiming at teaching the students.

References

Rasinski, T. & Padak, N.D. (2013). From phonics to fluency: Effective teaching of decoding and
reading fluency in the elementary school. NJ: Pearson.