A Universal Safety Net for Literacy
The Natural Phonics Primer: A Universal Safety Net for Literacy is a one-stop method for beginning and remedial reading featuring 72 powerful sequential, progressive exercises for building decoding fluency (accuracy + speed), enhanced with 439 decodable sentences representing 3,123 words in running text.
The central feature of the program that allows it to be a “universal safety net for literacy” is the introduction of Precision Teaching minimal calibrated speed for every grade from kindergarten through 8th grade. This would provide four important functions:
1. It would provide an excellent beginning phonics based reading method.
2. It would provide universal screening for reading difficulties at the decoding level.
3. It would provide remediation in the classroom, reducing the need for special programs for dyslexics.
4. It would provide good readers with the opportunity to further improve their decoding and spelling skills.
Here is the Teacher’s Manual for teaching the Natural Phonics Primer with Blend Phonics. Blend Phonics is also called "Sequential Phonics” or "Cumulative Phonics. Below are links to 50 short instructional videos plus an introductory video that will be helpful to both teachers and students. The 22 Review Exercises are not videoed.
Here are labels for making duo-tab (3-hole) folders for the Three-Stages of the Natural Phonics Primer.
Here are the Exercises for The Natural Phonics Primer with the vowel letters in black.
Here are the Exercises for the Natural Phonics Primer with vowel letters in red.
Here are some free Literacy Assessments. It is important to know how a student is reading before you can now how to remediate any reading problems, and a post test is the only way to know if the teaching has been effective.
Reading Bears is an interactive phonics program for young children following exactly the same Scope & Sequence as the Natural Phonics Primer, making it an excellent complement. I have prepared a Progress Chart to go with the program.
Here is my Shortcut to Manuscript video and the the Supporting Printed Material. Handwriting is essential because student should be able to spell with letter names and in print the words that they are learning to sound-out. Here are the Zaner-Bloser Extended Strokes in ABC Order.
Check out Reading Boot Camp for a top flight program that features The Natural Phonics Primer. Their goal is to make strong readers, powerful thinkers, and informed decisions makers. Here is an exciting article from 2000 about the Reading Boot Camp Founder, Kathy Alfke-Simpson.
Natural Phonics Primer Alphabet Cards. Here alphabet strips.
Chart for Recording Video Viewing. Student use tally marks to record each time they watch a video.
Here is a bird’s eye view of the entire program: NPP Stages Chart.
This is the Sunbeam Timer I have used for many years.
Here is my training video on the Sound-to-Symbol Associations. Here are the Supporting Power Point Slides.
Students who have finished the Natural Phonics Primer can got to the next level with my Beyond Basic Phonics: English Morphology 101. The supporting videos are available on OneDrive: Beyond Basic Phonics Videos.
Instructional Videos for the Natural Phonics Primer
Stage I: (Beginning) Lift Off
Step 1: Exercises 1-12
NPP_001: Introduction (Theory behind the program and detailed introduced to the Phonovisual Charts.)
Video 1: NPP_01 Short a as in cat - All Consonant Sounds spelled with 1-letter: [p b m] w [f v] [t d n l] [s z r] j g y
Video 2: NPP_02: Short e as in bed
Video 3: NPP_04: Short i as in fish
Video 4: NPP_06: Short o a in top
Video 5: NPP_08: Short u as in duck
Video 6: NPP_10: c as in cap cup cop [with a, o, u], k as in keg kid [with e, i] (key)
Video 7: NPP_11: ck as in duck
Step 2: Exercises 13-23
Video 8: NPP_13: Consonant sounds spelled with 2 or 3 letters: ct ft lb lf lk lm lp lt mp nd nt pt sk sp st
Video 9: NPP_14: Consonant sound spelled with 2 or 3 letters + s (/s/ and /z/ sounds)
Video 10: NPP_15: ng as in swing, nk as in pink, sh as in ship, x as in box, ngs as in rings, nks as in winks
Video 11: NPP_17: Beginning consonant sounds spelled with 2 or 3 letters: bl cl fl gl pl sc sk sl sm sn sp st sw tw spl
Video 12: NPP_18: Beginning consonant sounds spelled with 2 or 3 letters: br cr dr fr gr pr scr str shr tr
Video 13: NPP_20: qu as in queen, th as in three, th as in this, wh as in wheel, squ as in squint, thr as in thrill
Video 14: NPP_21: ch as in cherry, tch as in patch
Video 15: NPP_23: Two-Syllable Short Vowel Words
Stage II: (Intermediate) Earth Orbit
Step 3: Exercises 24-39
Video 16: NPP_24: ee as in tree, ea as in meal, e as in he
Video 17: NPP_25: ee as in tree, ea as in meal, e as in he
Video 18: NPP_26: Long oo as in moon, Short oo as in book
Video 19: NPP_27: ar as in car, a as in pa and ma
Video 20: NPP-28: or as in fork
Video 21: NPP_29: er as in her, ir as in first, ur as in nurse (fur)
Video 22: NPP_30: oi as in oil, oy as in boy
Video 23: NPP_31: ou as in house, ow as in cow
Video 24: NPP_32: au as in Paul, aw as in draw, all as in ball, alt as in malt, alk as in walk
Video 25: NPP_34: ai as in aim, ay as in day, air as in chair
Video 26: NPP-35: ie as in pie, y as in by, ye as in rye, ind as in mind, ild as in wild
Video 27: NPP_36: oa in goat, oe as in toe, old as in gold, old as in old, oll as in roll, ow as in low, o as in so
Video 28: NPP_37: ew as in new, ue as in glue (blue-blew, flew-flue-flu, due-dew)
Video 29: NPP_39: Two-Syllable and Three-Syllable Words
Step 4: Exercises 40-50
Video 30: NPP_40: a_e as in cake
Video 31: NPP_41: a_e as in cake (continued); are in care; e_e in Eve and here
Video 32: NPP_42: i_e as in five and fire
Video 33: NPP_44: o_e as in rose and more
Video 34: NPP_46: u_e as in mule and cure
Video 35: NPP_48: -ing (ring)
Video 36: NPP_49: y, ies, ied as in hurry, hurries, hurried; y, ier, iest, ily as in happy, happier, happiest, happily.
Stage III: (Advanced) Moon Landing
Step 5: Exercises 51-59
Video 37: NPP_51: ed: /ĕd/ as in added or rested; ed: /d/ as in filled; ed: /t/ as jumped
Video 38: NPP_53: er as in ladder, le as in table
Video 39: NPP_55: ce, ci, cy as in ace, city, fancy
Video 40: NPP_56: ge gi gy die dgi dgy as in age, magic, gym, fudge, budging, smudgy
Video 41: NPP_58: se, si, sy as in cheese, rising, rosy; th, ti as in other, bathing
Step 6: Exercises 60-72
Video 42: NPP_60: Silent b, g, k t, w
Video 43: NPP_61: Silent gh, h, l
Video 44: NPP_62: ph as in phone, gh as in rough
Video 45: NPP_65: ea as in break, head, and learn
Video 46: NPP_66: ie as in field, ui as in fruit, u as in put
Video 47: NPP_67: wa swa wor qua, ou as in young and famous
Video 48: NPP_69: ci, si, ti as in special, pension or vision, station; su as in treasure, tu as in nature, xi as in anxious
Video 49: NPP_70: -ive -or as in doctor; -ance as in importance; -ence as in influence; o as in come, some
Video 50: NPP_72: Three-Syllable and Four-Syllable Words
