Discover Intensive Phonics for Yourself

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Discover Intensive Phonics for Yourself is an approach to reading instruction using phonetics. It teaches a foundation for reading, spelling, and vocabulary development through a systematic, intensive phonics approach in which students are taught 42 sounds of the alphabet, 5 phonetic skills, and a 2-step skill for decoding multi-syllable words.

1 Background
2 Core Concepts
3 Program Emphasis
4 References
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] Background

Decoding the word 'defend' using the Discover Intensive Phonics for Yourself method.

Discover Intensive Phonics for Yourself was authored by Charlotte Lockhart, an elementary school principal, in 1976. Lockhart worked daily with students who were struggling because they could not read. In 1972, Lockhart retired and began to share her successful methods of teaching reading and spelling with teachers, parents, administrators, and students, by writing and publishing the Discover Intensive Phonics for Yourself system.

HEC Reading Horizons purchased the copyrights to Discover Intensive Phonics for Yourself from Lockhart in 2001.[1] HEC publishes an implementation of the approach for adults, called Reading Horizons, along with an implementation for children, called Discover Intensive Phonics.

[edit] Core Concepts

[edit] The 42 Sounds of the Alphabet

The alphabet is introduced in sets of four consonants and one vowel each. Each letter sound is introduced individually and students learn the name, sound, and formation of each letter simultaneously. After the letters of the alphabet are taught, blends, digraphs, diphthongs, and special vowel sounds are taught.

[edit] 5 Phonetic Skills

These skills allow students to identify common patterns in English words so they can prove the vowel sound in a word. These skills are:

When a vowel is followed by one consonant and nothing more, it will be short.
When a vowel is followed by two consonants and nothing more, it will be short.
When a vowel is alone, it will be long.
Silent e will make the first vowel long.
When vowels are adjacent, the second vowel is silent, and the first is long.

[edit] 2 Decoding Skills

These skills allow students to break words into syllables.

If there is only one consonant following a vowel, that consonant will move on to the next syllable.
When a vowel is followed by two consonants, the syllables will be split between those consonants.

[edit] Program Emphasis

Discover Intensive Phonics for Yourself focuses on decoding skills. Students are taught to mark up words using a set of logical rules in order to determine how the word should be pronounced. For example, students write a breve over short vowels, and a macron over long vowels. The method is taught explicitly, in a logical sequence, and it follows Orton-Gillingham principles of instruction. It is simple and systematic.

The method is often used as a supplement to a core reading program. It can complement and enhance core reading programs. It is designed to be a reading supplement for young students, and as a reading intervention program for older students. As such, it does not include many reading passages for practice, but instead focuses on decoding skills.