This workshop can stand alone or be combined with others in the series on Structured Literacy Instruction (SLI) for students with Dyslexia.  The instruction of sound-symbol correspondence is often referred to as phonics. In the context of Structured Literacy, it is embedded within a rich and deep language context.  Once students have developed the awareness of phonemes of spoken language, they must learn how to map the phonemes to symbols or printed letters. Sound-symbol association must be taught and mastered in two directions: visual to auditory (reading) and auditory to visual (spelling). Additionally, students must master the blending of sounds and letters into words as well as the segmenting of whole words into the individual sounds. 

In this full-day workshop, participants will learn the basics of teaching students common sound/symbol correspondences and the most common spellings of the 44 sounds of English.  They will gain an understanding of different approaches for teaching sound/symbol correspondences in a way that is systematic, cumulative, explicit, and diagnostic.  Participants will have hands-on opportunities to learn and practice activities that measure and strengthen students’ skills.