The materials you need for this sub-section are available HERE.

Below are the links to three key structured teaching routines that have been developed over many years to consolidate phoneme-to-grapheme links at phoneme, word and sentence level:

Spelling Card Routine

Echo Spell Write Check (ESWC) Routine

Sentence Dictation Routine

Speech Dynamics

Speech dynamics is an important area to study if you are involved in supporting spelling and writing skills.  It is often overlooked in teaching intervention programmes - having an explicit knowledge of how speech dynamics can affect how learners represent words helps us to accurately pinpoint the nature and origin of errors.  A version of the script to the Grasping Speech Sounds screencast is available in the download zip file.  Click to link to the Grasping Speech Sounds Screencast

Gaining Knowledge of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

There are currently two very useful tools available that will support your development of knowledge of IPA:

1.    The phoneme-to-grapheme and grapheme-to-phoneme links can be practised using the interactive IPA Phonemic Chart on  The Cambridge English Online website. If you scroll down the online page you can check your knowledge of the IPA symbols by pressing the symbol - the phoneme is uttered in an example word. Click HERE to link to the chart.

2.    Check out the IPA typewriter, which is invaluable when planning lessons.  If you use it in conjunction with the Chart above, you should quickly gain a secure knowledge of IPA.  Click HERE to link to the typewriter.

It is also useful to see how phonemes are transcribed into IPA by online converters.  Click HERE to link to an IPA transcription site.