Frequently Asked Questions about Words Their Way
Words Their Way and the Science of Reading
How is Words Their Way aligned to the Science of Reading?
Words Their Way is a supplemental program designed to provide additional personalized phonics practice for K-5 students after sound-spelling correspondences have been explicitly taught. Words Their Way is designed to work alongside Science of Reading-aligned core curriculum like myView Literacy® or similar high-quality core elementary literacy programs, and Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading or other high-quality K-2 foundational skills programs. The program provides additional multisensory personalized phonics practice.
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Does Words Their Way work in a Structured Literacy classroom?
In a science of reading classroom, Words Their Way is best used in conjunction with a proven core program like myView Literacy, a foundational skills program like Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading, or any high-quality elementary literacy or foundational skills curricula.
Words Their Way is designed for additional, differentiated phonics practice after students have had explicit instruction in sound-spelling correspondences during their core ELA or core foundational skills instruction.
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How Words Their Way Works with Structured Literacy
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Structured Literacy
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Phonology
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Sound-Symbol Association
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Syllabication
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Morphology
Does Words Their Way work in a Structured Literacy classroom?
Question: We are transitioning away from balanced literacy to a Structured Literacy approach. Does Words Their Way work in a Structured Literacy classroom?
Answer: Yes. Structured Literacy recommends extended practice as a portion of the lesson and using a variety of word practice routines, including a word sorting routine, for extended practice and skills reinforcement of previously taught phonics skills. Words Their Way is appropriately used for incorporating a consistent word sorting routine into the extended practice portion of structured literacy lessons.
How does Words Their Way support phonology?
Words Their Way provides personalized practice that supports the development of phonology skills. Picture sorts give students practice identifying rhyming words and categorizing words by phonemes and vowel sounds. View examples.
How does Words Their Way reinforce sound-symbol associations?
Words Their Way provides personalized practice that reinforces previously taught sound-symbol associations.
- Picture Sorts give students extended sound-symbol correspondence practice as students sort pictures by consonants, digraphs, and blends.
- Word Sorts provide additional skills reinforcement of previously taught sound-spelling correspondences when students sort words by word families, short vowels, and vowel pattern.
- View examples.
How does Words Their Way reinforce syllabication?
Words Their Way provides extended practice with decoding all 6 syllable types of English.
The scope and sequence systematically addresses all 6 syllable types.
- The program begins with practice for CVC closed syllables in the Letter Name-Alphabetic Stage.
- Then CVCe, vowel teams, and r-influenced patterns are practiced in the Within Word Pattern Stage.
- Unaccented final syllable patterns (such as consonant and le) are practiced in the Syllables and Affixes Stage.
- Other syllable patterns are practiced within the context of open and closed syllables.
The program helps students practice sorting words by these types; see examples here.
How does Words Their Way build morphology skills?
Words Their Way builds students’ understanding of morphology. As students learn to read and write on their own, the program presents a systematic scope and sequence of inflectional morphology (the study of inflectional endings such as -ed, -ing, and plurals), base words and affixes, and the derivational morphology found in Greek and Latin word roots. View program examples here.
Does Words Their Way Support Students with Dyslexia?
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How does Words Their Way support students with dyslexia?
The International Dyslexia Association calls for students with dyslexia to be provided with systematic, cumulative, and explicit instruction in all 6 aspects of Structured Literacy. Words Their Way provides extended phonics practice for Structured Literacy lessons, providing students with individualized practice in phonology, sound-symbol association, syllabication, and morphology.
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Does Words Their Way meet the International Dyslexia Association’s recommendation that instruction for students with dyslexia be hands-on, engaging, and multi-modal?
Words Their Way meets the International Dyslexia Association’s recommendation for hands-on, engaging, and multi-modal instruction. Words Their Way integrates phonology (sound), orthography (visual representation of language), and writing activities, enabling students to say, read, write, and talk about words. Students clap, sing, and read, and interactive games provide further practice for the word features practiced in each sort.
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How does Words Their Way meet the International Dyslexia Association’s recommendations for systematic, cumulative, and explicit instruction?
The International Dyslexia Association calls for students with dyslexia to be provided with systematic, cumulative, and explicit instruction.
- Words Their Way is intended to provide differentiated, extended practice after students have been explicitly taught sound-spelling correspondences.
- Words Their Way follows a systematic scope and sequence where skills build from simple to complex.
- As a supplemental practice program, Words Their Way provides an instructional routine where teachers provide explicit modeling of the sort before students engage in the sort.
- As a supplemental practice program, Words Their Way provides additional multisensory and skills reinforcement that can benefit students with dyslexia.
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Can Words Their Way be used for diagnostic teaching, as recommended by the International Dyslexia Association?
The International Dyslexia Association calls for diagnostic teaching.
- Words Their Way provides personalized phonics practice and can be used for diagnostic teaching.
- Each student is placed at a developmental spelling stage based on a brief encoding assessment.
- Words Their Way also provides formative assessments that teachers can use to measure students’ automaticity with specific decoding and encoding skills.
- As a supplemental program designed for extended practice and skills reinforcement of previously taught phonics skills, Words Their Way provides differentiated practice to build and reinforce students’ knowledge of phonology, morphology, English syllable rules, and sound-symbol association.
Other Common Questions about Words Their Way
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LETRS
Question: Does Words Their Way align with LETRS?
LETRS lessons recommend “extended practice.” Within extended practice, word sorts are recommended as one way to provide extended practice.* Words Their Way provides both closed and open sorts.
Words Their Way provides prebuilt, ready-to-go words that can easily be correlated to high-quality foundational skills and core curricula to save teachers the time of building their own word sorts.
*(Citation: LETRS, Volume 1, Unit 3, pages 201 and 202, Louisa C. Moats and Carol A. Tolman, Voyager Sopris Learning)
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Best Practices for Implementation
Question: I’ve heard that Words Their Way can be hard to implement because it requires a lot of teacher prep time.
Savvas developed a classroom-ready version of Words Their Way to save teachers time.
- The classroom-ready version of the higher-ed professional development book saves teachers significant time by providing ready-to-go print and digital resources that do not require additional teacher prep time.
- Student materials include a full-color consumable workbook with all materials needed for word and writing sorts, and all student pages are printable from the digital home of Word Their Way, Savvas Realize®.
- Additionally, the classroom-ready version includes prebuilt, developmentally appropriate digital interactive sorts on Savvas Realize.
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Placing Students
Question: What are the 5 stages of Words Their Way? How are students placed into the appropriate stage of Words Their Way?
The five stages of Words Their Way are:
- Emergent Early Letter Name
- Letter Name
- Within Word Pattern
- Syllables and Affixes
- Derivational Relations
A brief encoding assessment–the Qualitative Spelling Inventory–can be used to place students in the appropriate stage of Words Their Way. -
Using with Other Programs: Foundational Skills
Question: Is Words Their Way a complete foundational skills program? Can it be used to provide comprehensive foundational skills instruction?
No, Words Their Way should be used in conjunction with a high-quality core ELA program or a foundational skills curriculum and is designed to provide students with personalized, extended phonics practice at their individual level.
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