Cycle 11

This task introduces consonant blends.  

The word blend as a noun refers to parts of words that have multiple consonants in a row that each make a distinct sound.  (These are sometimes called "consonant clusters," "consonant sequences," or "consonant compounds.")  For example, the word 'stop' has an intial consonant blend of st-.  The word lift has a final consonant blend of -ft.  The word scraps has an initial triple blend (scr-) and a final blend (-ps).

These consonant blends should not be confused with the act of blending, which is when someone translates a series of component sounds into a word that they say at a normal rate.

When saying words slowly in our program, instructors should make sure to hold each continuous sound for two seconds, even when it is within a consonant blend.  For example, saying the word stop slowly should sound like /ssstŏŏŏp/, not /stŏŏŏp/.  The word lift should sound like /lllĭĭĭffft/, not /lllĭĭĭft/.  The word scraps should sound like /ssscrrrăăăpsss/, not /scrăăăps/.

The blends in this task are final blends in which the first consonant of each blend is a continuous phoneme.

Remember never to pause between the initial sound and the rest of the word in these Rhyming tasks.

In this task, the onset (the initial sound) is a continuous sound, so you’ll hold it for two seconds, but you should never say the rime (the rest of the word after the onset) slowly.  Always say the rime “the fast way.”

In this task, as in last cycle’s Rhyming task, a single word carries over from one page of the script to another.  You will begin saying mat on one page and finish saying it on the other, allowing the content on the student pane to change while you say the word.  So, you will hold the initial /mmm/ sound as you advance to the next page, then, without pausing, you’ll finish saying the word mat.

As always, read the example sentences after each word in Rhyming tasks.

The routines of these exercises can take students some time to get used to, so, at the end of the task, make sure to repeat the steps for any words that required correction.

This is the first Story Reading task in which students count the words in the passage. Make sure they count the words in the same direction they would read them: from left to right.