Unlock the 'R' Mystery: Mastering R-Controlled Words Made Easy!

Your child or students may be able to read r-controlled words, but teaching the correct r-controlled spellings can be tricky for some.  R-controlled sounds can be spelled in many different ways. For example: verse, nurse, bird, absurd, art, dollar, corn, motor earth, ear. It is very confusing for a new reader who hasn’t had a lot of exposure to r-controlled words to pick the correct /er/ spelling.

Step 1: Use Multisensory Activity to Lock it In (teach one spelling at a time)

Prepare a Word List:

• Ahead of time, create a word list.

• Create dictation sentences with common "ir" words.

• Have your student read 5 - 6 words with 'ir'.

Fingerspelling:

• Say a word from your list and have your student repeat it. (they are not looking at the word, only hearing it)

• Use 5 words that your student will segment the sounds by sounding out the word and use their fingertips to tap on a surface.

Step 2: Reading and Writing Practice

• Do you have specific reading material that targets the letter-combination to give practice seeing the words they need to learn to spell correctly?

Dictation (practicing spelling):

• Dictate 4-5 words for your student to write down.

• Dictate a few sentences for them to write down.

• Say the sentence a few times and have your student repeat it. They could even tap their finger for each word to help them remember the sentence.

• If your child is really young, use very short, simple sentences with 'ir' words to dictate.

• If your child can read already, your sentences can be a little longer.

Copy me in the video:

This is a partial lesson of what I do as an Orton-Gillingham Dyslexia Interventionist. If your student is struggling to remember new letter combinations (phonemes), using this kind of multisensory approach will be very useful in helping them.