Questions and Answers



Actually "Constructing Words" is based upon the same idea as the "Word Climbing" page. By doing the clues written in the "Word Climb", you will be training to make up the clues on the spot for the "Constructing Words" section. When Tim teaches this in a workshop, he gives the first word and then gives clues to transform the original word into the next one. The first 14 words are done with clues. The last word (#15) is made up of all the letters in the letter boxes and makes one big word at the end. The extension words are based upon a rime from the spelling of the first 15 words or a vocabulary collection based on root words / related words in the first 15 words. The idea is to transfer the new knowledge from the spellings or meanings, to other words students will encounter. Many programs simply manipulate letters for the making of words. For years, Tim has been teaching about the additional positive effects gained when a word is spelled and then actually written by the student. When coding is added to each word to show the phonetic features of the word, there is even more value added to the activity.

If they are visually tracking the words while singing a memorized song they are still reading. So remind students to keep tracking the lyrics even when they think they know the song by heart. There are a couple ways to deal with the problem of memorization. First, engage in a study of words from the memorized song. Have students select interesting words from the song and post them on a chart in your classroom. Talk about the words, read the words as a class, and encourage students to use the words in their own oral and written language. Also, do the word study activities we have included in SingReadLearn -- Word Ladders, Making and Writing Words, etc. When students have to deal with words outside of the lyrical context of the song they must virually analyze the word to read it. A second strategy is to find other verses to the same song. When students read a second or third verse to a song they find that the melody and rhythm is the same, but many of the words have changed -- so they need to visually follow the words in order to sing and read. The collection of songs in SingReadLearn have multiple verses!

Teachers have definitely used it as a supplemental reading curriculum. We have a pacing guide for teaching comprehension skills in the upper grades. So by using the comprehension lessons that match our instructional strategy for that month, we are able to use the song lessons to supplement other lessons that we are using based on comprehension strategies.

Yes. By finding songs without a copyright that entice your children, (or getting permission from the copyright owners), transcribing the lyrics, and having them focus on the vocabulary in the text, you will have similar benefits. We have simply done much of that work for the busy teacher who has a life outside of school.

No. This is a curriculum that can transform to fit into your areas of need. School schedules are cramped these days with all kinds of requirements. SingReadLearn can fit into a fluency block, a word block, a comprehension block, or a social studies block.

First grade teachers have told us that many of the songs are appropriate for their children in the second semester of first grade. We suggest Kindergarten teachers choose choruses of the songs and print on charts/overheads for tracking practice. For example, kindergarten students in test classes loved the chorus to Goober Peas and Boatman Dance but sang Michael Row the Boat Ashore in its entirety.

Teachers are given many choices for classroom implementation. The skills in the lessons are not sequential, so that each song can be done in whatever order you desire. A grade level can also choose to simply use the songs and lyrics for fluency work. Another grade level could choose to use the same songs and lyrics but add the word work. When the comprehension unit is added, it becomes a full and rich supplemental reading curriculum. The historical background makes this curriculum applicable to a language arts / social studies classroom.