When learning to read, several factors come into play, such as phonemic awareness, decoding and reading comprehension, and the newly developed learning videos that accompany our CVC Emergent Readers eBooks are not only in line with our existing progression, but also allow for learners to practice the above skills in fun and engaging ways!

Our CVC Emergent Readers eBooks first introduce learners to different word endings categorized by the following vowel sounds: Short ‘A’, Short ‘E’, Short ‘I’, Short ‘O’, Short ‘U’ and mixes. As students are watching the videos that accompany these eBooks, they will be asked listen to the words being read, practice pronouncing them and then be challenged to read the words themselves. In following this structure, students will not only hear the words several times but will also have a chance to say the words multiple times, thus reinforcing learning and strengthening their phonemic awareness skills.

Once young readers have practiced developing their phonemic awareness skills, the next set of eBooks and learning videos revisit the vocabulary they have already learned, only this time the short vowel sound words are mixed together; and in addition to focusing on ending sounds, the videos also work on developing decoding skills that play an important role in allowing children to recognize familiar words with ease and in helping them to figure out words they haven’t seen before.

When learning to read, not only is it important for students to be able to sound out and decode words, but it is also essential for children to put into practice vocabulary they have read, which is why this set of learning videos was created to accompany each of our thematic CVC Words eBooks.

After having practiced reading CVC words in multiple ways, this last set of eBooks and accompanying learning videos give students a chance to show off their newly learned skills as they are encouraged to try reading and putting into context not one, but two words per page!

The 60 CVC Words videos are now available and are suitable for both classroom and at-home use. Explore our purchasing options to learn more and stay tuned for an upcoming set of videos that will accompany the rest of our Emergent and Transitional Readers eBooks.

​Looking for a way to assess reading skills in addition to teaching them? Learn more our editable Reading Assessment Forms that will allow you to track student progress right from the beginning stages of learning how to read!

At Education by Shala Books we are always looking for ways to enhance our existing resources and so when Timmy Riday, an English teacher and Qingdao LEKU Education & Culture Entertainment Co. Ltd. proposed the creation of learning videos to accompany our existing Emergent and Transitional Readers eBooks, it was an idea we immediately jumped on as we could see the value in them for learners. Do you have an idea that you feel would be of benefit?  If so, feel free to contact us to discuss selling opportunities on our website!

For young learners, the jump from reading one word to two words on a page can seem like a huge leap, which is why our series of CVC, CCVC, CVCC and Sight Words eBooks gradually build young readers competencies, moving from two word, to three and finally four to five-word sentences per page. In addition to the eBooks, we now offer editable reading assessment forms to help you evaluate students every step of the way on their reading journey, as shown in the sample below.

These reading assessment sheets accompany each of our sight word eBooks and incorporate tips for implementing them in one’s classroom or as part of one’s homeschooling program, including the ones below.

Our eBook collections have been scaffolded to afford students the opportunity to practice sight words singly before moving on to books that combine multiple sight words alongside CVC, CCVC and/or CVCC words in a sentence. When it comes to tracking student progress, our reading assessment tools can be used to note how successful a student is at decoding each word prior to progressing to the next book or set of books. In practice this would mean tallying the total of words read correctly and if the learner achieves a score of 90% or higher, deeming them successful and ready to be evaluated on another book.

As a student is reading, space for you to note reading skills observed has been provided on the reading assessment tool. This area can be used to jot down observations, like if the learner is looking at the picture for clues, is able to sound out all the letters, is able to read with fluency, etc. After listening to the child read and marking their score you can add notes for next steps, which could include areas to work on during upcoming lessons.

We have also included a reading comprehension page for you to ask questions at the end of each assessment. These have been left blank for you to create and insert questions of your own which can include things like:

Whether you choose to use the reading comprehension section as part of the overall score that determines whether a student is ready to be assessed on the next book (or set of books), or simply as practice for answering comprehension questions in the future, is up to your discretion.

The purpose of our program is to assist you in identifying student gaps in reading so that you can help your students to build a strong foundation; that said, how often you assess learners is your choice. It may be that you feel it best to evaluate students after introducing and teaching each new sight word, at the end of each term to provide feedback to parents on how their child is doing and plan steps forward for the next term, etc.

Do you need to assess students on every single book? Not necessarily. While some might find it helpful to test students on each book, others may find that assessing students after a set number of eBooks read more beneficial, and this is fine as long as you feel you have sufficient feedback from which to inform and guide upcoming lessons.

At Education by Shala Books, we recognize that not everyone’s needs are the same, which is why our templates are available in an editable Word format so that you may customize them as you see fit. Have questions about our early readers program and/or assessment tools? Contact us! We are happy to help.