A Teachable Moment During Dictation

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Ashton Smith: So Noah, what letter do I need to put for ...

Noah: 'C'! 

Ashton Smith: 'C.' Kiss your brain.

Narrator: The kindergartners in Ashton Smith's class recently learned that there are three ways to spell the /k/ sound. With a 'c', a 'k', or 'ck'. Often students will mix these up as they experiment with these patterns and learn how they work. Let's watch how Ms. Smith handles one of these expected mix ups.

Ashton Smith: This word is going to be really tricky, so you're going to have to make two decisions for your /k/ sound. Okay? So listen to your vowel and listen to where your /k/ sound is. Tapper's up. Your word is kick.

Students: Kick.

Ashton Smith: Let's tap it.

Together: /k/, /ĭ/, /k/. Kick.

Narrator: Ms. Smith and paraprofessional Diamond Jones. Circle the room as they check the student's work, either reinforcing the correct spelling or offering positive error correction, giving their students the chance to learn from their mistakes.

Ashton Smith: Good job, Tran. Okay, Noah, I have a question. Can we use 'ck' at the beginning of a word?

Noah: Yeah. Wait. No, at the end.

Ashton Smith: At the end. So not 'ck'. What would we put here?

Noah: 'T'.

Ashton Smith: What's your vowel sound?

Noah: /k/. Wait. 'K'!

Ashton Smith: Very good.

Narrator: This wasn't a random mistake, but a logical one. Noah did spell the /k/ sound just with the wrong letters for this situation. Ms. Smith gave Noah the feedback and time he needed to figure out the right letter. She's created an environment of trust where learning grows from mistakes. With Noah's permission, she's going to share this teachable moment with the whole class.

Ashton Smith: Noah wrote 'c', 'k', 'i', 'c', 'k', but we talked about it and can 'ck' go at the beginning of a word?

Students: No. It can't.

Narrator: And best of all, Noah comes out feeling great about what he learned.

Reading Universe is made possible by generous support from Jim and Donna Barksdale, the Hastings/Quillen Fund, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, the AFT, the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation, and anonymous donors. Special thanks to Hope Hill Elementary, Reading is Essential for All People, and Atlanta Public Schools. If you enjoyed this video, please subscribe to our YouTube channel @RUTeaching. Reading Universe is a service of WETA, Washington D.C., the Barksdale Reading Institute, and First Book.

Ashton Smith: My name is Ashton Smith and this is Reading Universe.