Conventional and commercial systems may be popular, but they are not necessarily correct.
WordsAhead alleges that our problem begins when our teaching/communication orbits around the alphabetic principle (ABCs).

Popular ≠ Correct


Though often called "phonetic alphabets,"
spelling alphabets HAVE NO CONNECTION to phonetic transcription systems
like the International Phonetic Alphabet.

Eeeeks! 60% taught; 40% not





To make NATO system a bit better, WA recommends "code names" for MIA sounds, as follows:

V01 = /A/ Alpha
V02 = /I/ India
V03 = /O/ Oscar
MIA........... V04 Umbrella
V05 = /E/ Echo
MIA........... V06 Aircraft
MIA........... V07 Icicle
MIA........... V08 Oatmeal
V09 = /U/ Uniform (do we say "oo-nee-form"?) Ooops!
MIA........... V10 Eagle
MIA........... V11 Author
MIA........... V12 Bushwhacked
MIA........... V13 Ouch
MIA........... V14 Oyster
MIA........... V15 Earth
C16 = /P/ Papa
C17 = /B/ Bravo
C18 = /T/ Tango
C19 = /D/ Delta
C20 = /C/ Charlie
C21 = /J/ Juliet
C22 = /K/ Kilo
C22/C28 = /X/ X-Ray
C22/C36 = /Q/ Quebec
C23 = /G/ Golf
C24 = /F/ Foxtrot
C25 = /V/ Victor
MIA........... C26 Thumb
MIA........... C27 Therefore
C28 = /S/ Sierra
C29 = /Z/ Zulu
MIA.......... C30 Shadow
MIA.......... C31 Vision
C32 = /H/ Hotel
C33 = /M/ Mike
C34 = /N/ November
MIA.......... C35 Bling
C36 = /W/ Whiskey
C37 = /L/ Lima
C38 = /R/ Romeo
C39 = /Y/ Yankee

Likewise, educational products based on ABCs may or may not be complete. Buyer beware.

Google search [learn to read] #1 of 45,100,000 possibilities

Starfall is recognized and highly rated by experts.
THE READING TEACHER named Starfall.com
one of "Five Internet sites too good to miss" (May 2006).
In 2005 and again in 2008, HOMESCHOOL.COM recognized Starfall
as one of their top five educational websites.

WordsAhead applauds Starfall's friendly and engaging presentation.
WordsAhead recommends a restructuring, away from ABCs, and criticizes these shortfalls:
1) Stories are too contrived as opposed to other literature options;
2) Vocabulary is too simplistic;
3) Lessons are not provided for V12, V13, V14, C27, C31, and C35.

V01
Zac is a rat. Zac sat on a can.
The ants ran to the jam. Zac had a pan.
The ants ran and ran. Zac had a nap.
Vocabulary: Zac, rat, sat, can, jam, ants, ran, had, pan, fan, nap

Rhyming words with /-an/ • ran, can, pan, fan
Rhyming words with /-at/ • bat, cat, hat, rat
Silent-e • plan/plane • man/mane • van/vane • can/cane

V02
The tin man has a bat. Jill has a mitt.
Zac has a big ball. Will he hit the ball?
The ball hits the mitt. The tin man will not give up.
The tin man hits the ball!
Vocabulary: big, hit, tin, Jill, mitt, will, give

Rhyming words with /-ig/ • big, dig, pig, wig
Rhyming words with /-ip • dip, rip, sip, zip
Make a word to match the picture /-ink/ • drink, pink, sing, wink

V03
Mox is a fox. Mox has a shop.
Bob is a hog. Bob helps Mox.
They mix eggs in a pot. Bob drops the eggs. What a mess!
Bob mops and mops. "Good job!" says Mox.
Vocabulary: Mox, shop, fox, Bob, hog, pot, on, off, drop, mop, job

Rhyming words with /-ot/ • cot, dot, hot, pot
Rhyming words with /-og/ • dog, fog, log, frog

V04
Gus runs in the mud. Gus gets in the tub.
The tub has suds. Gus rubs and rubs.
Gus has a sub. A bug is in the sub!
It is fun in the tub. Gus hugs the bug.
Vocabulary: Gus, duck, run, mud, tub, sud, rub, sub, bug, fun, hug

Rhyming words with /-ug/ • bug, hug, mug, rug

V05
Peg is a red hen. Peg gets set to go.
Peg gets in a green jet. The jet is fast.
Peg gets wet. The jet gets in a web!
Peg falls and falls. Peg falls into bed.
Vocabulary: Peg, hen, red, get, set, jet, egg, wet, web, bed

Rhyming words with /-en/ • hen, men, pen, ten
Rhyming words with /-et/ • jet, net, pet, wet

V06
This is Jake. Jake makes waves.
A whale is in the waves. Is Jake safe?
Yes, the whale came to play. They like the same game.
Vocabulary: Jake, tale, make, wave, whale, safe, came, same, game

Picture Hunt • cane, lake, snake, plane, gate, cave, skate, rake, sale
Silent-e • can/cane • man/mane • plan/plane • van/vane

V07
Spot is black and white. He rides bikes with Mike and Spike.
Mike has a kite. "Let's chase Mike," says Spike.
They play hide and seek. Yikes! They land in slime!
Vocabulary: ride, white, bike, Mike, Spike, kite, hide, yikes, slime

Make a word to match the picture • bike, five, hide, kite
/Y/ can be a Vowel • why, my, try

V08
"My soap boat is sailing away!" cries Joe.
The soap boat is lost in the sea. "What is this?" says a fish.
A whale is under the water. The soap boat floats on top.
A bird grabs the soap boat. The bird drops the soap boat.
It's my soap boat!" says Joe.
Vocabulary: soap, boat, float

This is a robot. His nose is a cone.
His legs are made of hose. Mr. Mole is in the hole.
"I can help," says Mr. Mole.
"Go up this rope," says Mr. Mole. "Thanks Mr. Mole!" says the robot.
Vocabulary: mole, nose, cone, hose, hole, rope

My name is Tory. I live on a farm.
I have a horse. Her name is Glory.
Glory plays in her corral.
I forgot to close the gate and Glory got out.
I had to find her! I found her with a thorn in her foot.
I called the animal doctor for help.
Now Glory is back to normal.
Vocabulary: horse, glory, Tory, corral, forgot, thorn, normal

Make a word to match the picture • bone, mole, nose (mispronounced), robe
Picture Hunt • bone, pole, mole, rose, hose, cone, robe, rope
Make a word to match the picture • corn, fork, fort, horn
Picture Hunt • horse, fork, unicorn, horn, storm, fort, score, corn

V09
Luke's best friend is Dune Buggy.
They play in the sand dunes.
They turn left/right.
Dune Buggy rides on his back/side wheels.
They drive over/under the dune.
Luke and Dune Buggy spin/flip.
Luke and Dune Buggy rule the dunes!
Vocabulary: dune, Luke, rule

Make a word to match the picture • tube, flute • With C-Sound 39, cube, mule

V10
Pete can not sleep. Pete needs help.
"Think of sheep," says Mom.
"One, two, three sheep," says Pete.
Then Pete sees sheep! The sheep run past the tree!
At last, Pete can sleep.
Vocabulary: sleep, need, sheep, three, see, tree

(Very clever camera/scrapbook feature, too.)
This is my family. Mommy, Daddy, and me!
Mommy is going to have a baby.
She brings home a new baby sister. "This is Tiny," says Daddy.
"Does she like big trucks?" I ask. "Tiny likes you," says Mommy.
I act silly for Tiny. Tiny smiles. I love Tiny.
Vocabulary: hazy, lazy, family, mommy, daddy, baby, Tiny, silly

Make a word to match the picture • deer, heel, peel, seed

V11
Carla and Mark have go carts.
Carla is number five. Mark is number seven.
"Let's race," says Mark. START.
Get ready, get set, go! (Interactive racing feature begins.)
Mark/Carla can't pass Carla/Mark.
Mark/Carla hits a bump. Carla/Mark is in the lead.
Carla/Mark wins! She/he is the star.
Vocabulary: car, Carla, Mark, cart, start, star

Make a word to match the picture • card, farm, harp, park

V12 Missing................
/oo/hook, /u/put, /ou/could

V13 Missing................
/ow/down - /ou_e/mouse - /ou/found

V14 Missing................
/oy/boy - /oi/coin - /oi_e/noise

V15
Fern likes to surf at Bird Rock. Bird Rock has the best waves.
Here is a big wave. Fern has to turn fast.
Here is a bigger wave. Fern swims to meet it.
Here comes the biggest wave. The wave curls over and makes a tube.
Surfing in the tube is fun!
Fern wants to surf all day. Her dad says, "No way."
Vocabulary: Fern, surf, bird, turn, curl

Make a word to match the picture • fern, herd, bird, girl, curl, surf

C16 /Pp/ • pepperoni pizza, pink pigs, puppies
C17 /Bb/ • bee, bouncing ball, boy, big brown bear
C18 /Tt/ • train, tiger, teeth, ten, taxi
C19 /Dd/ • dancing doll, duck, dinosaur
C20 /CHch/ • choo-cho, much, each, such, cheese, chase
C21 /Jj/ • jet, jump, jellybeans • Jump frog, jump!
C22 /Cc/ • cat, cow, computer, camp
C22/C28 /Xx/ • x-ray, ox, box, fox, six
C22/C36 /QUqu/ • queen, quilt, question
C23 /Gg/ • girl, gorilla, go, G Avenue, green • Gumball machine!
C24 /Ff/ • fox, fish, five fingers
C25 /Vv/ • vacuum, violin, volcano, van
C26 /THth/ • thumb, with, think, thing, teeth, earth
C27 Missing................ /th/this
C28 /Ss/ see-saw, snake, skateboard, sunglasses
C29 /Zz/ • zebra, zipper, zoo, zig-zag • Zig-zag kids!
C30 /SHsh/ • sheep, wish, fish, shop, she
C31 Missing................ /z/azure, /s/vision
C32 /Hh/ • horn, helicopter, hummingbird, horse
C32+36/WHwh/ • whale, where, why, when, what
C33 /Mm/ • monkey, moon, motorcycle, masks
C34 /Nn/ • nighttime, nest, number nine, net
C35 Missing................ /ng/sing
C36 /Ww/ • web, wolf, walk, wigs
C37 /Ll/ • lightning, lots of lips, log, locks
C38 /Rr/ • rainbow, rain, red rose, rectangle, robot
C39 /Yy/ • yawn, yellow yo-yo, yodel

WordsAhead urges a sound foundation for language learning and studying author vocabulary, ahead of time. Do the following popular educational materials measure up?

In Peter Drucker's words, Nothing is less productive than to make more efficient what should not be done at all.

Zoo-Phonics

V01 /a/ Allie Alligator
V02 /i/ Innie Inchworm
V03 /o/ Olive Octopus
V04 /u/ Umber Umbrella Bird
V05 /e/ Ellie Elephant
V06 Missing; use C28 Snake /a_e/
V07 Missing; use C18 Tiger /i/
V08 Missing; use C32 Horse /o_e/
V09 Missing; use C22 Kangaroo /00/
V10 Missing; use C19 Deer /ee/
V11 Missing; use C22/28 Xavier /a/
V12 Missing................
V13 Missing; use C33 Mouse /ou_e/
V14 Missing................
V15 Missing; use V02 Inchworm /or/
C16 /p/ Pee Wee Penguin
C17 /b/ Bubba Bear
C18 /t/ Timothy Tiger
C19 /d/ Dee Dee Deer
C20 Missing; use V02 Inchworm /ch/
C21 /j/ Jerry Jelly Fish
C22 /c/Catina Cat, plus /k/ Kayo Kangaroo
C22+36 /qu/ Queenie Quail
C22+28 /x/ Xavier Fox
C23 /g/ Gordo Gorilla
C24 /f/ Francie Fish
C25 /v/ Vincent Vampire Bat
C26 Missing...............
C27 Missing.................
C28 /s/ Sammy Snake
C29 /z/ Zeke Zebra
C30 Missing; use C24 Fish /sh/
C31 Missing...................
C32 /h/ Honey Horse
C33 /m/ Missy Mouse
C34 /n/ Nigel Night Owl
C35 Missing....................
C36 /w/ Willie Weasel
C37 /l/ Lizzy Lizard
C38 /r/ Robbie Rabbit
C39 /y/ Yancie Yak

SRA Open Court
Sound-Spelling Cards

V01 /a/ lamb
V02 /i/ pig
V03 /o/ fox
V04 /u/ tug
V05 /e/ hen
V06 /Aa/ Missing..........
V07 /Ii/ Missing............
V08 /Oo/ Missing.............
V09 /oo/ goo
V10 /Ee/ Missing................
V11 /a/ armadillo/aw/ hawk
V12 /oo/ foot
V13 /ow/ cow
V14 /oi/ coil
V15 /ir/ bird
C16 /p/ popcorn
C17 /b/ ball
C18 /t/ timer
C19 /d/ dinosaur
C20 /ch/chipmunk
C21 /j/ jump
C22 /c/ camera
C22+36 /qu/quacking ducks
C22+28 /x/ exit
C23 /g/ gopher
C24 /f/ fan
C25 /v/ vacuum
C26 /th/ thimble
C27 Missing......................
C28 /s/ sausages
C29 /z/ zipper
C30 /sh/ shell
C31 Missing.................
C32 /h/ hound
C32+36 /wh/ whales
C33 /m/ monkey
C34 /n/ nose
C35 /ng/ gong
C36 /w/ washer
C37 /l/ lion
C38 /r/ robot
C39 /y/ yaks

Houghton Mifflin
Sound/Spelling Cards

V01 /a/ apple
V02 /i/ igloo
V03 /o/ ostrich
V04 /u/ umbrella
V05 /e/ elephant
V06 /a/ acorn
V07 /i_e/ ice cream
V08 /o/ ocean, orange
V09 /oo/ moon; C39+V09 /u/ unicorn
V10 /ea/ eagle
V11 /a/ art; /aw/ saw
V12 /oo/ cook
V13 /ow/ owl
V14 /oi/ boy
V15 /ir/ bird
C16 /p/ pig
C17 /b/ bear
C18 /t/ tiger
C19 /d/ duck
C20 /ch/chick
C21 /j/ jumping
C22 /c/ cat; /k/ kangaroo
C22+36 /qu/queen
C22+28 /x/ fox
C23 /g/ goose
C24 /f/ fish
C25 /v/ volcano
C26 /th/ thumb
C27 Missing......................
C28 /s/ seal
C29 /z/ zebra
C30 /sh/ sheep
C31 Missing.................
C32 /h/ horse
C32+36 /wh/ whale
C33 /m/ mouse
C34 /n/ noodle
C35 Missing.................
C36 /w/ worm
C37 /l/ lion
C38 /r/ rooster
C39 /y/ yo-yo

Scott Foresman
Click N Read Phonics - Grade K

In the Letter Sound Chamber, these letter sounds are taught:
A - AI - AL - AR - AW - AY - B - C - C soft - CH - CK - D - E - EA - EE - ER - EW - EY - F - G - G soft - H - I - IR - J - K - KN - L - M - N - NG - NK - O - OA - OI - OO - OR - OU - OW - P - PH - QU - R - S - SK - SL - SH - ST - T - TH - TR - U - UE - UR - V - W - WH - WR - X - Y - Z

From information I read on the web about this program, I am guessing the following:

V01 /a/
V02 /i/
V03 /o/
V04 /e/the - /o/of - /u/
V05 /e/ -/ai/said
V06 /ai/ - /ay - /ey/they
V07 /i/
V08 /o/for - /oa/
V09 /ou/you - /o/to - /ew/ - /ue/
V10 /ee/ - /ea/ - /ey/
V11 /aw/
V12 /oo/
V13 /ou/ - /ow/
V14 /oi/
V15 /er/ - /ir/ - /or/ - /ur/
C16 /p/
C17 /b/
C18 /t/
C19 /d/
C20 /ch/
C21 /j/ - /g/
C22 /c/ - /k/ - /ck/
C22+28 /x/
C22+36 /qu/
C23 /g/
C24 /f/ - /ph/
C25 /v/
C26 /th/
C27 Missing................
C28 /s/ - /c/
C29 /z/
C30 /sh/
C31 Missing................
C32 /h/
C32-36 /wh/
C33 /m/
C34 /n/ - /kn/
C35 /ng/
C36 /w/
C37 /l/
C38 /r/ - /wr/
C39 /y/

Core Knowledge
Reading Program [K]

Version 1.0 of the Core Knowledge Reading Program was piloted in ten schools in eight states during the 2007-2008 school year. About 40 teachers and 800 students are participating.

Sound-spellings are taught as follows:
V01 /a/
V02 /i/
V03 /o/
V04 /u/ - /e/the; - /a/ - /o/of
V05 /e/
V06 /a_e/ - /ai/ - /ay/
V07 /i_e/ - /ie/ - /igh/
V08 /o_e/ - /o/ - /oe/ - /ow/ - /oa/ - /o_e/ - /ou/
V09 /ou/you - /oo/soon; C39+V09 /u_e/ cute
V10 /ee/ - /e/ - /ea/ - /y/
V11 Missing................
V12 /oo/book - /ou/could
V13 /ou/out - /ow/
V14 /oi/oil - /oy/
V15 /er/ - /ar/ - /or/ - /ir/ - /ur/
C16 /p/
C17 /b/
C18 /t/
C19 /d/
C20 /ch/
C21 /j/
C22 /c/ - /k/
C22+28 /x/
C22+36 /qu/
C23 /g/
C24 /f/ - /ff/
C25 /v/
C26 /th/
C27 /th/
C28 /s/ - /ss/
C29 /z/ - /s/
C30 /sh/
C31 Missing................
C32 /h/
C33 /m/
C34 /n/
C35 /ng/
C36 /w/
C37 /l/ - /ll/
C38 /r/
C39 /y/
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)