AIBU to want to be pedantic --an arse-- over year R phonics

[ilikepie]

'Please ask children to give examples of the sound 'ow' as in 'snow' and 'Cow'.

They are clearly 2 different sounds; does it matter? It's annoying me but maybe it's the way its done.

Yes, they are two different sounds and children need to be taught that. 'ow' as in 'snow' (show, low, flow etc) and 'ow' as in 'cow' (now, how etc.).

It sounds as though they are just asking for two different sounds, nothing to get annoyed with. One rhymes with snow and one rhymes with cow,

That grapheme 'ow' is taught as two phonemes.

From the example words you've given They may be using Read Write
Inc. ow blow the snow and ow brown cow.

However, I'd never teach these simultaneously. It's ow blow the snow first (Set 2 Sound) then, when secure with one graphemes per phoneme, I'd progress to Set 3, which is alternative graphemes and includes ow brown cow.

Worth clarifying with school.

I had many moments with YR phonics and reading, but a friend who is a KS1 teacher told me to leave the teacher to it.

By Christmas of Y1 everything came together, and now - nearly a term later - DS is on the cusp of free reading.

So it looks like IABU, DC just have to buckle down and learn that ow has 2 sounds from the off then?

So it looks like IABU, DC just have to buckle down and learn that ow has 2 sounds from the off then?

I think that is the idea!

Isn't that the point, to show/learn that "ow" makes two different sounds?

Yes, looks as though the school are introducing both sounds together. I'd write a load of 'ow' words on separate cards, read them with DC and get them to sort them into separate piles.

It was the oo sound in look and food that confused me, luckily my 4 year olds seem to know what they're doing

I just thought they were learning one sound per letter combination at the moment and thought it could be confusing to try two at once. However they (the teachers) are doing a good job so far of teaching reading so I guess I should let them do their job eh? Thanks for clarifying that I am indeed an arse.

DS is currently learning 'there' and 'were' at the same time. It's not easy being 5yrs old!

That sound (oe) can be represented by words like: no, go, snow, bone, home, most, though, (the 'ough' spelling of the sound is probably taught later).
The 'ow' sound is represented by cow, ow, ouch, wow.
Later they are taught that the same spelling can represent more than one sound; eg, cow and snow.
I think the teacher has got a bit confused maybe. It is a bit confusing.
Ok must now have a cup of tea.

Write on it and send it back

Wow how can you show snow and cow rhyme? I didn't know!

'Please ask children to give examples of the sound 'ow' as in 'snow' and 'Cow'.

This is a confusing way of explaining it. It would have been better to ask for examples of the spelling pattern/digraph "ow" making the sound "oa" as in "snow" and "ou" as in "cow".
The homework quoted says "sound" as if there was one sound, but then asks children to investigate 2 different sounds.

In Reception, children are usually introduced to 1 way of writing each of the sounds in the English language.
In year 1 then learn that some sounds can be written in different ways (eg "ee" in "see" and "ea" in "sea"). They also learn that one spelling pattern can represent different sounds.

Later in the year (maybe terms 5 and 6) the most able children in Reception may be introduced to alternative spellings and pronunciations if they are ready, and teachers may discuss particular spellings when they arise naturally (eg I know one of the teachers at my school discussed "oy". They follow Jolly Phonics so had learned the "oi" digraph, but the children were wanting to write the word "toy" quite often)

It's quite unusual introduce 2 alternative pronunciations at the same time in Reception

I have just been doing the alernative sound for 'ow' (as in snow) with my year 1 class. If following letters and sounds it 'ow' as in 'cow' is a phase 3 grapheme where as 'ow' as in 'snow' is a phase 5 grapheme.

I would never teach them together especially in Reception as I feel it to be far too confusing but I know fellow teachers that find it easier to teach all alternative pronunciation at the same time.

Gosh they like to make it all as complicated as possible nowadays don't they?

Is this how kids are taught to read these days? I find that really confusing! I'm not going to be much help when my daughter starts school aM i?! What happened to just stringing together the sounds of the individual letters and building the word up?

At DD's school they learn ow (brown cow) and ow (blow the snow) at the same time, and also oo (zoo) and oo (look in a book) together. It doesn't seem to have confused them.

I think it would be more confusing to learn that ow always makes a particular sound and then later be told actually it doesn't.