Multisyllabic Word Reading Strategy (5th Grade Text)

Why, When & How to Teach Multisyllabic Word Reading Strategy

**WHY**
By 5th grade, multisyllabic words make up most of the words in texts students encounter. In order for students to be able to fluently read and comprehend text, we must explicitly teach them how to read multisyllabic words. Decoding and fluency are prerequisites for comprehension. Decoding instruction often stops after 2nd grade, but text gets more complex and decoding of multisyllabic words needs to be taught explicitly beginning in 2nd grade and continuing through the elementary grades.

**WHEN**
About 20 minutes a day, everyday with at least 50% of the time spent on text reading!
1st grade: By the end of the year your students will be reading multisyllabic words with two syllables. Whenever there is a multisyllabic word that fits your sound-spelling focus within your decodable, teach your students the multisyllabic word reading strategy.
2nd grade: All year, during sound-spelling focused phonics lessons, pull multisyllabic words from the text and blend those words. By mid-year, start putting more emphasis on decoding multisyllabic words. Pull multisyllabic words from your main selection as well as decodable readers.
3rd – 5th grades: Multisyllabic word reading will be the primary focus of your phonics lessons. Sound-spelling focus will have been mastered by most, so focus on multisyllabic word reading pulling words from the texts you use in your class.

**HOW**
1st – 2nd grades: Use your spelling scope and sequence to drive the focus of your Tier I, whole group, phonics lessons. When the decodable text includes multisyllabic words with the same sound-spelling, teach them with the multisyllabic word reading strategy during the word blending portion of your lesson.
By mid-year in 2nd grade, start teaching more multisyllabic focused phonics lessons. Most likely you will have to go beyond decodables that fit your sound-spelling focus and use any text. Use text you are already using during your week’s instruction. For example, your main selection! (Read 3rd – 5th for more information.)
3rd – 5th grades: Using your main selection for the week, choose a section for each day, and pull multisyllabic words to create your lesson. Use that portion of text for your phonics lesson.