Review

Some students might read and spell through all of the words in one session, only to return to the “guess” habit in the next. It is normal for students to periodically return to old habits. It is very difficult for a few students to stop guessing. They are disinclined to see and process the printed words on the page. Gentle reminders from you will be in order if this occurs. Give your student plenty of time to do the mental work involved in making needed adjustments and becoming a disciplined reader.

Even More Ideas for Interrupting the Hard-to-Break Habit of Guessing

Remind your student that any ingrained habit is difficult to break, but it can be done!

• “Trust Your Eyes” Tell your student to take a deep breath, exhale, relax, and read the word to which you are pointing. He must focus on what he sees and not rely on his memory. Say to him, “What do you see on the page? Trust your eyes. Look at the letters. Sound out the letters of the word.” Many times a student will recognize a word when he hears himself speak it.
• “One More Time” Explain a troublesome letter or syllable pattern one more time. (And again and again, if necessary!)
• “Review Until Smooth” Review words from an earlier lesson. Drill with the student until his reading is quick and smooth.
• “Push the Card” One reading interventionist that we know places a 3 x 5 index card on the left side of a word that her student will be reading. She then pushes the card across the word, left to right, as he reads it. The purpose of this is to cause her student to have to read quickly, without hesitation. You can draw an arrow on the right edge of your card (→)to prompt additional focus.
• “Get Ready!” Say to your student, “Get ready!” Wait one second, then cue him to start reading an indicated word list.
• “Close the Eyes Technique” Tell your student to close his eyes. Tell him that you are going to point to one word on the page. You want him to open his eyes when he is ready and to read the word. Then, continue to read through the list. This activity is designed to help students who can’t seem to see what is printed on the page. As mentioned earlier, research indicates that the part of the brain used in pattern reading is different from the part of the brain used in working from memory. This “close the eyes” technique seems to help some students use the part of their brain that is geared for reading.

Be creative and trust your own ability to think of ways to help your student.