Orthos LiteracyREADING • INSTRUCTION • PRACTICEFree resources
Start with something useful.
Examine a lesson, try a teaching example, or prepare for a conversation about reading.
Free welcome resource / 21-page PDF
Sharks.
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Your complete 21-page store packet: two reading versions, a substitute plan, fact-or-myth activity, comprehension, fact sorting, word work, writing, games and answer keys. Join the Reading Brief to get it free.
Preview & get the lessonSuggested for grades 4–9 with reading support matched to the learner.
Also free / Phonics practice
The closed-syllable sample.
The original four-page lesson remains available: teacher guidance, student practice, answer key, and an observation record.
Open the closed-syllable PDF ↗Open teaching notes
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Short examples for thinking about instruction and supporting a conversation with a teacher.
Word structure
Look inside unlock.
Start with the familiar base lock. In unlock, the prefix un- reverses the action.
- Read and discuss “lock the door.”
- Write un + lock, then read unlock.
- Compare “lock the door” and “unlock the door.”
- Ask the learner to explain the difference and use each word in a sentence.
A teaching consideration
Select examples that fit the learner’s vocabulary and spelling knowledge. Do not teach that a prefix has the same meaning in every word. For example, unhappy uses un- to mean “not.”
For families
Four questions for the next conversation.
Keep the discussion focused on the learner’s needs, the teaching plan, and how progress will be reviewed.
- Which skills need support, and what information shows that?
- What will instruction and practice look like?
- How will progress be checked, and when will we discuss it?
- What is one manageable way to support the work at home?
Bring the learner’s interests and strengths into the discussion. This guide supports a conversation; it does not diagnose a reading difficulty.
Free on TPT
Try a decodable passage.
Explore an older-reader short-vowel and digraph sample. The download is provided through TPT.
View the free TPT sample →From the archive
Teaching closed syllables.
Read the explanation behind a simple, explicit word-level routine.
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