Megawords uses a six-step approach to help students learn, understand, and spell mega (large or multi-syllabic) words through a variety of learning styles. Utilizing spelling rules and spelling patterns, the series is sequential, with words building in complexity in both phonic and structural elements. Megawords targets and strengthens students’ literacy skills and teaches spelling within the context of reading and writing and accommodates struggling spellers. Between 431–781 words are learned in each level, grouped by phonetic structure. The 44 word lists can be extensive, so many worksheets follow to practice each word at least once in an exercise. The pacing of this program can be adjusted based on your student’s ability and complexity of the word list. Your student may only have the bandwidth for one worksheet when learning the initial skills but may find the other activity-centered practice worksheets in the lesson easier to accomplish.
General placement in this program can easily be determined based on skills your student knows. For example, if you are working with older students, ask, does your student understand the Syllabication Rule and can they break words down to the syllable level? If yes, then you do not need level 1. Each following level of this program (2-8) focuses on a specific skill: Prefixes/Suffixes, Shwa Sound, Advanced Suffixes, Vowel Variations, Consonant Variations, Unaccented Vowels, and Assimilated Prefixes. Levels based on skills help you know where a good entry point is for older students.
STUDENT WORKBOOKS
These black and white, consumable student books have the
goal “to teach students word attack strategies that they can apply to sounding
out any unfamiliar word.” This is accomplished by starting with the basic
building block of language, the syllable. Syllables are then combined into
whole words, used in context, and practiced in a variety of multisensory
activities. Worksheets explain and offer practice for the rules or patterns
found in the word list. Varied exercises focus on reading, spelling, and
vocabulary.
TEACHER EDITIONS
These are presented in a lay-flat spiral binding and contain more specific information about the approach, the Six-Step Teaching Strategy. You are provided with a “soft scripted” lesson-by-lesson plan, reduced student pages with answers, reproducible assessments for each list and recording forms, and versions of reference material from the Student Book.
ASSESSMENT BOOK
This is a spiral-bound resource intended for all levels of Megawords. It provides a full diagnostic measure of the decoding and encoding skills taught at each level. The test format is great for appropriate placement in the program, accurately diagnosing skills in certain areas, providing pre- and post-test comparisons for documentation of progress, and developing individual goals and objectives. The Assessment Book is reproducible, so it can be used repeatedly as students work through the series. ~Rebecca
