Strategies for Tackling Unknown Words
Dear Parents,
As your child becomes a more confident reader, they might come across words that they don’t know. The following strategies will help your child decode these unknown words without guessing:
1.Use Phonics to Decode a Word
Help your child segment the word into individual sounds. For example, in the word “mat,” your child would say /m/ /a/ /t/.
Once the word is broken down, have them blend the sounds together to say the word. For example, /m/+/a/+/t/= “mat.”
2. Look for Familiar Letter Patterns and Word Families
If your child knows the word “cat,” they can use that knowledge to figure out, “hat,” “bat,” and “rat.”
Encourage them to recognize common word endings like -ing, -ed, or -ly, which will help them decode a wider variety of words.
3. Use Morphology (Understanding Word Parts)
Example: in the word “happiness” your child can break it into “happy” (the root) and “-ness” (the suffix that turns it into a noun).
Example: in the word “untie,” your child can recognize the prefix “un-” (meaning “not”) and the root word “tie.”
4. Check for Context (but don’t guess)
While we avoid guessing, the context clues can still help confirm whether the decoded word makes sense in the sentence. Encourage your child to:
Reread the sentence and check if the word they decoded fits both in meaning and structure.
Use the surrounding words to confirm the word they have decoded is correct
5. Build Confidence Through Repetition
Reread familiar texts to reinforce decoding skills
6. Celebrate Effort, Not Just Success
Praise your child for their effort in using decoding strategies. Place emphasis on the process- how they used phonics or a word family-helps build confidence and persistence.
Please see the other side of this document for comprehension strategies: