Whats your Phonics Secret?

Let me share a phonics secret that has succeeded in my classroom. The answer is Secret Stories by Katie Garner. The science behind Secret Stories is that it is a brain-based approach that acts as a memory enhancer for students. Students’ brains will learn why letters and letter combos make a particular sound. Secret Stories is not an individual phonics program but a supplementary tool to other programs. I often pair the secret story cards with UFLI Foundations and amplify skills.

With these secrets, my students can remember letter sounds and become learning detectives in their reading. The “au/aw” secret is that they have a huge crush on each other and often say au/aw when they spot their crush.

This program is excellent for kindergarten to fourth grade. My first-grade students have enjoyed learning about secrets and using their reading magnifying glasses in their stories. We would then use our detective notebooks to list the secret sound at the top of the page and all our discovered words underneath it. This process improves fluency and writing skills.

References:
Garner, K. (n.d.). Secret Stories. https://www.thesecretstories.com/how-phonics-works/phonics-stories/