Helpful Websites
Helpful Websites
The Free Reading Program is a robust Kindergarten to Grade 6 online learning program. 266 learning units and over 3600 interactive learning activities are designed to engage young learners and instill confidence through a quiz and success based teaching approach.
Our curriculum was originally designed by literacy experts for use in schools. The activities are based on leading educational research and the most thoroughly proven and effective teaching practices. The original content and software was developed by Essential Skills Software to run on personal computers. The program is incredibly effective and has been used in over 20,000 schools across North America.
At FES we use the Heggerty curriculum in K-1, Title I lessons and special education classes. Phonemic awareness is a necessary skill to master before phonics. These videos demonstrate phonemic awareness. Notice the differences below.
Phonemic Awareness is not Phonics
In a Phonemic Awareness Lesson…
Main focus is on the phonemes (sounds)
Deals with spoken language
Activities are auditory
Students work with manipulating sounds & sounds in words
In a Phonics Lesson…
Main focus is on the graphemes (letters)
Deals with written language and print
Activities are both visual and auditory
Students work with reading and writing letters according to their sounds, spelling patterns, and phonological structure
The SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Daytime Emmy®-nominated and award-winning children’s literacy website, Storyline Online®, streams videos featuring celebrated actors reading children’s books alongside creatively produced illustrations. Readers include Oprah Winfrey, Chris Pine, Kristen Bell, Rita Moreno, Viola Davis, Jaime Camil, Kevin Costner, Lily Tomlin, Sarah Silverman, Betty White, Wanda Sykes and dozens more.
Reading aloud to children has been shown to improve reading, writing and communication skills, logical thinking and concentration, and general academic aptitude, as well as inspire a lifelong love of reading. Teachers use Storyline Online in their classrooms, and doctors and nurses play Storyline Online in children’s hospitals.
Storyline Online is available 24 hours a day for children, parents, caregivers and educators worldwide. Each book includes supplemental curriculum developed by a credentialed elementary educator, aiming to strengthen comprehension and verbal and written skills for English-language learners.