When I teach my students how to read, long vowel sounds are one of the most difficult things for them to learn. The silent "e" basically makes a vowel go from saying the short sound to the long sound, or as I tell the kids, makes it say its own name. In a word, such as cake, it looks like this a_e (a dash e). I had tried using what I learned "the first one does the talking, the second one does the walking"--does anyone remember this??? But this didn't make a big enough impact on the students. I saw another teacher telling the kids about the POWER OF SILENT "E" and I saw how they responded, so I began using it. Of course, along with that goes the silliness that it entails. In selling this idea, you have to flex your biceps, like a bodybuilder, and make the bodybuilder sounds...no matter HOW silly you look! The sillier you look, the more impact it has on the kids! The kids love to show THE POWER of silent "e" and it helps them to remember when they are sounding out a word.
This was my first time using live video and it was tough. Sometimes the video looks like just still pictures, but I guess that's because I am shooting the video through my not very expensive digital camera. But I think it's not too bad for my first attempt! I won't quit my day job, which, after watching this video might actually be in jeopardy! LOL And, sorry, it's a wee bit over 2 minutes.
Click to play
You can also find this video at my blip.tv station. Just click on the following link: http://ljscils598f08.blip.tv/file/1447045/
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