TExES Core Subjects EC-6 (391)

The alphabetic principle is the understanding that letters represent sounds and that these letter-sound relationships are predictable. Students must grasp this principle to decode words. Letter-sound correspondence instruction should be explicit and systematic, following a logical sequence from simple to complex.

Pattern	Defi nition	Examples
Consonants	Generallyconsistent;somehavetwosounds	cincatandcity;gingoandgem
Shortvowels	Appearinclosedsyllables(CVC)	cat bed sit hot cup , , , ,
Longvowels	Saythelettername	Silente(make) vowelteams opensyllables(me go) , , ,
Consonantblends	Twoorthreeconsonants eachkeepingitssound ,	bl cr dr fl gr sp st tr scr spl str , , , , , , , , , ,
Consonantdigraphs	Twoconsonantsrepresentingonesound	sh ch th wh ph ck ng , , , , , ,
Voweldigraphs/teams	Twovowelsrepresentingonesound	ai ay ea ee ie oa oe ue oo au aw , , , , , , , , , ,
R -controlled vowels	Therchangesthevowelsound	ar er ir or ur , , , ,
Diphthongs	Avowelsoundthatglidesfromonesoundto	oi/oy ou/ow ,
	another

SyllableType	Feature	Examples
Closed	Endsinaconsonant;thevowelisshort	cat nap-kin ,
Open	Endsinavowel;thevowelislong	me ba-by ,
Vowel -consonant-e	Silentemakesthevowellong	make com-pete ,
Vowelteam	Containsavoweldigraphordiphthong	rain boy ,
R -controlled	Avowelfollowedbyr	car per-fect ,
Consonant-le	Finalsyllableendinginconsonant+le	ta-ble puz-zle ,

Multisyllabic Word Strategies

Vccv

Vcv

Vcccv

VCCV					VCV					VCCCV
Divide between the consonants: nap-					Trydividingbeforetheconsonantfirst					Keepblendsanddigraphstogether:
kin .					(ba-by) then after it if needed (cab -in) , .					mon-ster .

Morphemic analysis breaks words into meaningful parts (prefixes, roots, and suffixes) to determine both meaning and pronunciation. High-frequency words appear often in text; some are decodable, while others are irregular and must be learned as sight words. Instruction includes multiple exposures, practice in context, and connections to phonics patterns whenever the word is at least partly regular.

Fluency is reading with accuracy, appropriate rate, and prosody. It matters because fluent readers no longer spend their attention on decoding and can devote it to comprehension.

Fluency develops through extensive practice with appropriately leveled text. Beginning readers focus primarily on accuracy; as decoding becomes automatic, rate increases; prosody develops as students internalize text structures and meaning.

Strategy	HowItWorks
Modeledfluentreading	Teacher read -alouds and audio recordings demonstrate what fluent reading sounds like
Repeatedreading	Studentsrereadthesametextuntilfluencycriteriaaremet;researchsupportsthreetofourreadings
	foroptimalimprovement
Choralreading	Thegroupreadsaloudtogether supportingstrugglingreaders ,
Partnerreading	Pairsreadtogether takingturnsorreadingsimultaneously ,
Reader'stheater	Studentsrehearsescriptswithexpressionforaperformance focusingonprosody ,
Phrase-cued reading	Textisdividedintomeaningfulphrasestosupportprosodicreading

Fluency Assessment

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) assesses oral reading fluency through timed readings, and the result is compared with grade-level norms. Prosody is assessed with rubrics that rate phrasing, expression, pace, and smoothness.

WCPM = total words read in one minute − errors

Example: a student reads 94 words in one minute with 6 errors, so WCPM = 94 − 6 = 88.

Type	Description
Listening Speaking Reading Writing	Wordsunderstoodwhenheard;thelargestvocabularyforyoungchildren Wordsusedinoralcommunication Wordsrecognizedinprint Wordsusedinwrittenexpression;typicallythesmallestvocabulary

Most vocabulary is learned indirectly, through conversations, read-alouds, and independent reading; students learn approximately 3,000–4,000 words per year, mostly through incidental learning. Direct instruction is necessary for critical academic vocabulary, words with multiple meanings, and words essential for comprehension. Select words strategically by their importance to understanding, their usefulness across contexts, and their conceptual complexity.

Strategy	Description
Explicitinstruction	Student-friendly definitions examples and nonexamples multiple exposures and chances to use , , ,
	wordsincontext
Morphemicanalysis	Prefixes (un-, re-, pre-, dis-, mis-, non-, over-, under-) suffixes ( -tion -sion -ment -ness -ful -less , , , , , , ,
	-able -ible) roots and base words , , ,
Contextclues	Usingsurroundingtexttodeterminemeaning:definition synonym antonym example andinference , , , ,
	clues
Semanticmapping	Visualrepresentationsofwordrelationships categories andattributes , ,
Wordconsciousness	Interestinwordsbuiltthroughwordplay wordcollections andexploringwordorigins , ,

Domain-specific: photosynthesis, denominator,

democracy

High-utility academic words used across subjects: analyze, compare, summarize, evidence,

reluctant

Basic, everyday words most children know: walk, happy, book, apple

Instruction should focus primarily on Tier Two words, because they appear across many texts and subjects, while Tier Three words are taught within content-area instruction.

Comprehension

Comprehension is the active process of constructing meaning from text. It requires the integration of reader knowledge, text information, and the reading context.

Strategy	WhattheReaderDoes
Predicting	Usestextcluesandpriorknowledgetoanticipatecontent thenconfirms revises orrejectsthe , , ,
	prediction
Questioning	Generatesquestionsbefore during andafterreadingtoguideanddeepenunderstanding , ,
Visualizing	Createsmentalimagesfromtextdescriptions supportingengagementandmemory ,
Makingconnections	Text-to-self (personal experience) text-to-text (other texts) and text-to-world (broader knowledge) , ,
Inferencing	Combinestextinformationwithpriorknowledgetounderstandimpliedmeaning
Summarizing	Identifiesmainideasandkeydetailsandeliminateslessimportantinformation
Monitoring	Notices when comprehension breaks down and applies fix-up strategies: rereading reading ahead , ,
	usingcontextclues oraskingforhelp ,

Text Structures

Narrative text tells a story with characters, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution. Expository text provides information organized in recognizable patterns, and signal words help readers identify each structure.

Structure	TypicalSignalWords
Description	forexample suchas characteristicsinclude , ,
Sequence	first next then finally before after , , , , ,
Compare-contrast	similarly likewise however ontheotherhand unlike , , , ,
Cause-effect	because so asaresult therefore consequently , , , ,
Problem-solution	theproblemis onesolution tosolvethis , ,

Level	Focus	TypicalQuestions
Literal	Explicitlystatedinformation	Who?What?When?Where?
Inferential	Impliedmeaningbuiltfromtextpluspriorknowledge	Why?How?Whatconclusioncanbedrawn?
Evaluative	Judgmentsaboutquality author'spurpose orvalidity , ,	Istheargumentconvincing?Isthesource
		reliable?