Successful Sound Walls in the Kindergarten Classroom

Is your word wall working or is it time to make the switch to a sound wall in your kindergarten classroom? 

Think about it. On a word wall, where would your students find the word centers? Under the letter C? If they are trying to find the word be the beginning sound, /s/, will they ever find it on their own using a word wall? Probably not. But on a sound wall, centers would be with the other words that begin with /s/.

Are you like me?  I heard all about using sound walls in the classroom. I heard how great they can be. But I had ZERO time to learn something new let alone implement a new phonics strategy in my half-day kindergarten classes.  So I just wasn't sure how I could do fit it in.

My principal was persistent about us trying sound walls in kindergarten and the results were impressive. 

At the end of the year, all of my students were able to engage with the sound wall during our writing block.  They were experimenting with new spelling patterns. actually spelling their sight words correctly.  Making the shift from a traditional word wall to a sound wall is worth it and it doesn't have to be overwhelming (I promise!).  

With Successful Sound Walls Mini-Course you'll be ready to help your students make the jump from speech to print and implement a sound wall in your kindergarten classroom in no time at all.  Take the stress out of making the switch. Learn how to implement a sound wall today!

What is a Sound Wall?

In a traditional word wall words are sorted alphabetically by the first letter in the word.  This makes a lot of sense to us as adults, but scientists have found it doesn't make sense for the way kids learn to read and spell.  Our brains are programmed to process sounds and to talk, not to read and write.  The sounds come first. The print needs to be explicitly taught.  So sorting words by their sounds comes more naturally to our students. Sound walls works best for the way their brains are learning.  

Do I have time for a Sound Wall?

Yes – you can incorporate a sound wall with what you are already doing in the classroom.  If you are ready to try sound walls but you aren't sure exactly how to use them with kindergarten students – then Successful Sound Walls is for you! 

I created this course for busy kindergarten teachers to share how I implemented a sound wall in my kindergarten classroom.  I share example lesson plans, lesson plan templates, and all the printables you need to create a sound wall in your classroom today!  There is even a personal sound wall option if you are low on space, teaching digitally, or just want a small version for your students' writing folders.  

Where can I learn more?

You can learn more about Success Sound Walls here.  Or if you are ready to jump in – you can purchase the Successful Sound Walls mini-course here.