Systematic Phonics vs. Analytic Phonics – What’s the Difference?
Do you use Systematic Phonics or Analytic Phonics? In the years I taught reading, we went on several “roller coasters.” Whole Language, Phonics, Analogy… new ideas surfaced, and school boards, eager to improve student outcomes, jumped on board. We had in-service training, and implementation began.
Analytic Phonics
Sight word mastery of Dolch Reading Lists, using the first letter to predict what comes next based on the picture clues, and early readers that used predictable text were mandated. (e.g., “I see a dog.” “I see a horse.”). Analytic Phonics was the buzzword. Children took clues from recognizing the whole word, the initial sound, and the context. The students focus their attention on larger spelling generalizations like onset and rime (e.g., m-ad, b-ad, s-ad, gl-ad) and word analogies (if ‘same’ has a long /ai/ sound, then ‘game’ must have a long /ai/ sound).
The problem with using this analytic approach as the main way to teach reading was that when some children tried to read a word… a guessing game began. Kids with a good memory began recognizing whole words and used beginning sounds to predict the next word. But this process was overwhelming for many children… especially those with weak memories. Longer words were often problematic.
Analytic Phonics moves from the whole to the part.
Children are expected to make the connections to print through sound and rhyming patterns. (e.g., This is how you spell cat – c-a-t; now you can spell mat or flat.) They manipulate the phonemes* without being explicitly taught each sound. We noticed that spelling connections were not as apparent to children learning to read as they were to experienced readers. Adults with prior reading experience make these connections… but when some children are asked: “If you spell cat c-a-t, how do you spell rat?” The student might answer, “r-o-p?”
We discovered that children need lots of literacy experiences and practice manipulating the sounds of the language in order to understand this concept.
What next?
A fellow teacher gave me an old set of IDEAL PHONIC TALKING LETTERS by Edith E. Stephens (1958). The instructions indicate, “The sounds of letters should be used in reading after the pupils had begun to read by word and phrase. However, the sounds may be taught before this, and attention called to words that begin with each sound.” Educators recognized that the sound-symbol connection was important.
Phonovisual Charts
I remembered the phonovisual charts from my early schooling. Working with each sound at the beginning, middle, and end of words made sense. “Where do you hear the sound?” Working with the letter sounds, I was able to help struggling readers. My student teachers were generally amazed to see the benefits of working with Whole-Language and explicit phonetic instruction.
Systematic Phonics / Synthetic Phonics
Meanwhile, back in England, Sue Lloyd was determined to prove that working with the sounds of the language empowered children as they learned how to read and write. She set out to prove her theory. Sue met a publisher, Chris Jolly, and then created her first instruction manual for teaching children how to read and write using Systematic/Synthetic Phonics… the Jolly Phonics Handbook (1993, 1998, 2000).
Our School Board created reading readiness classes where at-risk grade-one students had access to a full morning or afternoon of reading instruction to improve literacy. I was one of the research instructors. Because the data indicated that most children reached grade level or above with this intervention, Jolly Phonics became a significant portion of early literacy programs.
Systematic Phonics goes from the part to the whole.
The children learn the letter sounds and apply them as they learn to read and write, all through the word. They synthesize or blend the phonemes (sounds) to make a word and learn “tricky words,” enabling them to read words, phrases, and sentences. At the same time, they learn to segment the sounds to spell the word. Handwriting helps children develop motor memory of the sound or word and provides practice connecting the sound to print. It becomes a natural sequence.
Compare & Contrast: Analytic vs Systematic/Synthetic Phonics
| Analytic Phonics | Systematic/Synthetic Phonics | |
| Process | -moves from the whole to the part -starts with a whole word sight vocabulary and reading books -uses picture, initial letter, and context cues for word recognition | -quickly introduces letter sounds (e.g., one sound per day or eight sounds in two weeks) -immediately blend sounds that have been taught for reading e.g., d-o-g is dog, h-a-t is hat, s-t-o-p is stop, etc. |
| Speed | -gradually introduces the alphabet letter sounds to enable the initial letter to help with word identification -could be one sound a week | -quickly introduces letter sounds (e.g., one sound per day or eight sounds in two weeks) -immediately blend sounds that have been taught for reading e.g., d-o-g is dog, h-a-t is hat, s-t-o-p is stop, etc. |
| Emphasis | -emphasis on initial sound, rhyme, onset, and word families | -blending was used as the last strategy instead of the first strategy -segmenting and blending are demonstrated away from the text -digraphs are rarely taught |
| Segmentation and Blending | -blending used as the last strategy instead of the first strategy -segmenting and blending are demonstrated away from the text -digraphs are rarely taught | -the first strategy for reading unknown words is blending -segmentation is the reverse of blending – if you can read a word, you can spell it -teaches main digraphs – blending and segmenting common words with digraphs, e.g., sheep, boil, chart, etc. |
| Word Patterns | -word patterns covered at a later stage | -word patterns covered at a later stage |
| Sight Words/ Tricky Words | -keyword sight vocabulary – memorized visually | -sight words are initially taught with a “look and say” approach -as students progress, there is more attention to blending and learning the ‘tricky’ part of sight words -teaches main digraphs – blending and segmenting common words with digraphs, e.g., sheep, boil, chart, etc. |
| Reading | -predictable text – the picture gives a clue for the new word(s) introduced on that page | -the alphabetic code and tricky words are taught before expecting children to read books -uses decodable texts initially – with sounds and tricky words previously taught -children have a free choice of books when reading is fluent, and they demonstrate an ability to work out unknown words easily |
| Spelling | -spelling is a separate skill | -teaches phonemic awareness so that all of the sounds in words are identified and written, e.g., cat is c-a-t, bus is b-u-s, and stop is s-t-o-p, etc. -children learn that the alphabetic code is reversible; if you can read a word, you can spell it |
| Role of Guessing | -encourages guessing -the emphasis is on the initial sound (e.g., the ‘r’ of run) -easier for short words -longer words are more difficult | -no guessing required… just systematic teaching, blending, and segmenting |
| Role of the Alphabet | -the alphabet is central to analytic phonics – concentrating on those 26 letters and their corresponding sounds | -sounds are more important than letter names -students learn letter names along with digraphs and sight words |
Maximize Learning Opportunities
In my experience, synthetic/systematic phonics has proven to be very effective. The teaching MUST be explicit and include simultaneous blending and segmenting, teaching sight words with both a look at the spelling and a ‘look and say’ approach, and handwriting. You introduce the sounds fast and furiously and review them daily. Letter/sound knowledge assessment is important, and support is provided to those who need one-on-one direct instruction and extra practice. Children read sounds, words, phrases, sentences, and then text… with sounds that have been taught. Don’t forget to build comprehension skills as the children begin to read simple, decodable stories. (e.g., What color was Sam’s hat?” “What did Pam like to do?”)
Learning Styles Differ
Keeping all children and varying learning styles in mind, analytic phonics and morphological teaching provide another approach to learning. Added to a child’s systematic phonics instruction, analytic phonics may consolidate or reinforce skills and knowledge, depending on the learner.
Do you remember this fun song? In the spelling, I changed the letter names to sounds (e.g., “I can spell cat – /c/-/a/-/t/), but, just like spelling tricky words, I used the letter names to spell hippopotamus.
My Advice
My advice is to follow the Science of Reading and adopt a good systematic/synthetic phonics program and that works for your students. Use data-driven assessment of student progress and create visual, auditory, and tactile learning opportunities for all students.
Check out these Phoneme Blending & Segmenting Activities using 42 Phonics Sounds – 285 Words.
Teach. Play. Learn. Review. Teach. Play. Learn.
I believe in explicit instruction and teaching to maximize each student’s learning opportunities and outcomes. If a 6-year-old child cannot yet read… assess his phonics knowledge. Remember, explicit phonics instruction is the basic mechanism for reading. Follow the Science of Reading! Teach blending and segmenting as the sounds are introduced. Provide explicit one-to-one teaching with support, practice, and encouragement. Read stories. Play with words and sounds. Let the children explore letters, create words, read, and write as they learn, practice, and reinforce what they have been taught through play.
Have Fun!
Laurie Fyke
P.S. Did you see the Free Record-Keeping Assessment Tool?
Website: www.primarilylearning.org
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