Fingerspelling Leads to Better Reading, Spelling, and Comprehension

Did you know that fingerspelling (American Manual Alphabet) leads children to better reading, spelling, and comprehension?

When students fingerspell words, they do not name the letters but must make each letter's sound at the moment it appears on the hand; they "sound out" the words phonetically by letters and syllables, ie. Buh, Shh, Juh, etc. Phonics--the sounds of the letters--is the key that equips a student to "sound out" unfamiliar printed words and to read effectively. It also enables students to spell the words they hear correctly. Here's more from the pen of experts.

Straight Talk About Reading
by Susan L. Hall and Louisa C. Moats, Ed.D. 1999

Page 9: "Classrooms of primary children who are taught to sound words out, after they learn speech sounds and letters, do better on word reading, spelling, and passage comprehension than children who are not taught" (to sound out words).

Page 112: "The phonics lesson must be explicit and systematic to benefit most children. Instruction must be in spelling individual sounds and (recognizing) their patterned use in words."

Page 114: "A child who cannot translate print into sound will find reading to be laborious and such a difficult task that he will begin to dislike or avoid reading...sounding out the word should be the first strategy....it increases ability to recognize the relationship between spelling and reading." "Speech sounds are clues to spelling."

Page 116: The teacher should "use activities that provide meaningful practice of (phonics) skills."

My note: Using the letters of the Manual Alphabet adds fun, especially when a child can fingerspell while pronouncing his or her name!