The Pre K Scholars curriculum is based around two guiding education principles:

1. All students are capable of learning any concept or skill if it is appropriately presented.
2. Children learn by doing; so learning should be interactive, inventive and experiential.

This holds true with the introduction of vowels within our program. What do Addy the Acrobat, Eddie the Eraser, Iggy the Ice Cream Man, Otto the Oceanographer and Umberto the Umpire all have in common? They are all in a group called “Vowels” and they are considered the busiest members of Scholarville. This is because, 1) they all have two sounds and 2) are found most frequently in words (created by friendships within Scholarville).

To further reinforce the two sounds (long and short) of these special letters, the students are able to experience the differentiating sounds during the Guessing Game. In preparation for the Guessing Game, when a vowel is being featured, a ribbon is secured down the middle of the pocket chart to create two sides: one for beginning long vowel sounds and one for beginning short vowel sounds. After the student guesses the picture/word from the clues provided, he/she needs to decide whether the beginning sound is long or short and place the card accordingly.

The students love the extra challenge this provides and guess what? They are able to comprehend the concept of vowels!

Further reading:

• More about the Pre K Scholars program
• PKS Family Kit