Back to School, Built to Stick

Add multisensory phonics to the literacy program you already use

Back-to-school looks different in every classroom. Some educators are completing their first week with students, while others are already several weeks into establishing their literacy routines.

Whether your school uses UFLI Foundations, Heggerty, Bluebonnet, Fundations, CKLA or another district-selected literacy program or resource, you do not need another curriculum. You need simple ways to help more students engage with, remember and apply what is already being taught.

Eyewords provides multisensory-phonemic supports that work alongside existing instruction, making phonics and word learning more active and memorable.

These supports can benefit all learners and may be especially valuable for English learners and students who need more explicit instruction or intervention. Essential for some. Good for all.

More Engagement Without Another Lesson

Multisensory instruction is not about adding an unrelated activity or simply giving students something fun to touch. It is about adding purposeful input to the lesson already being taught.

This can be as simple as pairing the sound, spelling pattern or word with an embedded visual, meaningful phrase, modelled pronunciation and action. Purposeful hands-on activities can then give students an engaging way to practise and reinforce the learning.

Alpha-Code applies established research showing that embedded picture mnemonics strengthen letter-sound learning and retention. The Eyewords high-frequency-word method has also been studied directly. A Stanford-led published study found that Eyewords produced significantly stronger high-frequency-word learning.

Use the Sequence That Fits Your Instruction

Alpha-Code, Eyewords and Eyewords with Sound Mapping each provide an organized, cumulative instructional sequence. You can follow one of these sequences from the beginning or use the resources flexibly alongside your school’s required program.

When following an Eyewords sequence, move through the sounds, spelling patterns and high-frequency words in the recommended order. When following another program, select the corresponding Eyewords support when that sound, spelling pattern or word appears in its sequence.

These supports can be added during the modelling, guided practice or review already planned, without changing the order of instruction.

As learners become more secure, gradually move from embedded visuals to plain text and from supported practice to independent reading and spelling.

Start Small

Choose one sound, spelling pattern or word you are teaching this week. Add an embedded visual, meaningful phrase, modelled pronunciation or action.

A small change to an existing routine can increase engagement today and help learning stick, so students are better able to remember, retrieve and apply what they have learned.