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All About Zoo-phonics

Zoo-phonics® curriculum aligns with Common Core Standards!

  • Teach your students the alphabet in TWO WEEKS! Faster than you ever expected your students will be reading, spelling and writing!
  • The Zoo-phonics® Multisensory Language Arts Program is a kinesthetic, multi-modal approach to learning all aspects of language arts, including vocabulary development and articulation, based on phonics and phonemic awareness.
  • The principle of Zoo-phonics® maximizes understanding, memory, utilization and transference to all areas of the reading, spelling and writing process in a playful and concrete manner.
  • Zoo-phonics® is a method developed to make children strong readers and spellers using a “phono” (hearing), “oral” (speaking), “visual” (seeing), “kinesthetic” (moving), and tactile (touching)—whole brain approach. Students actually learn the sounds of the alphabet and advanced phonemic concepts through an easily understood, concrete method of presentation.
  • Zoo-phonics® uses animals drawn in the shapes of the letters for ease in memory. A related body movement is given for each letter. This concrete approach cements the sounds to the shapes of the letters. Lowercase letters and their sounds are taught first (needed 95% of the time in text), capital letters and letter names are taught later.
  • Zoo-phonics® also provides a springboard for all other academia such as math, art, music, cooking/nutrition, social studies, science, grooming, physical education and sensory/drama.
  • Every aspect of the program has been field-tested and found to be effective. Educational research repeatedly supports the focus of phonics in early reading programs, as well as the educational benefits of pictorial mnemonics and kinesthetic approaches to learning that are unique to Zoo-phonics®.
  • Currently Zoo-phonics® is used throughout the United States and internationally as a highly effective language arts program.

Zoo-phonics® is perfect for your classroom!

  • Students gain a firm foundation of the letter sounds and shapes and soon learn uppercase letters and letter names, and how to apply them to text.
  • The curriculum is age-appropriate, developmental, sequential and playful.
  • It is fully kinesthetic and multi-sensorial—children use their eyes, ears, mouths and bodies to learn.
  • Preschool children will begin sound blending, spelling, and writing by mid-year or earlier.
  • It is excellent for ELL/Transition/Special Ed students —a total physical response at its best because of the concrete Animal Letters and Body Movements.
  • It teaches those important high frequency words, phonetically and easily.
  • It easily teaches other more challenging graphemes/phonemes needed in early reading and writing (blends, digraphs, long vowels, diphthongs, the schwa sound, r – controlled vowels, silent letters, and soft sounds), still keeping learning playful!
  • The Animal letters integrate into calendar, alphabet song, favorite songs, art, music, science, math, dramatic play and physical education.
  • Parents will love their children’s amazing academic growth, and you can train the parents too!
  • Zoo-phonics® provides a complete Language Arts Program that integrates with all other subjects.

Zoo-phonics® WILL REACH every child!

Zoo-phonics® will reach every child including…

  • Toddlers
  • Head Start
  • Preschool
  • Kindergarten
  • First Grade
  • English language Learners
  • Special Education (all grades)

The problem with the alphabet and learning how to read and spell is that it is too abstract. So we made it concrete…

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The ESSENCES of Zoo-phonics®

Zoo-phonics® is an effective and proven methodology!

  • The Animal Alphabet helps children remember the shapes and sounds of the letters.
  • Letter sounds are taught before letter names.
  • Lowercase letters are taught before capital letters.
  • The Body Movement for each Animal Letter helps “cement” the phonemic information into memory.
  • The alphabet is taught sequentially, and as a whole entity, “a – z.” The alphabet is not fragmented.
  • Short vowels are taught before long vowels.
  • Phonemic patterns (at, bat, fat, sat, etc.) are taught first, rather than random word lists (of, it, then, was, etc.)
  • The Zoo-phonics® curriculum is fully integrated with other subjects.

Click below to read about each of the Zoo-phonics® Essences in detail…

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How Zoo-phonics® was DEVELOPED

Zoo-phonics® was developed by two experienced teachers in answer to the needs of their students!

The developers of Zoo-phonics®, with its accent on reinforcement through the multi-modal approach, are convinced that this system offers an outstanding alternative to past and present methods of teaching reading and spelling. It ties in easily with any reading series, literature and language arts program that a school may use. Current research supports the Zoo-phonics® Program…

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Zoo-phonics® is a Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP)

Zoo-phonics® promotes optimal learning and development.

According to the NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children), “Developmentally appropriate practice, often shortened to DAP, is an approach to teaching grounded both in the research on how young children develop and learn and in what is known about effective early education. Its framework is designed to promote young children’s optimal learning and development. DAP involves teachers meeting young children where they are (by stage of development), both as individuals and as part of a group; and helping each child meet challenging and achievable learning goals.”

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Zoo-phonics® will close your classroom’s GENDER GAP

Research finds that boys are slipping behind girls on almost all academic milestones!

The latest NAEP writing assessments (2007) show boys scoring an average 20 points lower than girls. For those in low economic areas or who are special education students, the chasm is even larger. The results reveal how crucial the early years of school are in laying the foundation to allay this discrepancy…

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Zoo-phonics® will accelerate your TALENTED and GIFTED students

Zoo-phonics® provides a unique and challenging curriculum for talented and gifted students!

Talented and gifted students come to our classrooms with brains, minds and hearts hungry for learning. Too often, these students are left to their own devices or are given busy work. Delisle and Berger state, “A young, curious student may easily become ‘turned off’ if the educational environment is not stimulating… approaches are inappropriate…assignments are consistently too difficult or too easy.”…

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Zoo-phonics® and children with SPECIAL NEEDS

Let Zoo-phonics® assist your special needs students!

Besides learning disabilities, ADD/ADHD and dyslexia, children who, having been diagnosed with autism (including Asperger’s Syndrome), apraxia, cerebral palsy, Down Syndrome, etc., have quickly learned the alphabet, and have been able to learn to read, spell and write through the Zoo-phonics® methodology. Children (and their parents) quickly see their own progress, and self-image and confidence grows. Children have been successfully mainstreamed or included because of the efficiency of this program…

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Zoo-phonics® and ELL children

Give your English Language Learners fun, playful, effective instruction!

Zoo-phonics® supports ELL’s (English Language Learners) by providing instruction and interaction while learning English. It’s visual, auditory, aural and kinesthetic approach supports the ELL’s need to use their eyes, ears, mouths, and bodies to learn how to speak, read, spell, and write. Zoo-phonics® provides explicit instruction in the structure of English, while still teaching in a creative and kinesthetic way…

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Current RESEARCH supports Zoo-phonics®

You will see incredible results…independent research proves it!

Every aspect of the Zoo-phonics® Program has been field-tested and found to be effective. Educational research repeatedly supports the focus of phonics in early reading programs, as well as the educational benefits of pictorial mnemonics and kinesthetic approaches to learning that are unique to Zoo-phonics®…

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Zoo-phonics® is based on Creating BRAIN-EFFICIENT Curriculum

An analysis of the changes necessary to create a methodology and curriculum that enhances student achievement in reading and spelling

By Charlene A. Wrighton, 1995

The hottest educational issue of the past 10 years has NOT been whole language vs. phonics. It runs much deeper than that, primarily because whole language and phonics can be taught concurrently, if allowed. What, then, is the disparity that has widened the chasm within the educational system? In order to fully understand, we must analyze the issues carefully…

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