Weekly Content Update | Skip Counting & Word Families
This Week at Gemiini
This week our editing team is busy putting together a batch of articulation updates and it will be a little while before those are ready to go on the site. I wanted to take this pause in uploading as an opportunity to explore clips that were added to the site before we started this blog series. In this post I'll be sharing content we uploaded earlier this year to teach skip counting and word families.
Skip Counting
Earlier this summer we added a series of clips that teach counting by ones, twos, fives and tens. Skip counting clips are located in Reading, Writing & Academic → Numbers & Math → Counting → Basic Counting.
Each counting sequence is taught using three different visual models. In the first model, numbers are animated to count up as a voiceover reads them aloud. The focus is on the numbers and audio alone. This allows students to focus on the number symbols and the sequence in which they appear during skip counting exercises.
In the second model, part of a hundreds chart is shown on the screen. Each number lights up on the chart as it is spoken by the voiceover and stays lit until the sequence is complete. Showing the location of each number on a hundreds chart helps students notice patterns and develop a sense of the relationships between numbers.
The third generalization provides a model of skip-counting with manipulatives. Groups of pennies are pushed into place as the voiceover counts up and declares the cumulative amount. Using manipulatives this way gives learners a sense of each number's value. How much are we counting when we count by ones? By twos? By fives?
There are lots of fun ways to actively generalize skip counting. While watching Gemiini, try stomping, clapping or marching in place with your student each time a new number appears on the screen. You can ask your learner questions about which body parts come in groups of two and which come in groups of five. Try counting those groups together, or count out food items during snack time by the number group your learner is working on!
In the FULL skip counting clips, each visual model - the number animation, the hundreds chart, and counting with manipulatives - are all grouped to play together. In some cases you may want to focus on one aspect of counting but not another. To accommodate this we have made each each visual available as its own isolated clip. We separate clips this way when a clip has multiple components that can each be useful on their own. These isolated clips will appear in your search results when you select generalization under the Clip Type filter. Check out this week's video for an example of how to do this!
Word Families
A word family is a group of words that are each formed with the same core letter blend. Fan, can and man are all members of the -an word family. Word family exercises are a great way to practice articulation and to develop beginning reading fluency. Our word families are located in Reading, Writing & Academic → Spelling → Word Families.
Our word family clips break down articulation for groups of words that belong to the same family. For each word, the letters that make up the word family are animated to split from the other letters in the word. Each group of letters is articulated separately at first and then together to form the full word. This helps show that the same word family blends are used to form lots of different words.
Each FULL word family clip teaches articulation for three words in a family. If you'd prefer to focus on articulation for a single word from these clips, the isolated generalization for just that word can be accessed on its own as a GEN clip type in our library. You can start incorporating word families and blends clips into your assignments as early as level two and continue using them in higher levels anytime enunciation is a primary focus.
If you have questions about integrating skip counting, word families or any of our other content into your student's assignments, schedule a call with one of our product specialists. If you are searching for other content but can't find it on the site, please send a content request to us at videos@gemiini.org. Thanks for checking in and have a great Labor Day weekend!