By Stacey Masliansky, Director of Teaching and Learning

The newly revised Slant System Sound-Spelling Choices Chart is a must-have resource for teachers, tutors, interventionists, and parents who want to integrate a speech-to-print approach into their instructional practices. This powerful tool bridges the gap between spoken language and written words, offering a practical way to strengthen foundational literacy skills.

Supporting Speech-to-Print Connections

The chart is specifically designed to facilitate auditory to visual retrieval, guiding students to move seamlessly from speech to print. By emphasizing articulatory gestures—the placement and movement of the lips, tongue, teeth, and throat while producing sounds—teachers can help students deepen their phonemic awareness.

This focus on speech-to-print connections also reinforces the relationship between sounds and their corresponding letters or letter combinations.Over time, this supports orthographic mapping, the process by which words become permanently stored in long-term memory for fluent reading and spelling. As Dr. Linnea Ehri explains: “Activation of these connections acts like glue to bond the spellings of words to their pronunciations in memory along with meanings which then fosters instant recognition.” (as cited in Grace, 2024)

Similarly, Joshi, Treiman, Carreker, and Moats emphasize the importance of early instruction: “Knowledge of speech sounds and their spellings, and fluent use of this knowledge, are necessary for both word reading and spelling. Young children become better readers and spellers when explicit instruction in speech sound awareness and sound-letter correspondence is emphasized in kindergarten and first grade” (How Words Cast Their Spell, 2008).

Empowering Students Through Independent Correction

When used strategically for error correction and scaffolding during lessons, the Sound-Spelling Choices Chart equips students with strategies for self-correction. This ability to self-monitor progress not only builds confidence but also helps learners internalize key concepts, enabling them to decode and encode words more effectively.

A Research-Based Approach

Grounded in evidence from experts like Linnea Ehri, Louisa Moats, and Marcia Henry, the Slant System™ Sound-Spelling Choices Chart exemplifies the principles of effective structured literacy instruction. By linking speech-to-print, this tool strengthens phonemic awareness and lays the foundation for long-term spelling and reading success.

Whether you’re working with emerging readers, struggling learners, or advanced spellers, this chart is your go-to resource for building the essential skills that empower students to read and write with confidence.

Ready to learn how to use this powerful tool in your classroom or tutoring session? Watch our demonstration video for practical tips and strategies to maximize the impact of the Slant Sound-Spelling Choices Chart. Start using it today to transform your literacy instruction!

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE SOUND-SPELLING CHOICES CHART!

References

Grace, K. (2024). The role of orthographic mapping and phoneme-grapheme mapping in learning to read and spell.

Joshi, R. M., Treiman, R., Carreker, S., & Moats, L. C. (2008). How words cast their spell: Spelling is an integral part of learning language, not a matter of memorization. American Educator, 32(4), 6–16.