An Amazing Circus of Phonograms-Act 2

Author Mary Jo Nyssen and illustrator Joe Palmisano are back for the second act of  An Amazing Circus of Phonograms. The two use an engaging story and colorful illustrations to teach your children the many different sounds phonograms can make. The first act of  An Amazing Circus of Phonograms covered twenty-two letter combinations.The second act follows through with the other twenty-two.

As children read about the acts performed at the circus, they learn how to recognize and pronounce ng, ar, ck, ed, or, wh, ey, ei, ie, igh, eigh, kn, gn, wr, ph, dge, oe, gh, ti, si, ci and ough.

Nyssen uses a unique color coded system to help children differentiate between a phonogram with one potential sound and those with multiple possible pronunciations. At the same time, your children will be reading an exciting story about colorful clowns, circus strongmen, fearless lion tamers and more fun performers!

The magnificent ring master returns in Act 2 to present the remaining 22 multi-letter phonograms in an amazing circus of a total of 44 multi-letter phonogram acts. The 22 multiletter phonograms presented in this book are ng, ar, ck, ed, or, wh, ey, ei, ie, igh, eigh, kn, gn, wr, ph, dge, oe, gh, ti, si, ci, and ough.

The phonogram being presented is highlighted throughout the short story and the phonogram itself is animated and playing a role in the story. If the phonogram has only one sound it will be highlighted in purple. If the phonogram has more than one sound the first sound will be green, the second sound red, the third sound blue, the fourth sound orange, the fifth sound yellow and the sixth is pink.

The phonograms perform exciting and sometimes crazy circus acts that are humorous and memorable. There are so many rules to follow when spelling English words, but children will enjoy learning these simple rules as they read the silly stories and hear the repetition of the sounds. The colorful and amusing illustrations incorporate the phonogram in the picture along with words that contain the highlighted phonogram which leaves them with a visual impression.

The phonograms introduced in An Amazing Circus of Phonograms – Act 2 can be taught as early as second grade, but the harder ones towards the end of the book may be easier to learn once their vocabulary expands in third or fourth grade.

However, when a word such as dough is introduced, it should be made known to the child that ough has six sounds. The sound in dough is like the long sound of the letter o.

Once a child is familiar with the 70 phonograms, they should be able to read, write and spell eighty percent of English words.

This book, along with my first two books, are the keys to open the doors to correct spelling and pronunciation of the English language for parents, teachers and children. It would help both English language learners and those who speak English to read, write and spell more proficiently. Learning should be an enjoyable experience and the humorous characters in my books make it fun for children to learn. When they become familiar with the sounds the phonograms make they are able to sound out the words, which is far more rewarding than trying to guess what the word says.

My book, An Amazing Circus of Phonograms – Act 2 is written for early learners in second grade and up. It is a wonderful resource for parents, teachers and home schoolers when they come across a phonogram such as “ie” that has 2 sounds. To prevent confusion the teacher or parent can explain that the “ie” in the word yield says the long sound of “e;” but in the word pie, the “ie” says the long sound of “i.” When they understand this concept, they will be able to sound out the words belief and die on their own. Being able to sound out words gives children a feeling of accomplishment and autonomy to work on their own.

My book also is a great resource for those who are learning English as a second language. Most languages are phonetic. English is a conglomerate of other languages, but for the most part, eighty percent of the English language can be taught phonetically with these seventy phonograms. When they can relate to phonics, English learners find it easier to learn the language phonetically.