If you are new to EL Skills Block and are trying to figure out how to get your literacy centers set-up and ready aligning with the Skills Block program, you’ve come to the right place. There is a big learning curve when it comes to implementing the EL Skills Block program and it can be quite overwhelming when you’re getting started. I have made dozens of phonics resources that align with the EL Skills Block program to help get new teachers started in the program and feel confident while they are implementing it.
If you have already administered the appropriate Skills Block assessments AND grouped your students accordingly, please skip to #2.
If you have not been trained on how to administer and group your students using the Skills Block assessment, I would suggest reading my previous blog post that explains this first step in great detail. You can view this post by clicking here.
This is a crucial step so you can group your students correctly, PLUS see what skill each group should focus on. Below is a shortened version of what you need to do.
- Perform appropriate assessments
The appropriate assessments will vary based on the grade that you teach. The 2 most important assessments when it comes to grouping your students are the spelling assessment AND the decoding assessment. You may need to give a student a second spelling/decoding assessment if they master the spelling list/word list OR if they struggle too much. This helps you hone in on the precise level they are on.
- Determine each student’s microphase.
The spelling and decoding assessments can help you determine each student’s microphase. Each of the microphases are listed on the conversion chart inside the resource manual. I like to abbreviate each microphase making it quicker to group and see their exact level. I abbreviate like so in ascending order: (E=Early; M=Middle; L=Late)
-Pre-Alphabetic: Pre-E, Pre-M, Pre-L
-Partial Alphabetic: PE, PM, PL
-Full Alphabetic:FE, FM, FL
-Consolidate Alphabetic: CE, CM, CL
- Write each student’s name in the appropriate microphase.
I created a sheet to make grouping easy that looks like the picture shown. You can purchase this sheet along with the full EL Skills Block assessment + data analysis sheets by clicking here.
I would suggest printing two copies of the blank conversion chart and labeling one as “spelling” and the other as “decoding.” Then write each student’s name in the appropriate microphase. This will help you visually see how students can be grouped.
- Make Literacy Groups
You’ll have to decide which data you’d like to use to group your students. Students will usually score lower in spelling and higher in decoding. For this reason, I like to use the spelling data to group students and I use the decoding information to help me make more specific decisions if needed. If a group is too large, you can look at the decoding list to see what student would be best to move to a higher or lower group.
You can see how I grouped these students based on their microphase in the picture.
EL Skills Block makes this extremely easy. Once you have grouped your students, all you need to do is look at the conversion chart to see what lesson each group should focus on. For example, if you have a group in the Full Middle (FM) microphase, they would be on Grade 1 Module 3 Cycle 18 which focuses on CVCe (2 syllable words + suffixes). They would next move to Cycle 19 which focuses on r-controlled vowels (ar & or).
This is what the conversion chart looks like:
You can see how I grouped and leveled my students by watching the video below.
FREEBIE ALERT!! Grab this freebie to help you organize your group information and what needs to be prepped each week. There are three different options included in the freebie depending on how many groups you may have. There are 4, 5 & 6 group options. It also includes a poster of each group that you can use for labeling purposes if needed.
There are a few different ways you can use these organizational sheets. You can print several copies and cut off the bottom part on all but 1 copy. I would suggest laminating the full sheet copy (after you have written who is within each group). Then you can write what microphase & cycle each group will be working on each week, along with the number of copies you need, plus what needs to be printed & prepped.
OR
You can laminate one sheet and use a dry erase marker to write what needs to be prepped each week. This option can be a bit trickier if you have a lot to write down and prep.
I have made several literacy centers that align with EL Skills Block. If you are just starting out and need something low prep, I would highly recommend using the 5 Day Phonics Packets I have listed in my store. They are print and go, making it super manageable while you’re getting the hang of EL Skills Block. They are also easy to differentiate. There is 1 packet for each cycle which includes 5 activities to do for the whole week. There are kindergarten, 1st grade and 2nd grade options available with lots of bundling options.
Note that it may be helpful to buy a multi grade bundle so you can easily differentiate. With the EL Skills Block program, it is common for you to have students in kindergarten, 1st grade OR 2nd grade levels all within one class.
In the kindergarten packets, you will find the following activities:
- phonics skill explanation
- spelling words
- secret words/message
- spelling word sorting
- write the word to match the picture
- draw a picture to match the word
- sentence writing with spelling words
- decodable book
- find the spelling pattern in decodable book
In the 1st grade packets, you will find the following activities:
- phonics skill explanation
- spelling words
- spelling word sorting
- write the word to match the picture
- draw a picture to match the word
- sentence writing with spelling words
- decodable book
- find the spelling pattern in decodable book
In the 2nd grade packets, you will find the following activities:
- phonics skill explanation
- spelling words
- spelling word sorting
- syllable sleuth (decoding words-grapheme mapping)
- draw a picture to match the homophone
- sentence writing with spelling words
- decodable book
- find the spelling pattern in decodable book
I am currently making dozens more centers that align with EL Skills Block. Below are the items that align with EL Skills Block and are already posted and ready to be purchased:
- Phonics Tic Tac Toe (available for 1st & 2nd grade)
- Small Group Lesson Summary (available for 1st and 2nd grade)
- Fluency Word (& letter) Strips (available for kindergarten, 1st & 2nd grade)
- Phonics Speed & Read Board Games – works great in conjunction with the fluency word strips (available for 2nd grade – kindergarten & 1st grade will be released at the beginning of 2022)
- Spelling Word Lists – perfect for a word work center (available in kindergarten, 1st & 2nd grade)
- Phonics packets are bundled by grade level and multilevel. Below are the details:
- Kindergarten (full year)
- Kindergarten & 1st grade (full bundles)
- 1st grade (full year)
- 1st & 2nd grade (full bundles)
- 2nd grade (full year)
- Kindergarten, 1st grade & 2nd grade (full bundles)
- Mega EL Skills Block Bundles for 1st & 2nd grade includes:
- Phonics packets
- Phonics tic tac toe
- Small Group Lesson Summary
- Spelling Word Lists
- K-2 Reading Assessment & Data Analysis
- BONUS: Sight word cards are included as a bonus (not sold anywhere else)
- Spelling Word Lists are bundled by grade level and multilevel. Below are the details:
- Kindergarten (full year)
- 1st grade (full year)
- 2nd grade (full year)
- Kindergarten, 1st grade & 2nd grade (full bundles)
- Rule Explanation Sheets are bundled by grade level and multilevel. Below are the details:
- Kindergarten (full year)
- 1st grade (full year)
- 2nd grade (full year)
- Kindergarten, 1st grade & 2nd grade (full bundles)
- Rollercoaster Blend & Read CVC Words (this is particularly helpful for those students just starting to read CVC Words)
- Rollercoaster Blend & Read Digraph Short Vowel Words
- Short Vowel Matching Games
- Accountable Reading Response Sheets (This is great to use in a read to self center to hold students accountable)
If you’d like to see an updated list of products that align with EL Skills Block, click here to view items from my store.
This all looks amazing! I thought the whole point of EL Education was that it is a one stop shop. If you are using the curriculum and want to assess it’s worth, wouldn’t you need to use the activities they provide? What is wrong with the activities EL provides? Have you found them lacking? If so, how? We are piloting this curriculum in a large school district and need to assess its effectiveness. Thanks
That is a great question! Skills Block has some great components and I love the program, but I would not consider it a one stop shop and here’s why. The program wants you to differentiate centers based on each students microphase and cycle lesson they are on. Skills Block does include an activity bank with different activities you can use to differentiate (this can found in the resource manual). The problem is that many of the activities have to be prepped, the activities are not organized by cycle/grade level (so you need to look up by phonics skill) AND each activity is different and would need to be explicitly taught each week to each group. For me to make this program work in my classroom, I had to made activities that align with the program that were consistent and easy to differentiate because using the activity bank activities is not very realistic at least for me as a teacher. I made these activities to share with other teachers that were struggling with the same thing.
I hope that answers your question. I’d be happy to discuss this further with you if you have any other questions or would like suggestions. I love helping teachers as they transition into the program. My email is simplysplitcreations@gmail.com
We have been doing EL fir awhile now and , most like the skills block, but hate the modules. Our district has the conversion chart ready to use. Your explanation about writing names in it, makes so much sense. I never really understood the chart as a skill set for groups. For example, in kindergarten this week we are in Module 2./ lesson 5. In SKILLS we are on Cycle 5, Lesson 30, so I teach this whole group. What you are saying is, I look at data, which I don’t have in spelling ( except for 2 high level kids) and I need reading data. I have data from the PAST. Then group kids and each group does something from the chart? I have kinda been doing my own thing as to what students need, but this makes perfect sense. I am heading over to your website to explore. Thank you for explaining this so much better than anybody else. Thank you
Yeah it sounds like you understand the assessment correctly now. It can be so confusing at first which is why I think many end up not liking the program. Glad this was helpful for you!