What is Fundations

Jacksonville Country Day School (JCDS) is excited to share our implementation of Fundations as a systematic kindergarten through second grade phonics program. Fundations is a curriculum and methodology developed by Wilson Language. It provides a multisensory, systematic program that focuses on phonemic awareness, word study, high-frequency words, vocabulary, handwriting, and spelling.?

After implementing the Fundations Phonics Program in kindergarten, our first and second grade teachers noticed a difference in the students who used Fundations previously. Inspired by the significant advances this program enabled kindergarten students to achieve, the first and second grade teachers attended a full-day Fundations professional development workshop last spring to learn more about the methodology. They recognized that this systemic approach, which builds on one grade to the next, will further enhance our school’s commitment to a balanced approach in literacy instruction.

Kate Krawiec, JCDS First Grade Team Lead, gives us a little more first-hand insight into Fundations:?

First grade uses Fundations during our daily Phonics block. Each day, the students are exposed to a multi-sensory approach of practicing letters and sounds, manipulating phonemes, learning spelling rules, blending real and nonsense words, and practicing dictation, just to name a few strategies. The beauty of this program is that it does not teach students to memorize words. Instead, it provides them with the opportunity to learn spelling rules that can be applied to countless words and it focuses more on the application of the sounds and skills in their daily work. This carries over to their reading and writing skills, and creating students who are confident in their abilities because they have practiced and applied the concepts in a variety of ways.

Wendy Johnston, JCDS Kindergarten Teacher, talks about why she believes Fundations works so well on JCDS campus:?

?The program works because it is so interactive. The students are engaged throughout the entire lesson. It is a lot of “my turn, your turn” and “watch me, now you try.”? Students practice using sand, magnetic tiles, white boards, sky writing (big arm muscle movements), finger tapping, etc. They also love Mama Owl and Baby Echo, the puppets that help teach Fundations.? Anytime the children see Baby Echo, they are to echo or repeat what Baby Echo says. It’s fun, it’s explicit, systematic, engaging and most importantly - it works!? The program establishes a strong foundation for reading and writing success.

? “Since the publication of Fundations, several studies have been performed in schools across the United States. The consensus across these studies is that students who apply Fundations strategies achieve greater gains in foundational literacy skills compared to students who use other programs,” according to Wilson Language Training.?

Adopting Fundations allows for continuity in phonics instruction and gives teachers a better understanding of the learning level their students should be at each year.? The resources provided enhance the curriculum and the online support is a wonderful addition.?