The Wilson Reading System®
The Wilson Reading System is a research-based reading and writing program. It
is a complete curriculum for teaching decoding and encoding (spelling)
beginning with phoneme segmentation. WRS directly teaches the structure of
words in the English language so that students master the coding system for
reading and spelling. Unlike other programs that overwhelm the student with
rules, the language system of English is presented in a systematic and
cumulative manner so that it is manageable. It provides an organized,
sequential system with extensive controlled text to help teachers implement a
multisensory structured language program.
The basic purpose of the Wilson Reading System is to teach students fluent
decoding and encoding skills to the level of mastery. From the beginning
steps of the program, it also includes sight word instruction, fluency,
vocabulary, oral expressive language development and comprehension.
Throughout the program, a ten part lesson plan, designed to be very
interactive between teacher and student, is followed. The lessons progress
from easier to more challenging tasks for decoding and then spelling.
Wilson directly teaches the structure of words in the English language with
an organized and sequential system with 12 steps. Steps 1 and 2 emphasize
phonemic segmentation skills (the ability to separate the sounds in a word)
and blending the sounds together again. Initially utilizing monosyllabic
words, a student learns to segment sounds within words. In addition to using
sound cards, the Wilson program uses a unique "sound tapping" procedure in
these early steps. For example, in teaching the word "map" three lettered
cards are put on the table to represent the three sounds in the word. The
student is taught to say each sound while tapping a different finger to his
or her thumb, as follows:
As he says the /m/ sound, he taps his index finger to his thumb.
As he says the /a/ sound, he taps his middle finger to his thumb.
As he says the /p/ sound, he taps his ring finger to his thumb.
He then says the sounds as he drags his thumb across the three fingers
starting with his index finger and ending with his ring finger.
Other MSL programs include counting of sounds by various techniques, but
Barbara Wilson believes that the sound tapping of fingers to the thumb has
been a key for students in successfully learning to blend sounds as well as
segment them. As the student succeeds at reading and spelling words (both
real and nonsense) with three sounds, he then moves on to words with four
sounds, then five, and so on. At the end of Step 2, the student is able to
fluently blend and segment up to six sounds in a syllable.
Beginning in Step 3, polysyllabic words are used and the student is
systematically taught to segment syllables in words. Steps 4-6 teach vowel-
consonant-e syllables, open syllables, suffix endings, and consonant-le
syllables. The students have extensive practice with controlled vocabulary
for decoding and spelling application. Comprehension is addressed with
vocabulary work and through the development of visualization skills with the
reading of literature to students. Mastery, including fluent application, is
required for progression at each step. Instruction after Step 6 combines
continued "word attack" and spelling work with comprehension and an emphasis
on the application of skills with non-controlled text as well as controlled
text. In steps 7-12, complex word structure is taught.
DIRECT
Students learn through straightforward, interactive learning, addressing head-
on the concepts that govern the structure of written English.
STRUCTURED
The 12 Steps of the Wilson Reading System guide the student through the
pitfalls of decoding and encoding, teaching them to trust the English
language as a reliable system from the start.
CUMULATIVE
Each step builds on the one before it. Students work from sounds to
syllables, words to sentences, and paragraphs to stories, learning the
structure of English through constant repetition and review.
MULTISENSORY
Lessons are interactive in nature and are designed to fully engage students
in the task at hand. Students learn by hearing sounds; manipulating color-
coded sound; syllable and word cards; performing finger tapping exercises,
writing down spoken words; reading aloud and repeating what they have read in
their own words, and hearing others read as well. All skills and knowledge
are reinforced through visual, auditory, kinesthetic and tactile senses.
INTEGRATED
The Wilson Reading System is organized around the six syllable types found in
English; sounds are taught only as they relate to the syllable being studied.
Lessons cover only those concepts being taught, with prior lessons being
reinforced. Similarly, all Wilson materials and texts are phonetically
controlled containing word lists, sentences, and paragraphs that incorporate
only the elements of word structure taught in or up to the corresponding
lesson.