How to Teach Your Child to Decode (Read Words) Using UFLI

These recommendations are GREAT for 1:1 tutors, too!

Teaching your child to read doesn’t have to be stressful. Reading develops just like walking—some children move ahead quickly, while others need more time and practice. Do not panic! Children catch up and often surpass their peers once they receive consistent, structured support.

Even if your child has a reading disability, they can become successful readers. They simply need a multisensory, structured approach—UFLI is based on the science of reading and builds the foundational literacy skills all children need. I use it daily, and it works! There are 128 lessons.

Parents, please follow this simple step-by-step plan.

Questions? I answer all questions for free: judithearaujo@gmail.com.

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, but I only recommend products I use.

Table of Contents

• Materials to Purchase – but UFLI offers FREE versions!
• Foundations Before Reading
• UFLI Lesson Sequence
• Additional Tips
• Encouragement
• Vowel Teaching Order
• Helpful Links
• Ideas for Classroom Teachers/Reading Specialists

Materials Needed – but UFLI has FREE versions

If you don’t want to purchase anything, UFLI has free paper materials you can use. They also have a free virtual word work board!

Grapheme Cards – I suggest the Fundations Level 3 grapheme cards.  I use these with my reading groups. These include kindergarten through grade 3 sounds. There are keywords behind each sound. Sound drills are a must in the science of reading and UFLI!  Approx. $60 on Amazon.

Here are UFLI’s FREE grapheme cards. 

Whiteboard, paper, or pencil – This is a lined whiteboard typically used in school. Students can practice letter formation and write the UFLI words and sentences. Approx. $9 on Amazon.

UFLI manual (optional but highly recommended)  Approx. $70 on the UFLI website.

Elkonin Boxes – One side is for segmenting and spelling words, and the other side is for syllables. Approx. $8.  If you are a teacher, consider these boards for your reading group:  Paddles.

Work Mat – In UFLI, students create words using the various graphemes! Great for 1:1 work. In school, I use the Fundations tiles. Approx. $29 on Amazon.

Here is UFLI’s FREE printable word work mat.

Printable lesson PDFs and Roll & Read activities – All UFLI links are embedded on this page.

Foundations Before Reading

Before decoding can happen, your child must have:

1. Phonological and phonemic awareness – hearing and manipulating sounds in words (no print).
2. Letter-name and letter-sound knowledge – knowing all 26 letters, their common sounds, and correct formation.

Once these are in place, your child is ready to read!

Lesson Sequence

Start with no letters at all. Do not place any graphemes on the drill deck or on the work mat. Begin fresh with the letter a, and add one new grapheme with each lesson.

Lesson 1: Letter “a”

• Teach that short a says /a/.
• Form “a” from the top down. Chant: “Make the letter c and go up and down.”
• Sight word: “the”

Lesson 2: Letter “m”

• Sound: /m/
• Correctly form it.

Lesson 3: Letter “s”

• Sound: /s/
• Correctly form it.

Lesson 4: Letter “t”

• Sound: /t/
• Correctly form it.

Tip: Print grapheme cards. Your child says the sound, not the letter name. Only drill letters taught so far (a, m, s, t).

Practice: Tap and blend words: at, sat, mat. Do not teach glued sounds like am or as yet.

Lessons 5–68

• Find Lesson 5-68 here. IGNORE the title “Kindergarten.” I start with Lesson 1 regardless of the grade. If the student is reading, start at Lesson 35, but check for proper letter formation.
• Spell every word in the lesson’s Word Work Chain using paper, whiteboard, or word work mat/tiles. Here is UFLI’s FREE printable word work mat.
• Add the lesson’s new letter each day to the grapheme drill pile and word mat.
• Introduce irregular “heart words” as indicated; blue letters are sounded out, hearts are memorized.
• Use the virtual blending board. The virtual blending board is GREAT—watch the tutorial video. Go directly to the beginner word work map or the intermediate word work map.
• Here are the letters used in each lesson going forward.

Lesson 6: Letter “p”

• Sound: /p/
• Add to grapheme drill and word mat.

Lesson 7: Letter “f”

• Sound: /f/
• Add n to grapheme drill and word mat.

Lesson 8: Short “i”

• Sound: /i/
• Correctly form it.
• UFLI stories begin now! Story contains only letters taught so far (a, m, s, t, p, f, i) + sight words.
• How to teach stories:
  1. Adult reads aloud, pointing to each word. Model tapping/blending if stuck.
  2. Echo read sentence by sentence.
  3. Chorally read slowly, pointing to words.
  4. Child reads aloud, tapping/blending as needed.
  5. Reread for fluency and accuracy. Reread at least 3x, and reread it tomorrow, too!
  6. Save stories for review.

Lessons 9–12

• Continue introducing letters and sight words.
• Read, reread, and reread UFLI stories.
• Add new letters and heart words to grapheme drill and word mat.

Lessons 13–128

• Roll and Reads – Practice reading words in isolation or make up games with them.
• Here are the Lessons 5-68.
• Follow Lessons 69-128.
• Add letters, heart words, and Roll & Read practice using dice or counters.
• Encourage repeated practice for fluency.

Additional Tips for Reading and Spelling

• Phonemic Awareness: Segment and blend sounds. Example: “cat” → /c/ /a/ /t/; /d/ /o/ /g/ → dog.
• Continuous sounds (/s/, /m/, /n/, /f/, /v/, /z/, /l/, /r/, vowels) can be stretched for easier blending.
• Sight words: Practice in context. The sight words introduced are embedded in the stories. If stuck, sound out the regular part and memorize irregular parts.
• Rimes (word families): Practice common patterns (-at, -ight, etc.) to unlock 500+ high-frequency words.
• Decodable texts: Only use books matching learned letters and patterns. Avoid guessing from pictures.
• Fluency practice: Have your child read passages repeatedly. Echo reading and choral reading help.
• Daily short practice: 5–15 minutes focused is better than long sessions.

Encouragement for Parents

Reading is one of the greatest gifts you can give your child. There is no “late” reader—only a child who hasn’t yet received the right instruction. With consistent practice, joy, and the UFLI program, your child will become a confident reader, able to decode, spell, and comprehend independently. Celebrate small wins and make reading fun!

Questions? Email me: judithearaujo@gmail.com

Helpful Links

• • 128 FREE UFLI lesson plans WITH decodables and sight words.
  • ALL Decodables on One PDF 8-128 (There are no decodables for lessons before 8.) AND supplemental passages PDF 35a-110.
  • Decodables in a mini-version with corresponding trick words
  • UFLI Placement Test
  • Scope & Sequence with Heart Words
  • UFLI-Decodable-Readers-Theater-All
  • UFLI Fluency by Unit—Compressed
  • L5 – L83 Fluency Triangles
  • ALL Roll & Reads 13-128 (There are no Roll & Reads for lessons before 13.) #92 is missing from the packet. Here it is!
  • Lessons 35a-110  – Instruct the students to cut the strips, shuffle, and arrange the stories in sequence.
  • The letters in each lesson
  • UFLI Lesson Links: Easy Teacher Access
  • Spelling Rules Lessons 42-53
  • Spelling Rules Lessons 69-76
  • Foundations-Home-Practice-K (Includes lessons 5-68) and Foundations-Home-Practice-Second (Includes lessons 38a-128).
  • Alignment to Common Core State Standards
  • UFLI Notebook Covers PDF

Create more stories for each UFLI lesson with Project Read. You get 3 free stories a week, but for a small fee, you can join and get unlimited stories each week.

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02/01/24

Edited on 12/07/25