What is the first step to follow when a word is misread by the student?

When a word is misread by the student, having the student name the letters in the word is a fundamental step because it encourages the student to engage actively with the word's spelling. This process fosters phonemic awareness and aids in reinforcing the connection between letters and their corresponding sounds. By focusing on the individual letters, the student can begin to decode the word more effectively and develop a better understanding of how to approach similar words in the future.

Identifying the letters allows the student to assess their own reading process and recognize where the misreading occurred, thereby increasing their awareness of the reading task itself. This strategy not only helps in correcting the immediate misreading but also supports long-term skill development in decoding and reading fluency. It promotes an analytical approach to reading errors, which can lead to improvements over time.