The Sound Phonics And Reading Knowledge for Literacy Enrichment (SPARKLE) program is designed for students in PreK through 3rd grade. It supports the development of essential early literacy skills, focusing on phonological and phonemic awareness. SPARKLE provides educators with a comprehensive set of activities and materials, tailored for use in speech-language therapy sessions or within a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework. By targeting foundational skills necessary for reading success, SPARKLE helps bridge gaps for young learners in need of additional support.

Key Features

Preschool through Third Grade (PreK-3)
Core areas of Focus:
- Phonological Awareness
- Phonemic Awareness
- Phonics
Designed to scaffold learning
Automated scoring for all activities

Structure

Organization

Phonological Awareness Collection

The Phonological Awareness activities are designed to facilitate the practice of foundational early literacy skills within the following categories:

Collection	Unit
Initial Sound ID	Single Sounds Mixed Sounds
Final Sound ID	Single Sounds Mixed Sounds
Rhyming	Single Rhyme Mixed Rhymes
Segmentation	Syllables Words
Blending	Making Compound Words Onset-Rime Blending

Phonics Activities

The Phonics Activities are divided into four concepts, each including two decodable stories featuring the target phonics concept:

Target Phonics Concept	Decodable Stories
CVC Words & Short Vowels	Ben and his Bat Tim in the Mud
Consonant Digraphs	The Duck and the Bath Chat and his Chick
Consonant Blends	Blake’s Blue Flag Stef and her Plant
CVCe Words	The Red Rose Pete’s Mule

Each decodable story has 3 levels of activities that increase in difficulty as students progress:

Level	Activity
Level 1	Initial Sound ID Final Sound ID Phoneme Matching Odd-Word-Out [Target Phonics Concept Activity] Story Vocabulary
Level 2	Phoneme Blending Phoneme Segmentation [Target Phonics Concept Activity] Find the Definition
Level 3	Phoneme Deletion Phoneme Addition Phoneme Substitution [Target Phonics Concept Activity] Fill-in-the-Blank Vocabulary

Application

Goal Overview

SPARKLE focuses on foundational literacy skills, divided into the core areas outlined below:

Core Area of Focus	Target Skills
Phonological Awareness	Rhyming, syllable segmentation, onset-rime blending
Phonemic Awareness	Phoneme identification, blending, segmentation
Phonics	CVC words, digraphs, consonant blends, CVCe long vowel patterns

Each unit is designed to scaffold learning, moving from simpler skills to more advanced concepts.

Methodology of Skill Instruction

Phonological Awareness Collection

There is one skill instruction for all activities within the Phonological Awareness Collection. Each section of the Phonological Awareness Skill Instruction is dedicated to one of the following concepts: Initial Sound ID, Final Sound ID, Rhyming, Segmentation, Blending.

Check out an in-depth walkthrough of the Phonological Awareness Skill Instruction here.

How to Use the Skill Instruction:

Use the individual phonological awareness sections to review concepts such as initial and final sound identification, rhyming, and syllabification.

Phonics Activities

There is one skill instruction for each decodable story, totaling 8 Phonics Activities skill instruction decks. Each phonics skill instruction deck features the associated story as well as sections containing teaching materials for the skills being practiced in the activities, organized by Level (1, 2, or 3).

Check out an in-depth walkthrough of the Phonological Awareness Skill Instruction here.

How to Use the Skill Instruction:

Use the skill instruction to review the stories associated with the target phonics concept
Use the phonics concept section to review the target phonics concept
Use the phonological awareness sections to teach specific phonological awareness skills

Use Cases

Therapy or MTSS Use: Individuals or Groups

SPARKLE can be incorporated into speech-language therapy sessions or MTSS interventions. Its structured activities systematically support phonological and phonemic awareness development. Amplio automatically scores all SPARKLE activities completed, allowing for effortless data collection across sessions and independent practice.

Home Practice

Educators can assign SPARKLE activities for home practice, allowing students to continue developing their literacy skills outside the classroom or therapy setting. Amplio automatically scores all SPARKLE activities completed, allowing for effortless data collection across sessions and independent practice.

Evidence

Evidence	Expression in Program
Explicit phonemic awareness instruction, such as phoneme segmentation and blending, improves literacy outcomes (National Reading Panel, 2000).	SPARKLE incorporates activities targeting phoneme segmentation, blending, and manipulation as key components of its intervention.
Structured phonemic awareness training enhances decoding and reading fluency (Ehri et al., 2001).	Structured activities guide students through progressively challenging tasks to develop decoding and fluency skills.
Teaching phonological awareness at various levels (words, syllables, phonemes) is critical for literacy development (Gillon, 2004).	SPARKLE progresses from larger sound units (syllables) to smaller ones (phonemes) in a systematic hierarchy.
Multisensory phonics techniques promote engagement and retention (Smith et al., 2013).	SPARKLE uses digital tools, games, and interactive elements to engage learners in multisensory phonics practice.
Systematic instruction in phonics improves early reading skills and spelling (National Reading Panel, 2000).	SPARKLE includes decodable stories and focused phonics units to practice and reinforce critical reading and spelling skills.

Evidence-based Program Use

Incorporate phonological awareness activities into structured, small-group or one-on-one sessions.
Use SPARKLE’s progression of skills to start students at their appropriate level and build complexity as they master foundational concepts.
Integrate decodable stories and contextual activities into phonics lessons to make the skills practical.