CPR curriculum is different from other reading curriculums in a number of important ways. First, the letters and sounds of the alphabet are not introduced alphabetically, but instead are taught in the order of frequency, depending on how often the letter sound occurs in the English language. For example, because the (x) is not as commonly used in the English language as the (y), the letter “y,” is introduced first. This order of presentation enables the student to begin reading with the most commonly-used letter sounds.
Also, all the sounds of the letters are taught for each letter of the alphabet, although only the first two vowel sounds are used for reading at this level. For example, the letter, “a” has four sounds, (a), (A), (aw), (u). Students are taught all the sounds of the letter, “a,” but will only read the first two sounds in the stories (mostly short vowel sounds) until all the letters in the alphabet are introduced. This knowledge helps students understand that many letters have more than one sound. When students begin reading with multiple sounds for letters, if one sound does not make sense in the word, another can be tried until the word is decoded successfully. This knowledge allows the students to read more quickly.
In addition to teaching all the vowel sounds, the vowels are taught gradually, giving students ample practice before learning the next vowel sound. Moreover, by introducing a vowel and two consonants, CPR gives students the ability to read three-letter words in the initial story, adding only one letter sound in each additional story. Therefore, students only have to remember the letter sounds that have been taught thus far and does not have to remember all the letter sounds in the alphabet at once, as is done in most other phonetic readers. Another distinguishing feature of the CPR Student Reader is the use of alliteration (or repetition of the initial sound) in each of the stories. These stories are designed so that the students can hear the sound being taught and gain practice reading that sound in the story.
Also, no “sight words” are introduced at this level in order to let students develop a firm phonetic knowledge of the letter sounds before introducing exceptions. This methodical introduction of letter sounds builds the students' sense of security.
Finally, the affirmation at the end of each lesson ensures feelings of pride and accomplishment. Students gain the confidence needed to become proficient readers and build mastery in language arts. By this systematic approach to reading, the CPR curriculum empowers students for success.