ALPHABETIC Readers & Spellers Checklists - Print and observe reading and spelling behaviors

Oct 22, 2026

Uploaded by Rizky

ALPHABETIC Readers & Spellers Checklists provides printable behavior checklists for the alphabetic stage of reading and spelling. It includes observation prompts for children aged about 5–7, with sections for beginning, middle, and ending alphabetic reading behaviors, and parallel sections for beginning, middle, and ending spelling behaviors. The sheet supports tracking “Yes/No” items, adding comments, and guiding teaching by monitoring how learners decode words, use context, and manage spelling patterns.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Included checklists

Reading behaviors: beginning, middle, ending

Spelling behaviors: beginning, middle, ending

Extra observations

ALPHABETIC Readers & Spellers Checklists ©[www.thisreadingmama.com](www.thisreadingmama.com) Included in this download are behavior checklists for the alphabetic stage of reading (pg. 2) and spelling (pg. 3) . Print front and back (long-ways) to create a single page for your child or student. As I mentioned in my Literacy Development article, this checklist is simply one of many tools we can use to help us, as observers, become more aware of what our child/student understands about reading and spelling so we can better guide our teaching. Children in the alphabetic stage are typically 5-7 years old, although older and younger children may certainly exhibit some of these behaviors. Read more about it! (click on links below) The Alphabetic Stage 5 Stages of Literacy Development Terms of Use: This free printable pack was created for you to use at home with your child/students or with multiple children in your classroom/tutoring setting. Please do not sell, host, reproduce, giveaway, or store on any other site (including a blog, Facebook, 4Shared, Dropbox, etc.) . Thank you! ALPHABETIC Reading Behaviors Beginning Alphabetic Behaviors Child’s Name: Date(s) Observed: Yes No Comments | moves from pretend reading to real reading | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | uses pictures & initial consonants to figure out unknown words | | | | | reading sounds very laborious (letter-by-letter or word-by-word) | | | | | begins to recognize words by sight | | | | | “silent” reading = whisper reading as he vocalizes words | | | | | may be more focused on reading words than comprehending | | | | | finger points to words when reading | | | | | able to “play” with sounds in words more (rhyming, syllables, sounds) | | | | Middle Alphabetic Behaviors | exhibits some of the characteristics of beginning alphabet readers like finger pointing, “silent” reading, and “playing” with sounds | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | tries to sound out unknown words more | | | | | still uses pictures & initial consonants to figure out unknown words, but may also look at length of word | | | | | guesses at unknown words – guesses may or may not make sense | | | | Ending Alphabetic Behaviors | tries to sound out many unknown words | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | when sounding out doesn’t work, context clues are used | | | | | “silent” reading = whisper reading as he vocalizes words | | | | | may move away from finger pointing when reading | | | | | begins to self-correct more when an error is made | | | | | may start to look for known word parts within other words (chunking) | | | | | able to “play” with individual sounds in words more | | | | ©[www.thisreadingmama.com](www.thisreadingmama.com) ALPHABETIC Spelling Behaviors Beginning Alphabetic Behaviors Child’s Name: Date(s) Observed: Yes No Comments | matches the written letters in words to letter sounds | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | spells mostly with beginning and ending consonants, very few vowels are used | | | | | s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-s out sounds in words as spelling | | | | | space in between words becomes a little more regular | | | | | may reverse some letters, especially letters that look similar like band d | | | | Middle Alphabetic Behaviors | starts to add vowels when spelling words, but still inconsistent | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | blends and digraphs are partially spelled (such as FOG for frog) | | | | | s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-s out sounds in words as spelling | | | | | space in between words becomes more consistent | | | | | may continue to reverse similar letters | | | | Ending Alphabetic Behaviors | begins to spell most short vowel patterns (CVC) correctly | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | starts to spell consonant blends (fr, gl, sn, etc.) and common digraphs (th, sh, ch) correctly | | | | | s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-s out sounds in words as

FAQs

What age group are the checklists designed for?

Children in the alphabetic stage are typically 5–7 years old, though older and younger learners may show similar behaviors.

How can teachers or parents use the checklist?

Print the page front and back and use the “Yes/No” items and comment section to observe what a child understands about reading and spelling, then guide instruction accordingly.

What reading behaviors are tracked in the alphabetic stage?

The checklist tracks beginning, middle, and ending behaviors such as decoding progress, reliance on pictures or consonants, “silent” or whisper reading, finger pointing, context clues, and self-correction.

Oct 22, 2026

Uploaded by Rizky