Recently, a teacher trained in our Phonics First™ Orton-Gillingham program asked "when is it ok for my students to stop fingertapping?" Here are a few simple guidelines:

First, we should note that the goal of fingertapping is to help students internalize the sequencing of sounds and symbols within a word using tactile-kinesthetics. Many students will stop fingertapping once they are able to do this in their heads. However, it is recommended that during dictation, all students are required to fingertap the first 3-4 words so they do not forget the process. This will ensure they can always use fingertapping as a strategy to figure out a tricky word.

For students who are fairly accurate with spelling during dictation, they may stop fingertapping each word after the first 3-4 unless they make an error. Students who still need to fingertap for accurate spelling should be directed to fingertap all words.

Please feel free to ask and post more questions!