PHONOLOGICAL & PHONEMIC AWARENESS

PHONOLOGICAL&

PHONEMIC AWARENESS

The Foundations of Successful Reading, Writing, & Spelling

Diana Hanbury KingFellow/A.O.G.P.E

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESSWhat is it? A metalinguistic* awareness of all levels of speech sound system, including word boundaries, stress patterns, syllables, onset-rime units, & phonemes

*Refers to an acquired awareness of (the study of) oral language structure & function that allows one to reflect on & consciously manipulate the language

Is a more encompassing term than phoneme (phonemic) awareness An “umbrella” term

PHONEMIC AWARENESSWhat is it?

It refers to the ability to identify, segment, & manipulate phonemes in words

Phonemes = smallest units constituting spoken language English consists of about 40 – 52 phonemes Only a few words have only one phoneme (ex. A, I) Most words consist of a blend of phonemes

ex. go = 2 phonemes

check = 3 phonemes (5 letters)

stop = 4 phonemes Phonemes are different than graphemes (units of written

language, which represent phonemes in the spelling of words)

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS Concepts Continuum

rhyming same/different

generating rhyming words

sentence segmentation

syllable segmentation & blending

onset-rime, blending, & segmentation

blending & segmenting individual phonemes

(by end of K)

More Complex Activity

Less Complex Activity

PHONEMIC AWARENESS

PHONEMIC AWARENESSConcepts Continuum

isolation

categorizationidentity

blendingsegmentation

deletion

More Complex Activity

Less Complex Activity

Remember: A phoneme is the smallest unit of sound in a word; man = /m/ /a/ /n/

1 2 3

PHONEMIC AWARENESS TASKS

Isolation: requires recognizing individual sounds in words; initial first, then final, then medial

Ex: Tell me the 1st sound in pan = /p/ Identity: requires recognizing the common sound in different

words Ex: Tell me the sound that is the same in bike, boy, & bell. = /b/

Categorization: requires recognizing the word with the odd sound in a sequence of 3 or 4 words

Ex: Which word does not belong? Bus, bun, rug? Blending: requires listening to a sequence of separately spoken

sounds & combining them to form a recognizable word Ex: What word is /p/ /o/ /t/ ? /t/ /r/ /a/ /p/ ?

Segmentation: requires breaking a word into its sounds by tapping out or counting the sounds or by pronouncing & positioning a marker for each sound

Ex: How many phonemes are there is ship? 3 = /sh/ /i/ /p/ Deletion: requires recognizing what word remains when a

specific phoneme is removed Ex: What is smile without the /s/? mile

initial phoneme

boat - oat

final phoneme

same – say

(by end of 1st)

initial phoneme in initial blend

trap - rap

2nd phoneme in initial blend

brake – bake

(by end of 3rd)

PHONEMIC AWARENESSDeletion Concepts Continuum

Increasi

ng compl

exity of

deletion

tasks

phoneme reversal

pat - tap

Phonemic awareness & letter recognition is

important! Research studies have identified phonemic awareness &

letter knowledge as the 2 best school entry predictors of how well children will learn to read during their first 2 years in school

It improves children’s ability to read (including word reading, pseudo-word reading, & reading comprehension) & spell in both the short & long term

The structure of the English writing system is alphabetic

Discovering phonemic units requires instruction to learn how the system works

Spoken language is seamless; there are no breaks in speech signaling where 1 phoneme ends & the next one begins

Rather phonemes are folded into each other & are coarticulated

Best if use letters when teaching phonemic awareness

Characteristics of the letters must be learned so children can use them to acquire phonemic awareness

Name – the name never changes Shape – depends on case & font Sound – some letters make more than one

sound; Ex: ch = /ch/, /k/, /sh/ Characteristics of letters need to be over-learned so children can work with them automatically to read & spell words

Teaching children to manipulate phonemes with letters helps children apply their new skills to reading & writing.

Daily Clapping Exercise

Which students benefit in their reading from PA instruction? Preschoolers, kindergarteners, 1st graders

Beginners who are low in PA & thus at risk for developing reading problems

Older disabled readers who already have reading problems

Children from all socio-economic levels Students taught English as a 2nd language for speaking, reading, & writing

Which methods of teaching PA have the greatest impact on learning to read?

Instruction should be focused on 1 or 2 skills until they are mastered, before adding more skills

Instruction must be suited to student’s level of development

Manipulating phonemes with letters helps children make the connection between PA skills & its application to reading

Explicit teaching of PA skills & how it is connected to reading is important; not incidental PA instruction

Who, what, where, when, &how often? Classroom teachers with training can teach PA effectively

Children should be screened for their PA ability at the beginning of kindergarten, 1st grade, & if a child is having difficulty learning to read

Small groups are the best way to teach PA to children rather than whole class or 1:1

Sessions should not exceed 25 minutes

Sessions should occur daily, for a total of 5 – 18 hours cumulatively per week

REMEMBER! Some children will have acquired phonological awareness by mid-kindergarten, but many won’t

For instructional planning, it’s important to determine what children know & to monitor what they learn

Informal & formal instruction & assessment should be ongoing

Example of a Monitoring Tool

Student Rhyming Blending Segmenting

Ashley 2 2 2

Brooke 1 0 0

Matt 2 1 1

Success Indicators2: Consistently completes task correctly & pronounces all

words without distortion

1: Completes a few words correctly

0: No evidence child can perform task: repeats segmented words without pronouncing them normally

Phonological Awareness Activity

Task Definition Child tells if the words rhyme when asked, “Does everything

sound the same except for the 1st sound?” Teacher ask question asked after each set of words given

Teacher says words that rhyme & sound the same except for the first sound (the onset) - hit/sit, ten/pen

Teacher says words that have different ending sounds (the rime) - go/top, him/but, now/nap

Teacher says words that rhyme with words that don’t rhyme - light/bite, tall/toe, day/say, rip/bag

Cued rhyming The song very __________. The bear sat in the _________.

Do These Words Rhyme?


Odd One Out

Beginning sound


Odd One Out

End sound


Odd One Out

Identify picture name that does not rhyme with the others

Task Definition Student is able to echo a word & generate words

that rhyme with it Teacher says a word - light Student take turns naming rhyming words

- bite - right - sight - kite - height

Rhyming GenerationPhonological Awareness Activity


Task Definition Child eliminates one word at a time, showing they have the

concept of what a word is Teacher reads each sentence starting with shorter

sentences first Students take turns saying just part of the sentence EX: Teacher: The dog jumps.

Student: The dogTeacher: Good. Now say part of that.Student: TheTeacher: Good for you!

Sentence Segmentation


Task Definition Student counts the number of words in a given sentence

Teacher gives each student 5-7 blocks of the same size & color, placed in a straight line

Teacher reads a sentences - The dog ran. Student echoes the sentence; as student echoes the

sentence, he points to or moves a block as he says each word

Student tells the number of words in the sentence - 3

Counting Words in a Sentence


Task Definition Child will identify the 2 basewords in a compound

word, thereby showing that words are made up of parts

Teacher says a word - baseball Student echoes the word & names the two

words he hears in each compound word

- base & ball

Segmenting Compound Words


Task Definition Child will say each syllable he hears in a word

Teacher says a word, starting with two-syllable words & later increasing # of syllables

- magnet

Student echoes the word & then names each syllable he hears in the word

- magnet - mag & net

Segmenting Syllables


Segmenting Syllables

Phonemic Awareness Activity

Task Definition – Say It & Move It Child will be able to repeat the phonemes & move counter down

into a left to right sequence Each student is given three identical markers & a card; markers are

put on picture Teacher says a sound or sequence of sounds - /i/ /t/ Student repeats the sounds - /i/ /t/ Student says the sound(s) again & moves each marker down to the

arrow at the bottom of the card as he says each sound; counters are placed in a left to right sequence on the arrow

If the sounds make a word, see if the student can say the word after he has moved all the markers

Once the student can identify the difference between consonant & vowel sounds, use a different color for the vowel phoneme

Saying & Blending Phonemes

Say it & Move it Task

The picture is just a place for student to put the counting chips; it is not related to the blended word.

Say it & Move it Task

The picture is just a place for student to put the counting chips; it is not related to the blended word.


Task Definition Child will recognize initial sound in a word

Teacher says a word; asks tell me the first sound in the word - sit

Student echoes the word & says the initial sound - /s/

Isolating Phonemes


Task Definition Child will recognize final sound in a word

Teacher says a word; asks tell me the last sound in the word - pin

Student echoes the word & says the final sound - /n/

Isolating Final Phonemes


Task Definition Child will recognize the common sound

in different words Teacher says three words - bike, boy, bell Teacher asks student to say the sound that is

the same in each word Student says the sound - /b/

Identifying Phonemes


Task Definition Child will recognize the word with the odd initial

sound in a sequence of 3 or 4 words Teacher says 3 words - bus, bun, rug Teacher asks - which word does not begin

with the same sound? Student says the word & what is different

- rug, because bus & bun begin with /b/, & rug begins with /r/

Categorizing Phonemes


Task Definition Child will listen to a sequence of separately

spoken sounds & combine them to form a recognizable word

Teacher says a sequence of sounds - /a/ /t/ Student echoes the sequence & blends the

phonemes together to form a word; student pronounces the word - /a/ /t/ --- at

Say it & move it cards can be used or use sound tapping with hand or fingers

Blending Phonemes


Task Definition – Say it & Move It Child will say individual phonemes & blend them into words

Teacher gives each student three identical counters & a card

Teacher says a word - sip Student echoes the word - sip Student unblends the word; he moves a counter down to

the arrow as he says each sound in the word; counters are placed in a left to right sequence - /s/ /i/ /p/

Student says the word again after he has moved all the markers

Blending & Segmenting Words


Blending & Segmenting Words


Task Definition Child will break a word into its sounds by tapping out & counting

the sounds, or by positioning a marker for each sound Teacher gives each student a “read the picture card”, & three

markers (letters are placed on each marker only if child knows the phoneme that goes with each letter)

Student names the picture on the card Student unblends the sound in the word Student says the word again Student says the sounds as he moves the appropriate markers in

sequence to bottom of the page, one marker in each box Students touches & name the letters in sequence when markers

have been moved & then reads the word

Segmenting Words

Read the Picture Card*

*Also known as Elkonin Cards

Read the Picture Card*

*Also known as Elkonin Cards


Task Definition Child will say what word remains after a specific phoneme is

removed Teacher says a word - make Student echoes word - make Teacher says - now say the word without saying /k/ Student says - may Exercise increases in difficulty, deleting initial sound, then one

phoneme in an initial blend, & then a final blend J. Rosner’s Test of Auditory Analysis Skills (TAAS) is a deletion

task measuring this ability from K – 3rd grade

Phoneme Deletion


Task Definition Child will recognize what word is formed when the

phonemes in a given word are reversed Teacher says a word - tap Student repeats the word - tap Teacher says - now say it again but this time with the

phonemes reversed in order, the last phoneme is first, etc

Student says the new word - pat Now you try one - snake

Phonemes Reversal

T.C.C.C.

Tutor writes word Student traces word saying each letter Student copies word saying each letter Student writes word saying each letter with all models covered

Student writes word with eyes closed or averted saying each letter

T.C.C.C.

Trace - Copy - Cover - Closed Tutor writes word Student traces word saying each letter

Student copies word saying each letter

Student writes word saying each letter with all models covered

Student writes word with eyes closed or averted saying each letter

RESOURCES Adams, Marilyn J, et al. (1998) Phonemic Awareness in

Young Children. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

Reading Strategies & Activities Resource Book For Students At Risk for Reading Difficulties, Including Dyslexia. (2004) http://www.texasreading.org

Reading Readiness (K & 1st). Neuhaus Education Center. http://www.neuhaus.org; 713-664-76676

Plastic capital & lowercase letters ABECEDARIAN, 9311 Claridge Drive, Houston, TX 77031;

713-774-0383 Robertson, C. & W. Salter. (1995). The Phonological

Awareness Book. E. Moline, IL: LinguiSystems. Road to the Code. Sounds Abound.

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PHONOLOGICAL & PHONEMIC AWARENESS