Chapter 5: Phonemic
Awareness
Teaching Reading Sourcebook
2nd Edition
Phonological and Phonemic
Awareness
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A phoneme is the smallest unit of spoken
language that makes a difference in a word’s
meaning.
Phonemic awareness is the ability to detect,
identify, and manipulate phonemes in spoken
words.
Phonemic awareness is one component of
phonological awareness. This is an umbrella
term that includes larger parts of spoken
words (syllables, onsets and rimes) as well
as the smallest parts (phonemes).
Phonemic Awareness and
Phonics
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Phonemic awareness is the understanding that
spoken language can be broken down into
phonemes or individual sounds.
Phonics is the understanding of the relationship
between phonemes and graphemes,the letters that
represent the sounds in written language.
When phonemic awareness is taught with letters it
becomes phonics instruction.
Levels of Phonological Awareness
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Word: blending, segmentation, deletion
Syllable: blending, segmentation, deletion
Rhyme: recognition, generation,
categorization
Onset and Rime: blending, segmentation
Phoneme: isolation, initial, ending, medial
Phoneme: identifying/matching, categorizing
Phoneme: blending, segmenting
Phoneme: deletion, addition, substitution
See the Phonological Skills by Level chart pages118 and 119.
Effective Phonemic Awareness
Instruction
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Explicit: clear explanations, modeling,
sufficient practice
Teach with systematic instructional lessons.
Progress from easier to more difficult tasks;
follow sequence beginning with phonological
awareness lessons.
Make sounds less abstract and more
concrete with markers.
Support blending through clear articulation of
sounds.
Be engaging, motivating and use interactive
games.
Phonemic Awareness Research
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Phonemic awareness is a strong predictor of
long-term reading and spelling success. It
predicts literacy performance more accurately
than intelligence, vocabulary knowledge, and
socio-economic status.
Phonemic instruction is more effective in
small groups and when it focuses on only one
or two phoneme manipulations.
The development of the sound structure of
words in a native alphabetic language can be
transferred to a second language.
When to Teach Phonemic
Awareness
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Kindergartners should receive short, 15-20 minute
lessons, as one lesson or broken into informal
activities throughout the day.
First grade students should receive 10 minutes per
day in conjunction with phonics instruction.
Instruction in second grade and above is usually
only taught for students who do not automatically
recognize words or who are reading below grade
level.
When to Assess and Intervene
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Begin PA assessment in mid-Kindergarten
and continue to assess throughout the early
elementary grades as needed.
Generally, once a student demonstrates
decoding ability, then phonemic awareness
assessment is no longer necessary.
If a student continues to struggle with
decoding in the upper grades, assessment
and intervention in PA may be appropriate.