• Phonological Awareness
     
    This is your child"s ability to hear sounds and sound patterns. Many children cannot read because they do not have a true ability to hear the separate sounds in words.  Follow the steps below to help your child to succeed at reading!
     

    1. Words in a Sentence

    This refers to a child's ability to understand that sentences are made of smaller pieces called words.
    Example:  Can the child recognize that there are four words in the following sentence: My dog is friendly. (My dog is friendly.)
    Important to note:  Children only have to demonstrate their understanding; they do not have to actually count the words.
     
     2.  Syllables
     
     Once your child understands that sentences are made up of words, they need to understand that words are divided into smaller parts called syllables. The word "happy" is broken into two syllables "hap/py" your child should clap each syllable.
     
     
    3.  Onset and Rime
     
    After mastering syllables, your child will need to understand that words can be broken into even smaller parts called onset and rime (not rhyme).  Onset/Rime breaks a word into its first sound before the vowel; this is the onset and the rest of the word is the rime. 
    Example:  "sat" the /s/ sound is the onset and the /at/ sound is the rime.  Only use single syllable words when teaching onset/rime. 
    ***If you would like a word list or need assistance with this concept please contact me and I will be happy to assist you.
     
     4.  Initial Sounds
     
    This is your child's ability to isolate and categorize the initial (first, beginning) sound in a word.
    Example:  "cat" the /c/ sound in the word cat is the beginning sound.
      
    5.  Final Sounds
     
    This is your child's ability to isolate and categorize the final (last, ending) sound in a word.
    Example:  "dog" the /g/ sound in the word dog is the final sound.
     
     6.  Middle Sounds
     
    Middle Sounds is your child's ability to isolate and categorize the medial (middle) sound in a word.
    Example:  "wig" the /i/ sound in the word wig is the medial sound.
     
     7.  Blending and Segmenting 2-5 Phonemes
     
    Phoneme-  The smallest unit of speech sound.
    • There are two phonemes in the word "at"    /a/  /t/
    • There are three phonemes in the word "cat"   /c/   /a/   /t/
    • There are four phonemes in the word "brat"    /b/   /r/   /a/   /t/
    • There are five phonemes in the word "splat"    /s/   /p/   /l/   /a/   /t/