# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Audiobooks for Dyslexia & Learning Disabilities | Learning Ally

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Learning Ally solutions help struggling readers through audiobooks & support services for educators, parents, and students dealing with dyslexia. Reading accommodations

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
ReadTheory | Reading Comprehension Exercises

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Reading comprehension exercises — online, free, & adaptive. Fits K-12, ESL and adult students. Easily track progress for the entire class.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Join us for our Virtual Field Trips or watch them on-demand after their premieres. Each no-cost Virtual Field Trip comes with a companion guide packed with standards-aligned, hands-on learning activities! Select one of the options below to register.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Take students beyond the classroom and into some of the world's most iconic locations with virtual field trips. Learn more!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Scarborough's Reading Rope:

Dr. Hollis Scarborough, American psychologist and literacy expert, is the creator of the famous Scarborough's Reading Rope. Like Gough & Tunmer's Simple View of Reading, Scarborough replicates the interconnectedness (and interdependency) between decoding and language comprehension in order to establish proficient reading.

These well-validated theoretical models inform educators what to test for and what to teach.

Proficient reading and reading comprehension is the ideal outcome, a product when all strands are tightly woven together. When even one strand is frayed or weak, the overall braided rope is compromised.

Image Credit: The image, courtesy of the author, originally appeared in the following publication: Scarborough, H. S. (2001). Connecting early language and literacy to later reading (dis)abilities: Evidence, theory, and practice. In S. Neuman & D. Dickinson (Eds.), Handbook for research in early literacy (pp. 97-110). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
The top 5 strands become increasingly strategic over time, even into adulthood.
Background Knowledge

Background knowledge: The bank of knowledge one possesses based on life experiences and previous learning that is stored in memory and acquired over time.

Vocabulary Knowledge

Vocabulary knowledge: A language user's knowledge of words.

Language Structures

Language structure: Written syntax, sentence structure and text structure. Understanding how sentences are formed and how they convey meaning is critical to our ability to comprehend while we read.

Verbal Reasoning

Verbal reasoning: The ability to put learning into words, to explain answers to the teacher's questions, to infer, conceptualize and frame thoughts in words - all of these ways of connecting ideas, comparing and contrasting ideas, combining ideas, verbalizing thinking are referred to as verbal reasoning.

Literacy Knowledge

Literacy knowledge: The understanding that organizational differences and purposes exist among different text formats. For example, a poem has a different structure and purpose than an essay. Literacy knowledge includes familiarity with the different expository (non-fiction) text structures that authors use to organize information. These include description, sequence, compare, cause and effect, problem/ solution, as well as the use and purpose of headings, captions, and other organizational features.

The bottom 3 strands become increasingly automatic over time, typically in early elementary school, usually in place by the end of 3rd grade, dependent upon explicit instruction during ELA reading block.
These strands describe how we interact with printed text.
Phonological Awareness

Phonological Awareness: Awareness of sounds of words in learning to read and spell. (Note: The constituents of words can be distinguished in three ways: (1) by syllables, as /bo˘ok/, (2) by onsets and rimes, as /b/ and /o˘ok/, or (3) by phonemes, as /b/ and /o˘o/ and /k/. (cf. phonemic awareness)

Decoding (and spelling)

Decoding (and spelling): (reading). (1) Using one or more strategies to identify a printed word and its meaning; (2) Using knowledge of the logic of the written symbol system (especially letter-sound relationships and patterns in alphabetic orthographies) to translate print into speech; encoding involves translating speech into print using this knowledge.

Alphabetic principle - a letter or letters represents a sound

Spelling reinforces reading more than reading reinforces spelling

Sight Recognition

Sight Recognition of familiar words: (not sight words or high frequency words) any word whose pronunciation, spelling, and meaning are linked in long-term memory such that it is recognized automatically, effortlessly, and unconsciously when seen in print

**The views and opinions expressed in any third-party resource do not necessarily reflect those of the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) and do not imply an endorsement by ADE.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Scarborough's Reading Rope:Dr. Hollis Scarborough, American psychologist and literacy expert, is the creator of the famous Scarborough's Reading Rope. Like Gough & Tunmer's Simple View of Reading, Scarborough replicates the interconnectedness (and interdependency) between decoding and language comprehension in order to establish proficient reading.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Inspire a lifetime of reading and discovery with our award-winning digital library.

Inspire a lifetime of reading and discovery with our award-winning digital library.

Inspire a lifetime of reading and discovery with our award-winning digital library.
Families, Start Reading Educators, get it free

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
online access fun thousands children great kids ebooks books

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Instantly access over 40,000 of the best books & videos for kids on Epic

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Explore 40,000+ online story books, audiobooks, fairy tales and more. Get access to the Epic Unlimited today.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4–9

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Recent research has identified strategies that have the potential to improve reading among students in grades 4–9 with reading difficulties. Research is distilled into practical recommendations educators can use when providing reading interventions. This guide details four evidence-based practices designed to be used by special educators, general education teachers, reading specialists and coaches, administrators, and parents.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
With an understanding that research in the future may provide even more powerful pathways for reading success, this fact sheet presents guiding principles for instruction informed by what we know from research today. Science evolves and is dynamic. As reading research progresses, and as understanding and interpretation of the research advances, educators and policymakers must periodically adjust or refine practices and policies. Now it is time to implement what accumulated evidence indicates regarding a key component of reading acquisition, phoneme awareness (also known as phonemic awareness). Students who are learning to read must become aware of the smallest segmented parts of spoken words (phonemes) that are represented by graphemes (letters and combinations of letters) in written words. Phoneme awareness is the ability to be aware of and consciously think about these individual speech sounds in spoken words. It is a critical foundational skill for reading.

This fact sheet discusses phoneme awareness, why it is necessary, and how it develops. In it you will find tips for effective practices to build children 's phoneme awareness in kindergarten, first grade, and beyond. Based on current understanding of research findings, this fact sheet also covers the importance of integrating phoneme awareness instruction that links phonemes and associated graphemes with letter names and handwriting instruction. It further raises important considerations regarding the interpretations of research in commonly used programs, standards, evaluation rubrics, and legislative requirements for literacy instruction. To unpack what is known, it is helpful to first review relevant terminology

Phonological Awareness is a broad term that refers to the ability to think about and be consciously aware of the sound structures in spoken words, ranging from larger, more noticeable structures (such as syllables and rhymes) to individual phonemes. Phonological awareness is sometimes used to refer to awareness of a subset of those sound structures, but it is clearer to use the more specific terms, phonological sensitivity and phoneme awareness to be more precise and avoid misunderstandings.

Note: when representing the phonemes in spoken words in writing, phonemes are bracketed by diagonal lines; for example, /k/ signifies the speech sound represented by the first letters in kitten and cop

Phonological Sensitivity refers to awareness of the larger, sometimes more easily noticed sound structures in speech, including whole words and sound structures within words: rhymes, syllables, onsets, and rimes.

Rhymes-consisting of the stressed vowel in a word and what follows-can extend across one or more syllables (for example, cat/bat; mountain/fountain). Syllables include a vowel phoneme and may have one or more consonant phonemes before and/or after the vowel phoneme (for example, I, am, go, sit, spot, script). The onset, if present, is the first phonetic segment of a syllable before the vowel sound; in the word cat, it is the /k/. The rime includes the vowel phoneme and anything that follows it in the syllable; in the word cat, it is the two phonemes that follow the /k/.

Phoneme Awareness (or phonemic awareness) is the ability to be aware of and consciously think about individual speech sounds (phonemes) in spoken words, as noted above. Phoneme awareness is a necessary component of early reading and spelling development. It goes beyond the hearing or perceiving of the speech sounds in spoken words. Phoneme awareness involves conscious awareness that allows a learner to notice and think about the phonemes in words they hear and pronounce. This skill develops gradually, almost always in the context of learning about phonemes and letters in written words.

Focus on Phoneme Awareness
Why Phoneme Awareness Is Important for Learning to Read
To understand how the English alphabetic writing system works, the learner must realize that letters (or combinations of letters) represent the individual phonemes in spoken words. This awareness is referred to as gaining understanding of the alphabetic principle. An awareness of individual phonemes, subsequently linked with corresponding letters, provides an insight about the nature of writing that is essential for learning to read and write. This insight usually begins by becoming aware of one or more of the first phonemes in spoken words (the /k/ in cat; the /s/ in soup). Awareness of each of the phonemes in English in the different positions in spoken words, and knowledge of the corresponding letters or letter combinations (graphemes), unfolds over time, bringing about expanded mastery of the alphabetic system. In short, phoneme awareness is a critical cornerstone of that process. Without awareness of phonemes and the ways in which they are represented in print, written words would seem to be arbitrary sets of letters that must be memorized.
Why Phoneme Awareness Is Challenging to Acquire
Children's abilities vary in terms of how difficult it is to acquire phoneme awareness; this is unrelated to intelligence. Speaking and listening do not require being aware of the individual speech sounds in spoken words. Instead, those language skills are processed automatically by the language system in the brain. However, to learn to read, children must acquire a new metalevel skill that requires consciously thinking about words as a sequence of individual speech sounds rather than just attending to the meaning of what is being said, as they have been used to doing.

Contributing to the challenge of becoming aware of the individual phonemes, the articulation of a phoneme usually overlaps to some extent with the articulation of other phonemes that precede and/or follow it. This overlap happens because phonemes are produced with combinations of muscle gestures, such as opening and closing the lips, raising, or lowering the jaw, and vibration of the vocal cords; gestures that yield one phoneme may occur at the same time or overlap with the production of adjacent phonemes (known as coarticulation). For example, consider the pronunciation of the words see and sue: at the start of saying the /s/ in see, the lips are already wide for the long e vowel sound; for sue, they are rounded in anticipation of the u vowel sound. The difficulty of becoming aware of individual phonemes may stem in part from this coarticulation of the gestures across phonemes, given that the pronunciation of a phoneme in a word generally carries some information about neighboring phonemes as well. At the same time, focusing children's attention on the key articulatory components of a phoneme can be beneficial for fostering awareness of phonemes. As an example, even with the slight variation in lip position in the pronunciation of /s/ in see and sue, students can notice that /s/ in both cases is a hissy sound made by placing the tip of the tongue close to the upper front teeth and pushing air out at that location-the key articulatory components of that phoneme.
Phoneme Awareness as the Starting Point
Early research found that first-grade students had awareness of phonemes, but preschoolers did not. Because approximately half of the preschoolers tested demonstrated awareness of the larger phonological element of syllables, it raised a question: Must children first become aware of these larger chunks of speech sounds before developing phoneme awareness? Over the years, an assumption was widely embraced by researchers-and implemented by practitioners-that instruction should follow a developed that instruction should follow a sequence from larger to smaller phonological elements. However, research has confirmed that phoneme awareness can be taught to children who lack phonological sensitivity, demonstrating that acquiring phoneme awareness does not require students to first gain syllable segmentation skills. Multiple findings also corroborate that programs are effective when they begin with a focus on phoneme awareness rather than phonological sensitivity, and highly so when instruction then links phonemes with graphemes. This is documented both for beginning readers and for students who have struggled with acquiring reading skills. This research indicates that phonological sensitivity instruction (with larger units such as rhyme, syllables, and onset-rime) is neither a prerequisite nor a causal factor in the development of phonemic awareness.
How Phoneme Awareness Develops
Phoneme awareness develops gradually, most often as children are learning to read and spell. Direct instruction in phoneme awareness, promptly linked with letter knowledge, facilitates reading acquisition, and learning to read reciprocally expands awareness of phonemes.

Correspondingly, acquisition of the alphabetic principle unfolds gradually. It develops in tandem with the phoneme awareness ability to isolate and identify phonemes in spoken words, provided that phoneme awareness instruction is linked subsequently with letter knowledge (letter names and letter sounds). Blending and segmenting at the phoneme level are essential skills because they are central to decoding and encoding (spelling). Therefore, when teaching and practicing phoneme awareness skills, once the student has become aware of the phoneme, linking each speech sound with the grapheme that spells it will facilitate the transfer of skills to reading and writing.
Beginning Phoneme Awareness
The location of a phoneme influences the ease with which students become aware of that phoneme. It is easiest for students to isolate the initial phoneme in a spoken word, regardless of length of the word, if the first phoneme is not part of a consonant blend. For example, beginners can identify the initial phoneme /b/ in the spoken words bus and banana more easily than they can in blue or brown.

A simple syllable (such as bus or keep) is one that does not include a consonant blend. After becoming aware of initial phonemes (such as the /b/ in bus or the /k/ in keep), students generally become aware of final phonemes in simple one-syllable spoken words (the /s/ in bus, the /p/ in keep). The next level is becoming aware of the medial vowel phonemes in simple syllable words such as these. In short, explicit instruction in phoneme awareness (including phoneme segmentation) with words that are simple syllables facilitates a student's beginning awareness of phonemes.

Instructional Goal: With appropriate instruction, full acquisition of beginning phoneme awareness-awareness of each of the phonemes in simple syllables-is a realistic goal for kindergarten students, coordinated with instruction that links the phonemes with targeted letter names, letter sounds, and letter writing.
Later Phoneme Awareness
Once students master awareness of phonemes in simple syllables, they are ready for explicit instruction in words that are complex syllables. A complex syllable is one that includes one or two consonant blends (for example, clap, felt, crisp, splash). Note that long vowels can be included when doing an oral segmentation task (with words such as float or claim) once the child's spelling skills have advanced to include the graphemes that will spell that phoneme. Becoming aware of initial or final external consonants (the /k/ or /p/ in crisp) is easier than becoming aware of the internal consonants in two-phoneme blends (the /l/ in clap or felt; the /r/ and /s/ in crisp), or in three-phoneme blends (the /p/ and /l/ in splash).

Instructional Goal: Once awareness of phonemes in simple syllables is confirmed for individual students by the end of kindergarten or early in first grade, awareness of phonemes in complex syllables is an appropriate goal for first grade. Beyond first grade, a student who has not attained full phoneme awareness will need further instruction, first determining where the student is in their development of phoneme awareness and going forward from there.
Teaching Tip
Be alert to a student's spelling and reading errors that reflect a phoneme awareness weakness. Omission of a speech sound is a flag that the student may be unaware of one or more phonemes in the spoken word. For example, spelling bed as "bd" often reflects lack of awareness of the medial vowel; spelling plan as "pan" is an indication that the student is having difficulty being aware of the /l/ in the blend and needs to do activities that will foster awareness of internal consonants.
Why It Is Important to Coordinate Phoneme Awareness Instruction with the Teaching of Grapheme-Phoneme Correspondences, Spelling (Encoding), and Handwriting
When a child demonstrates awareness of a phoneme (for example, being able to isolate and pronounce an initial phoneme), this can be followed by introducing the letter or combination of letters that represents that phoneme. This sequence builds an understanding of the alphabetic principle, as noted earlier. The value of incorporating graphemes when building phoneme awareness (for example, in a spelling activity) has been verified both for beginning readers in kindergarten and students who have deficits in reading at any age who have phoneme awareness weaknesses. Further, this sequential pairing facilitates the links between phonemes and letters needed for orthographic mapping of words (storing the spellings of words in memory). Likewise, it is beneficial to work consistently on handwriting practice that is coordinated with the grapheme-phoneme relationships that have been learned, and to apply these skills in spelling, reading, and writing activities. This, too, strengthens students' mastery of phoneme-grapheme correspondences and is a key foundation for writing fluency.

This approach is an example of an important concept of Structured Literacy: student learning of foundational reading skills is facilitated by instruction that is integrated-that coordinates the development of phoneme awareness with the learning of letter and grapheme names and sounds and that includes instruction in handwriting along with practice writing the targeted letters. This approach helps students gain awareness of the alphabetic principle, supports the learning of each component, and lays a foundation for decoding, word recognition, and spelling. Once a student has early phoneme awareness and letter knowledge for a small set of consonants and one or two vowels (for example: a, m, s, f, l, i, t, p) they can begin to read and spell many words (sat, map, lip, fit, ...). With a set of vowels and consonants such as these, kindergarteners also can (and should) practice encoding and writing words that use the learned set of phonemes and letters. Likewise, they can (and should) practice applying these skills to read decodable text with these same phonemes/letters and with a small number of high-frequency words necessary to compose sentences. The exciting accomplishment of reading text is rewarding - and helps consolidate the skills being learned.

You might be surprised by the recommendation to coordinate letter knowledge and writing skills with phoneme awareness tasks in light of the fact that a number of programs do not. The practice of not incorporating letters stemmed from early findings showing that good readers are better than poor readers at doing oral phoneme manipulation tasks without letters (for example, what is smile without the /s/?). At the time, there was widespread agreement on the implications of this research, and the practice of attempting to develop phoneme awareness skills without any connection to graphemes was an appropriate interpretation of what was known at the time. However, further research indicates that such skills are the consequence of spelling and reading development: when good readers are asked to manipulate the phonemes in a spoken word by substituting, deleting or adding a phoneme, they automatically access their knowledge of the spelling (the orthographic representation) of that word. Students who can do manipulation tasks orally for words that are complex syllables are likely to be good readers and spellers who are beyond the need for phoneme awareness instruction. For other students who do need to increase their awareness of phonemes, research still is needed to determine whether oral-only manipulation of complex syllables (without including letters) is beneficial. Given the lack of evidence to support oral-only phonemic awareness manipulation activities and because existing research shows those tasks associated with stronger effects when integrated with print, incorporating letters in phoneme manipulation tasks is recommended to enhance awareness of phonemes in spoken words and to support memory of letter-sound correspondences.

Note that this is not to say that all oral phoneme awareness tasks are inappropriate. For example, it's fine to ask students to isolate and/or identify an individual phoneme or to say each phoneme in an oral segmentation measure, if these activities are introduced at the appropriate point in students' phoneme awareness development. Keep in mind that, even with these tasks, it can be helpful to promptly make connections to the graphemes that spell the phonemes. Using letters helps establish the functional value of the phoneme awareness task because it connects phoneme awareness with reading and spelling.
Teaching Tip
Whenever phoneme manipulation tasks are used to build awareness, provide letter tiles or written letters in some form to represent the spellings of the phonemes in the word and the phoneme being manipulated. Asking students to do such manipulation without letters can strain working memory, putting a counter-productive, unnecessary burden on beginners and struggling readers.
The Impact of Speaking a Second Language or a Different Dialect
Whenever there is a difference between the language or dialect background of a student learning to read and write in General American English (GAE), the student will have extra language and cognitive learning demands. In U.S. schools, approximately 400 different languages other than English are spoken; Spanish is the most common. The second language learner must become consciously aware of the phonemes in English, including any English speech sounds that are not in the student's native language.

A similar situation exists for speakers of English dialects, with a significant case being the African American English (AAE) dialect in which phonological rules differ from GAE regarding how certain phonemes are pronounced in particular contexts (for instance, consonant clusters in final position in a word may be reduced to a single final consonant). Linguistic analyses have long established that AAE meets all the systematic, rule-governed characteristics of a spoken language, reinforcing the need for positive attitudes about this dialect.
Teaching Tip
Teachers need to be well informed about the phonemes of English and be aware of which speech sounds are particularly challenging for the second language learner depending on the child's first language. This awareness will enable them to provide extra support to help the student gain mastery of those phonemes. For example, when students whose first language is Spanish encounter the phoneme /sh/ (a phoneme not in the Spanish phonology), they may confuse it with the similar phoneme that is present in both Spanish and English: /ch/ (spelling ship as chip). Attention to how /sh/ and /ch/ differ in articulation may be helpful, as may be sorting activities with cards depicting objects that in English start with one or the other of these phonemes.

Likewise, teachers may be better able to teach AAE speakers if they gain an understanding of when and how particular phonemes are pronounced differently in the two dialects and provide extra support as needed pertaining to phoneme awareness, as well as to other differing linguistic aspects of AAE and GAE. With that understanding, teachers can respectfully help students learn how spoken GAE differs, while also explicitly linking it to written English.

Other Questions You May Have
What to Do if Students Lack Phonological Sensitivity
Lack of phonological sensitivity (awareness of the larger sounds structures in spoken words such as rhymes, syllables, etc.) and phoneme awareness is particularly common for young children and for children coming from low socioeconomic circumstances. Though phonological sensitivity can be taught to young students, doing so delays the instruction needed to build students' phoneme awareness and corresponding letter knowledge-skills that are necessary to become successful readers. It can also introduce confusion for learners when they switch to a focus on phonemes. Because an instructional continuum from phonological sensitivity to phoneme awareness is not necessary, delaying phonemic awareness instruction by starting with phonological sensitivity activities is unlikely to be the most direct and beneficial path to launching students' phoneme awareness skills and reading success.
Teaching Tip
Start right away with activities that target phoneme awareness, focusing first on initial phonemes, the easiest phoneme position in a word for beginners to isolate. Two practical guidelines should influence which phonemes are selected to be in the words used.

First, the instructor (and ideally, the curriculum) should begin with words in which the phonemes are easier to become aware of because they are produced in the front of the mouth (and hence are more visible in a mirror or when produced by another speaker) and can be stretched out-such as the /m/ in "mmmmmmap." Phonemes such as these can be used to make a number of common one-syllable words.

Second, the phoneme awareness program should not be disconnected from the district's foundational skills program and thought of as an add-on to the curriculum. Rather, the district should follow a logical scope and sequence for foundational skills curricular materials and decodable books, and the phonemes targeted for phonemic awareness should be coordinated with that sequence to systematically link phoneme awareness, letter skills, and reading development.
W hen to Provide Instruction in Syllable and Rhyme Structures
There can be benefits to teaching students about syllable and rhyme structures, but mostly for reasons unrelated to phoneme awareness. Young children notice rhyme and alliteration as part of hearing and remembering nursery rhymes and songs. The rhyme concept also can be a focus later if students are writing poems. When targeting awareness of an initial phoneme, generating alliterative sequences can help bring that phoneme to children's attention (for example, Tommy talks to Tess- /t/-/t/-/t/-/t/!), which can foster early phoneme awareness. Introducing syllables is valuable when focusing on spelling; teachers can explain that words may have more than one syllable and that each syllable has a vowel. Syllables are also the focus when introducing spelling patterns for syllable types and for syllable division tasks. Thus, these concepts are useful for other purposes.

Implications for Instruction and Assessment

Early success at learning to read fuels interest in reading in the years that follow, whereas a slow, difficult process of reading acquisition does not. Research has provided exciting insights into early phoneme awareness instruction that have the potential to launch more successful readers in kindergarten and first grade.

Three points are evident:

1. Educators should begin right away with phoneme awareness instruction in kindergarten (and when working with older students with phoneme awareness deficits). The best use of instructional time in kindergarten and beyond is to focus on phonemic awareness while greatly reducing time spent on phonological sensitivity elements. Educators do not need to follow a continuum that requires instruction in each element of phonological sensitivity (counting the words in a sentence, rhyme recognition and production, syllable counting, syllable segmenting/blending, and so on) prior to beginning instruction to develop phoneme awareness.

2. By focusing immediately on phoneme awareness instruction coordinated with letter/grapheme knowledge and handwriting, teachers can assess and teach the key skills connected to reading success and thus help students build foundational reading skills more effectively and quickly. These activities provide students with direct instruction and insights about how the writing system works, boosting motivation, confidence, and success.

3. Whenever phoneme awareness instruction is needed, either for beginning readers or for older struggling readers, teachers should focus on phoneme awareness at the level appropriate for the student, keeping these recommendations in mind: start with initial phonemes, then final phonemes, followed by medial vowel phonemes in words that are simple syllables; after these beginning levels of phoneme awareness are accomplished, next work on awareness of the internal consonants s in complex, one-syllable words that include consonant blends.

This fact sheet has focused on phoneme awareness and related instructional elements that are critical beginning steps for reading and writing proficiency. However, we want to acknowledge that these components, plus letter knowledge and handwriting, are only part of a comprehensive Structured Literacy program. The content and instruction described in this fact sheet should, of course, be a component of fully integrated and robust instruction in reading, spelling, and writing.

The methods summarized here can contribute to impressive literacy gains in the first year of school and can offset the reading difficulties too often observed for socioeconomically disadvantaged students. Moving forward, it will be important to make changes in materials, literacy standards, evaluation rubrics, legislation, and teacher preparation to reflect these gains in understanding about optimal practices for teaching the foundational skills of reading.

Hallmarks of a Strong Phoneme Awareness Program

To summarize, the key points regarding phoneme awareness instruction are as follows:
Representative References (organized by topic) Importance of Phoneme Awareness When Learning to Read

Focuses on building phoneme awareness, rather than phonological sensitivity, from the beginning;

Systematically links phoneme awareness instruction to grapheme and letter knowledge from the beginning and throughout later manipulation activities;

Integrates practice of phoneme awareness, letter and grapheme knowledge, and handwriting;

Works toward mastery of beginning phoneme awareness in simple syllables in kindergarten, progressing to later phoneme awareness of internal consonants in complex syllables in first grade

Provides instruction informed by assessment of students' phoneme awareness skills, determining where students are in their development of phoneme awareness and differentiating instruction accordingly;

Provides instruction for second language learners and speakers of English dialects (such as AAE) that builds awareness of variations in pronunciation and of phonemes not occurring in their first language or dialect; and

Assesses the extent of phoneme awareness in struggling readers in any grade, and if weaknesses in phoneme awareness are evident, calibrates intervention to follow the sequence of phoneme awareness development.

Brady, S. (2020). A 2020 perspective on research findings on alphabetics (phoneme awareness and phonics): Implications for instruction. The Reading League Journal, 1(3), 20-28.

Ehri, L., Nunes, S., Willows, D., Schuster, B., Yagoub-Zadeh, Z., & Shanahan, T. (2001). Phoneme awareness instruction helps children learn to read: Evidence from the National Reading Panel's meta-analysis. Reading Research Quarterly, 36(3), 250-287.

Hulme, C., Bowyer-Crane, C., Carroll, J. M., Duff, F. J., & Snowling, M. J. (2012). The causal role of phoneme awareness and letter-sound knowledge in learning to read: Combining intervention studies with mediation analyses. Psychological Science, 23(6), 572-577.
Lack of Necessity to Teach Phonological Sensitivity Skills before Teaching Phoneme Awareness
Shankweiler, D., & Fowler, A. (2004). Questions people ask about the role of phonological processes in learning to read. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 17(5), 483-515.

Ball, E., & Blachman, B. (1991). Does phoneme awareness training in kindergarten make a difference in early word recognition and developmental spelling? Reading Research Quarterly, 26(1), 49-66.

Brady, S. (2020). A 2020 perspective on research findings on alphabetics (phoneme awareness and phonics): Implications for instruction. The Reading League Journal, 1(3), 20-28.

Cary, L., & Verhaeghe, A. (1994). Promoting phonemic analysis ability among kindergartners: Effects of different training programs. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 6(3), 251-278.

Gillon, G. (2018). Phonological awareness: From research to practice (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.

Geudens, A., & Sandra, D. (2003). Beyond implicit phonological knowledge: No support for an onset-rime structure in children's explicit phonological awareness. Journal of Memory and Language, 49, 157-182.

Nancollis, A., Lawrie, B. A., & Dodd, B. (2005). Phonological awareness intervention and the acquisition of literacy skills in children from deprived social backgrounds. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 36, 325-335.

Savage, R., & Carless, S. (2005). Learning support assistants and effective reading interventions for 'at-risk' children. Educational Research, 47(1), 45-61.
Importance of Connecting Phonemes with Letters in Phoneme Awareness Activities
Ukrainetz, T., Nuspl, J., Wilkerson, K., & Beddes, S. (2011). The effects of syllable instruction on phonemic awareness in preschoolers. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 26(1), 50-60

Boyer, N., & Ehri, L. (2011). Contribution of phonemic segmentation instruction with letters and articulation pictures to word reading and spelling in beginners. Scientific Studies of Reading, 15(5), 440-470.

Brady, S. (2020). A 2020 perspective on research findings on alphabetics (phoneme awareness and phonics): Implications for instruction. The Reading League Journal, 1(3), 20-28.

Brown, K. J., Patrick, K. C., Fields, M. K., & Craig, G. T. (2021). Phonological awareness materials in Utah kindergartens: A case study in the science of reading. Reading Research Quarterly, 56(S1), S249-S272.

Ehri, L. C. (2004). Teaching phonemic awareness and phonics: An explanation of the National Reading Panel Meta-Analyses. In P. McCardle & V. Chhabra (Eds.), The voice of evidence in reading research (pp. 153-186). Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

Ehri, L., & Roberts, T. (2006). The roots of learning to read and write: Acquisition of letters and phoneme awareness. In D. K. Dickinson & S. B. Neuman (Eds.), Handbook of Early Literacy Research (Vol. 2, pp.113-131). Guilford.

Gillon, G., McNeil, B., Scott, A., Denston, A., Wilson, L., Carson, K., & Macfarlane, A. H. (2019). A better start to literacy learning: Findings from a teacher-implemented intervention in children's first year at school. Reading and Writing, 32, 1989-2012.

McCandliss, B., Beck, I., Sandak, R., & Perfetti, C. (2003). Focusing attention on decoding for children with poor reading skills: Design and preliminary tests of the word building intervention. Scientific Studies of Reading, 7(1), 75-104.
Influence of Orthographic Knowledge on Phoneme Awareness Tasks
Møller, H., Mortenson, J., & Elbro, C. (2022). Effects of integrated spelling in phonics instruction for at-risk children in kindergarten. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 38, 67-82.

Castles, A., Holmes, V. M., Neath, J., & Kinoshita, S. (2003). How does orthographic knowledge influence performance on phonological awareness tasks? The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 56(33), 445-467.

Ehri, L., & Wilce, L. (1980). The influence of orthography on readers' conceptualization of the phonemic structure of words. Applied Psycholinguistics, 1(4), 371-385.
Impact of Speaking a Second Language or a Different Dialect on the Process of Learning to Read
Shankweiler, D., & Fowler, A. E. (2004). Questions people ask about the role of phonological processes in learning to read. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 17(5), 483-515.

Brown, M., Sibley, D., Washington, J., Rogers, T., Edwards, J., MacDonald, C., & Seidenberg, M. (2015). Impact of dialect use on a basic component of learning to read. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 1-17.

Kester, E. S. (2014). Difference or disorder? Understanding speech and language patterns in culturally and linguistically diverse students. Bilinguistics, Inc.
Importance of Handwriting
Washington, J., & Seidenberg, M. (2021, Summer). Teaching reading to African American children: When home and school language differ. American Educator, 45(2), 26-33, 40.

Graham, S., MacArthur, C.A., & Fitzgerald, J. (2007). Best Practices in Writing Instruction. (See chapters by David Coker Writing instruction for young children: Methods targeting the multiple demands that writers face, Ch. 5, pgs. 101-118) and by Bob Schlagal (Best practices in spelling and handwriting, Ch. 9, pgs. 179-201). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Puranik, C. S., & Al Otaiba, S. (2012). Examining the contribution of handwriting and spelling to written expression in kindergarten children. Reading and Writing, 25(7), 1523-1546.

Ray, K., Dally, K., Rowlandson, L., Tam, K. I., & Lane, A. E. (2022). The relationship of handwriting ability and literacy in kindergarten: A systematic review. Reading and Writing, 35, 1119-1155.

The International Dyslexia Association (IDA). IDA encourages the reproduction and distribution of
this fact sheet. If portions of the text are cited, appropriate reference must be made. Fact sheets
may not be reprinted for the purpose of resale. © Copyright 2022, published June 2022. The
International Dyslexia Association (IDA). For copyright information, please click here

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Building Phoneme Awareness: Know What Matters - International Dyslexia Association

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
With an understanding that research in the future may provide even more powerful pathways for reading success, this fact sheet presents guiding principles for

# data[].attributes.body
The Science of Reading

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Reading Initiative for Student Excellence

R.I.S.E. (Reading Initiative for Student Excellence) Arkansas encourages a culture of reading by coordinating a statewide reading campaign with community partners, parents, and teachers to establish the importance of reading in homes, schools, and communities. This page features a variety of resources to assist parents with reading at home and to increase the depth of knowledge for teachers. Goal 1: Sharpen the focus and strengthen instruction. Goal 2: Create community collaboration. Goal 3: Build a culture of reading!

R.I.S.E. Arkansas Science of Reading Resources

For updated resources, research, and information, visit the R.I.S.E. Arkansas Science of Reading Resources page.

Reading Legislation Guidance

The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is developing rules for the various components of reading legislation. These rules will outline the process for ensuring teachers are able to demonstrate proficiency or awareness in scientific reading instruction as applicable to their teaching position. The Reading Legislation Guidance Document has been created to help educators understand requirements and timelines. This document provides clarification on pertinent literacy legislation that districts are required to implement. Educators are encouraged to read the laws in their entirety.

Literacy Support Plan Guidance

The DESE is in the process of developing rules to support public school districts and open-enrollment public charter schools that are required to include a literacy plan in the annual school improvement plan. This Literacy Support Plan Guidance Document has been created to serve as a resource to schools in meeting this requirement.

R.I.S.E. Arkansas Resources for Schools

The R.I.S.E. Arkansas Communications Kit is available to help promote a culture of reading in Arkansas. Whether you are a teacher, student, parent or community member, you can get involved. Please promote reading activities on social media using #RISEArkansas.

A New Chapter for Arkansas Students-2018 Report

The Reading Initiative for Student Excellence (R.I.S.E. Arkansas) is committed to transforming literacy education. Please read "A New Chapter for Arkansas Students-2018 Report" to learn how Arkansas is writing a new chapter focusing on a new way of thinking, a new focus of instruction, a new future for our state, and rising achievement.

For more information, please contact:

Arkansas Department of Education

Division of Elementary and Secondary Education

Four Capitol Mall, Room 202-B

Little Rock, Arkansas 72201

Arkansas Department of Education

Division of Elementary and Secondary Education
Four Capitol Mall, Room 202-B

Little Rock, Arkansas 72201

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
R.I.S.E. (Reading Initiative for Student Excellence) Arkansas encourages a culture of reading by coordinating a statewide reading campaign with community partners, parents, and teachers to establish the importance of reading in homes, schools, and communities. This page features a variety of resources to assist parents with reading at home and to increase the depth of knowledge for teachers.

# data[].attributes.body
Explicit Instruction

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Active View of Reading: A Model to Move the Needle on Comprehension Season 2, Episode 11

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How and Why We Read: Crash Course English Literature #1

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
When Two Vowels Go Walking | Jack Hartmann Vowel Teams Song | Vowels Song

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Phonics Flipbook: -ee (Long-Vowel Phonogram)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Help young learners build word recognition and decoding skills with this long-vowel phonogram flipbook that focuses on the -ee word family.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.readingrockets.org/classroom/classroom-strategies/elkonin-boxes

# data[].attributes.body
MagicSchool Ai

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Here, we are covering activities for auditory learners, but you'll also discover types of learners (an auditory learner is just one learning style!) and how to best support students with specific listening needs. Let's get started with auditory processing activities to support auditory learners. For students with auditory sensitivities that impact learning and participation in the classroom, understanding the auditory learner is essential.

What is an Auditory Learner?

Learning styles are the manner in which we best learn and process information.

Examples of learning styles include auditory learners, kinesthetic learners, and visual learners. Each of us has a preference (either obvious or less obvious) to one style of learning or another. As children develop, they can progress through different stages and preferences of learning.

Kids can succeed with a variety of learning styles. One strategy is to address the sense of hearing when teaching new concepts or reinforcing older concepts. There are many characteristics of a student who is an

auditory learner. A few indications include the children who can't seem to stop talking, the child who repeats verbal information out loud, or the child who prefers discussion in classroom activities.

Read below to find more characteristics of auditory learners and activities for auditory learners in the classroom or at home.

You may have heard the term "audio learner" used as well. An audio learner is another phrase that means auditory learner, and refers to someone who learns best through auditory sources of information.

Audio learners/auditory learners are individuals who prefer to process information through listening, speaking, and hearing. They have a natural inclination towards absorbing and retaining information through sound and auditory input.

This means that for them, sources of information such as lectures, discussions, audio recordings, podcasts, and verbal instructions are the best ways to absorb and retain information.

Audio learners tend to excel in activities that involve spoken language, such as participating in group discussions, engaging in debates, or listening to audiobooks. They often have strong listening skills and can easily grasp concepts by hearing them explained or discussed aloud. To optimize their learning experience, audio learners may benefit from using techniques like reading aloud, engaging in conversations, recording and replaying lectures, or utilizing mnemonic devices that involve sound and rhythm.

Auditory Memory

Auditory memory, or audio memory is another concept that should be covered.

Auditory memory (aka audio memory) refers to the ability to remember and recall information that has been heard or listened to. It is a component of auditory learning and involves the retention and retrieval of auditory stimuli or information.

People with strong audio memory can remember and recall spoken words, conversations, lectures, music, or any other auditory input with relative ease. This type of memory can be advantageous for individuals who learn best through auditory means, as they can remember information more effectively when it is presented in an audio format.

To improve auditory memory, try strategies such as:

repetition

verbal rehearsal

mnemonic devices

voice recordings

audio notes

Using these tools can assist in reinforcing and retaining information for individuals with a preference for auditory learning.

Characteristics of Auditory Learners

Not all children who are auditory learners will experience all of the characteristics below.

Prefer listening in the classroom

Like to talk

Repeats directions

Can't concentrate when there are noises in the environment

Can't fall asleep to music or a television

Benefits from repetition of directions

Learns best when listening

Learns well from videos

Easily recalls songs, poems, and phrases

Talks out decision processes

Remembers facts in detail when hearing them

Prefers to hear all of the facts when learning something new

Hums or talks to self

Easily can identify differences in pitch or tone of sounds

Follows verbal instructions better than written instructions

Prefers smaller groups in the classroom (limits the auditory distractions)

Remembers facts better after repeating them

Talks or moves lips while they write

Recalls a person's tone of voice when remembering a conversation

When reading or writing, written information may not make sense until it's been read aloud

Writes with light pencil pressure

Children who learn best through the auditory sense may benefit from auditory strategies.

May have auditory sensitivities in the classroom

Try some of the activities for auditory learners that are listed below:

Activities for Auditory Learners

For individuals who are auditory learners, an auditory learning style of specific activities can support intake and retention of information.

Read homework directions out loud

Record facts on video and then replay it. A mobile phone or tablet works well for this strategy.

Sing facts to a tune

Write a song when memorizing facts or spelling words

Teach to other students or even to stuffed animals

Practice in front of a mirror

Try a whisper phone

Listen to books on tape using headphones

Rhyme facts

Spell words out loud in different pitches and tones

Use noise eliminating headphones in the classroom or during tests

Find a quiet space for homework

Turn off distractions. Consider televisions, phones, or even fans

Use mnemonic devices to memorize facts

Listen to audiobooks

Use oral reports for classroom projects

Allow students to record portions of homework or projects onto devices

Make flashcards and read them out loud

During classroom lessons, clap or speak louder during important parts

Speak in syllables

What are your best strategies to help auditory learners?

The Auditory Processing Ki t is a printable packet to address listening skills, whole body listening, listening comprehension, active listening, and auditory processing needs. This printable packet contains active listening activities, hands-on strategies, activity cards, visual cards, handouts, and more.

The Auditory Processing Kit is a tool to support learners by building skills in listening comprehension, auditory processing needs, and much more. The tools offer support to learners with hyper-responsive or hypo-responsive auditory systems. Therapists love the hands-on activities to support learning and active listening through play and handwriting tasks.

Listening Comprehension

Fine Motor Listening Skills

How to Improve Listening Skills Poster

Clap It Out Syllables Orthographic Activities

Beginning Sounds Letter Activity

Rhyming Words Activity

Activity Listening Activity

Hearing Skills Activity

Auditory Memory Strategies

What Does Active Listening Look Like?

Whole Body Listening Activity

Whole Body Listening Poster

Listening and Motor Skills Game

2 Step Direction Cards

How to Support Hyper-Responsiveness of the Auditory Sense (handout and info sheet)

How to Support Hypo-responsiveness of the Auditory Sense (handout and info sheet)

Auditory Processing Tools Cards

Auditory Processing Speed -2 Digit Numbers

Auditory Processing Speed -3 Digit Numbers

Auditory Processing Speed -4 Digit Numbers

Use the handouts and posters to teach about the auditory system and auditory sensitivities, with strategies to support individualized needs. Get your copy of the Auditory Processing Kit today.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Practical Activities for Auditory Learners - The OT Toolbox

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This resource covers activities for auditory learners, including strategies to support students who learn best through the auditory sense.

# data[].attributes.body
MagicSchool Ai