Phonological awareness is the ability to hear sounds that make up words in a spoken language. When we describe phonological awareness and its accompanying activities, we say, “Phonological awareness can be practiced in the dark,” to remind ourselves that it is an auditory experience rather than a visual experience when a reader must associate symbols with sounds, as with phonics. Phonological awareness skills include the ability to identify and generate words that rhyme; an awareness of whether words begin or end with the same sounds; the understanding that sounds can be blended and manipulated to create new words; comprehending that sentences can be broken down into words and words into syllables and individual sounds; and realizing the relationship between spoken and written language. Research suggests that phonological awareness is one of the strongest predictors of long-term reading success and can more accurately predict literacy performance than any other pre-reading skill. Mastering phonological awareness is imperative for a young reader’s success in the early grades and beyond.
For the first time ever, School Literacy and Culture is hosting a two hour workshop exclusively on phonological awareness for parents and educators on Tuesday, November 10 from 10am to noon and again from 4pm to 6pm. Participants will gain a deeper understanding of what phonological awareness is, why it is so important in a child’s literacy development, and take away concrete activities to build their students’ phonological awareness skills. Join us – this is a workshop you don’t want to miss!
For more information on the “Phonological What?” workshop and to register, please visit our website at: http://literacy.rice.edu/workshops-rice
Authored by Jordan Khadam-Hir, Rice University School Literacy and Culture