Phonological skill develops in a predictable progression. This concept is important, as it provides the basis for sequencing teaching tasks from easy to more difficult. Table 1 outlines the relative difficulty of phonological awareness tasks. Table 2 is a more specific synthesis of several research reviews and summaries (Adams et al., 1998; Gillon, 2004; Goswami, 2000; Paulson, 2004; Rath, 2001) that ties specific ages to the typical accomplishment of those phonological awareness tasks.
Prerequisite to phonological awareness is basic listening skill; the acquisition of a several-thousand word vocabulary; the ability to imitate and produce basic sentence structures; and the use of language to express needs, react to others, comment on experience, and understand what others intend.
Table 1. Phonological skills, from most basic to advanced
Phonological Skill | Description |
|---|---|
| Word awareness | Tracking the words in sentences. Note: This semantic language skill is much less directly predictive of reading than the skills that follow and less important to teach directly (Gillon, 2004). It is not so much a phonological skill as a semantic (meaning-based) language skill. |
| Responsiveness to rhyme and alliteration during word play | Enjoying and reciting learned rhyming words or alliterative phrases in familiar storybooks or nursery rhymes. |
| Syllable awareness | Counting, tapping, blending, or segmenting a word into syllables. |
| Onset and rime manipulation | The ability to produce a rhyming word depends on understanding that rhyming words have the same rime. Recognizing a rhyme is much easier than producing a rhyme. |
| Phoneme awareness | Identify and match the initial sounds in words, then the final and middle sounds (e.g., “Which picture begins with /m/?”; “Find another picture that ends in /r/”). Segment and produce the initial sound, then the final and middle sounds (e.g., “What sound does zoo start with?”; “Say the last sound in milk”; “Say the vowel sound in rope”). Blend sounds into words (e.g., “Listen: /f/ /ē/ /t/. Say it fast”). Segment the phonemes in two- or three-sound words, moving to four- and five- sound words as the student becomes proficient (e.g., “The word is eyes. Stretch and say the sounds: /ī/ /z/”). Manipulate phonemes by removing, adding, or substituting sounds (e.g., “Say smoke without the /m/”). |
Table 2. Ages at which 80-90 percent of typical students have achieved a phonological skill
| Age | Skill Domain | Sample Tasks |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Rote imitation and enjoyment of rhyme and alliteration | pool, drool, tool “Seven silly snakes sang songs seriously.” |
| 5 | Rhyme recognition, odd word out | “Which two words rhyme: stair, steel, chair?” |
| Recognition of phonemic changes in words | “Hickory Dickory Clock. That’s not right!” | |
| Clapping, counting syllables | truck (1 syllable) airplane (2 syllables) boat (1 syllable) automobile (4 syllables) | |
| 5½ | Distinguishing and remembering separate phonemes in a series | Show sequences of single phonemes with colored blocks: /s/ /s/ /f/; /z/ /sh/ /z/. |
| Blending onset and rime | “What word?” th-umb qu-een h-ope | |
| Producing a rhyme | “Tell me a word that rhymes with car.” (star) | |
| Matching initial sounds; isolating an initial sound | “Say the first sound in ride (/r/); sock (/s/); love (/l/).” | |
| 6 | Compound word deletion | “Say cowboy. Say it again, but don’t say cow.” |
| Syllable deletion | “Say parsnip. Say it again, but don’t say par.” | |
| Blending of two and three phonemes | /z/ /ū/ (zoo) /sh/ /ǒ/ /p/ (shop) /h/ /ou/ /s/ (house) | |
| Phoneme segmentation of words that have simple syllables with two or three phonemes (no blends) | “Say the word as you move a chip for each sound.” sh-e m-a-n l-e-g | |
| 6½ | Phoneme segmentation of words that have up to three or four phonemes (include blends) | “Say the word slowly while you tap the sounds.” b-a-ck ch-ee-se c-l-ou-d |
| Phoneme substitution to build new words that have simple syllables (no blends) | “Change the /j/ in cage to /n/. Change the /ā/ in cane to /ō/.” | |
| 7 | Sound deletion (initial and final positions) | “Say meat. Say it again, without the /m/.” “Say safe. Say it again, without the /f/.” |
| 8 | Sound deletion (initial position, include blends) | “Say prank. Say it again, without the /p/.” |
| 9 | Sound deletion (medial and final blend positions) | “Say snail. Say it again, without the /n/.” “Say fork. Say it again, without the /k/.” |
Paulson (2004) confirmed the hierarchy of phonological skill acquisition in 5-year-olds entering kindergarten. Only 7 percent of 5-year-olds who had not yet had kindergarten could segment phonemes in spoken words. The production of rhymes was more difficult for 5-year-olds than commonly assumed, as only 61 percent could give a rhyming word for a stimulus. Only 29 percent could blend single phonemes into whole words. Although some young students will pick up these skills with relative ease during the kindergarten year — especially if the curriculum includes explicit activities — other students must be taught these metalinguistic skills directly and systematically.
About the Author
Dr. Louisa Moats is a nationally recognized authority on how children learn to read and why some struggle to learn. Widely acclaimed as a researcher, speaker, consultant, and trainer, Moats has developed the landmark professional development program LETRS for teachers and reading specialists.
Citation
Moats, L, & Tolman, C (2009). Excerpted from Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS): The Speech Sounds of English: Phonetics, Phonology, and Phoneme Awareness (Module 2). Boston: Sopris West.
For more information on Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) visit Voyager Sopris (opens in a new window).
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Related Topics
Developmental Milestones, Early Literacy Development, Phonological and Phonemic Awareness
