Phonological

awareness/ The
alphabetic principle
LECTURE # 05
DATED: 13-10-2019
Introduction:
 Effective phonemic awareness instructional activities facilitate the development of positive feelings
toward learning through an atmosphere of playfulness and fun. Listen closely to children as they
explore our language and you will hear chants, poems, songs, tongue-twisters, and interactive word
play, all without the benefit of print!

 Before young children ever even look at the letters of the alphabet or the words on a paper, they need
phonological awareness. This means they need to be able to focus attention on the smaller sounds in a
language.
What is phonological awareness?
 Phonological awareness is the ability to hear the smaller sound parts that make up language.
 The ability to hear, identify, and manipulate the individual sounds – phonemes – in spoken
words.
 It is the understanding that…
• Spoken language can be broken into smaller units:
1. Sentences into words.
2. Words into syllables.
3. Syllables into onset-rimes.
4. Words/syllables into phonemes.
 Phonological awareness is the important predictor of reading success.
What is phonological awareness?
 The focus of phonological awareness is much broader
than that of phonemic awareness. It includes identifying
Phonological awareness
and manipulating larger parts of spoken language, such
as words, syllables, and onsets and rimes--as well as
phonemes. It also encompasses awareness of other
aspects of sound, such as rhyming, alliteration, and
intonation. Phonemic
Awareness
While phonemic awareness is one element of this (the
ability to hear or recognize the individual, smallest
components of the sounds of speech).
Phoneme(s):
 A phoneme is the smallest sound unit in a language that is capable of conveying a
distinct meaning, such as the s of sing and the r of ring.

 Phonemes are language-specific. In other words, phonemes that are functionally distinct
in English (for example, /b/ and /p/) may not be so in another language. (Phonemes are
customarily written between slashes, thus /b/ and /p/.)

 Different languages have different phonemes.

Syllables:
 A syllable is one unit of sound in English. Syllables join consonants and vowels to form words.

 Syllables can have more than one letter; however, a syllable cannot have more than one sound.

 Syllables can have more than one consonant and more than one vowel, as well. However, the
consonant(s) and vowel(s) that create the syllable cannot make more than one sound.

 A syllable is only one sound.

Examples of Syllables in English:
 Syllables are formed when a vowel pairs with a consonant to create a unit of sound.
 Some words have one syllable (monosyllabic), and some words have many syllables (polysyllabic).
 New vowels sounds create new syllables.
long
◦ This word has one syllable. There is only one vowel sound, created by the “o.”
shame
◦ This word has one syllable. Even though there are two vowels, only one vowel makes a sound. The long “a”
sound is the vowel sound; the “e” is a silent “e.”
silent
◦ This word has two vowels sounds; therefore it has two syllables. The first syllable is “si” with the long “i”
sound. The second syllable includes the letters “lent.”
Syllable = Onset + Rime
Each syllable can be broken down into a starting sound, or an onset, and the ending sound, a rime.
For example:
• Pak = P (onset) + ak (rime)
• Shal = Sh (onset) + al (rime)
• Char = Ch (onset) + ar (rime)
 Types Description Examples
Phonemes Blending phonemes into words, segmenting words into /k/ /a/ /t/
individual phonemes, and manipulating phonemes in /sh/ /i/ /p/
spoken words
/s/ /t/ /o/ /p/
Onsets and Blending or segmenting the initial consonant or consonant /m/ /ice/
Rimes cluster (onset) and the vowel and consonant sounds spoken /sh/ /ake/
after it (rime)
Syllables Blending syllables to say words or segmenting spoken /mag/ /net/
words into syllables /pa/ /per/

Sentence Segmenting sentences into spoken words The dog ran away.
Segmentation 1 2 3 4

Alliteration Producing groups of words that begin with the same initial Ten tiny tadpoles
Rhyme sound cat, hat, bat, sat
Matching the ending sounds of words
Skills in phonological awareness
(further details):
1. Blending and segmenting: Preparing children to read requires teaching them to break a word
into separate sounds (segments); for example the word phone can be broken up into the
phonemes f-o-n. Children must also be able to take separate sounds or phonemes and join (or
blend) them together to create a word. For example, if you utter the separate phonemes /l/, /a/,
and /f/, the listening child must learn to join (blend) these sounds together to pronounce the
word laugh. Games and activities that help children practice blending and segmenting provide
a huge boost in their ability to read (decode) words.
2. Phoneme counting: Teachers must be experts at counting phonemes in a word because they
must help children connect letters to phonemes in phonics and spelling.
3. Rhyme: Match between ending sounds of words.
4. Alliteration: Focus on initial phonemes.
Cont.…
5. Sentence Segmentation: Say the parts of a sentence.
6. Onsets and Rimes:
 Onset: initial consonant or consonant cluster of the word.
 Rime: vowel and consonants that follow the onset.
 In the word ca, the /k/ is the onset and the –at is the rime.
7. Working with Phonemics:
 Add /s/ to beginning of pin=spin
 Delete /t/ at beginning of trap=rap
 Substitute /i/ in lip with /a/=lap
Activity:
Duration: 05 minutes
Group: 03 members in each group.
Task:
• Each group should generate a list of 10 Urdu words and 10 English words that you would expect
primary children to know.

• Count the phonemes in each word orally. Do NOT not to count letters – but count phonemes.
The alphabetic principle:
 Children need to learn to link oral language (phonemes) with written language and written letters of
the alphabet. While the sounds of language are phonemes, written letters are graphemes. Letters of the
alphabet, or graphemes, are written symbols that represent phonemes.

 The alphabetic principle involves the understanding that letters represent sounds and that the sounds
of letters are combined to form words.

 It is also understood that there is a connection between spoken sounds and written language.
 The alphabetic principle is the concept that each letter of the alphabet has one or two sounds
associated with it and that these letter-sound relationships are stable. This means that children become
used to the idea that the B in the name Brent makes the same sound in the words ball, baby, and cab.
Why is the Alphabetic Principle important?
According to research:
 Letter-sound knowledge is prerequisite to effective word identification. A primary difference
between good and poor readers is the ability to use letter-sound correspondence to identify words.
(Juel, 1991)
 The combination of instruction in phonological awareness and letter-sounds appears to be the
most favorable for successful early reading. (Haskell, Foorman, & Swank, 1992)
 Good readers must have a strategy to phonologically recode words. (Ehri, 1991; NRP, 2000)
 As children begin to read they must develop knowledge of how print works. Key to this
understanding is knowledge of the alphabetic system. In order for children to successfully learn to
read they must be able to relate the sounds of language with the letters of written language. The
alphabetic principle is often regarded as the biggest obstacle preventing children from learning to
read. (Snow, C.E., Burns, M.S., & Griffin, P. , 1998)
Recognizing letters:
 For beginning readers of English, this includes recognizing both upper- and lower case letters
(e.g. A vs. a) as well as different fonts. (For example, the lower case ‘g’ and ‘a’ look different
when typed than when handwritten.)

 For beginning readers of Urdu, this includes recognizing letters in the whole and half forms.
Decoding words in English or Urdu:
 To decode written words in either English or Urdu, children must:
1. identify the separate letters that constitute the given word (letter recognition)
2. match each letter to the phoneme it represents (matching each symbol to a sound) and sound
these out (segments)
3. blend these phonemes together to recreate the word (blending).

 The process of decoding words requires teaching and practice in order to become automatic
(second nature).
Alphabetic knowledge:
 Alphabetic knowledge requires:
• letter shape recognition
• letter name knowledge
• letter sound knowledge
• writing out (printing) letters
• rapid letter naming.
Activity:
Task:
Duration: 05 minutes
How would you develop alphabetic knowledge in a katchi (very beginning, basic) class full of
emergent/beginning readers using such pictures?
Guided Questions:
Consider the following questions:
• How might you use these pictures with descriptions to teach phonological awareness and
alphabetic knowledge?
• What else might you do to develop children’s phonological awareness of the letter ? Give
examples.
Extended Session:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRk__--hEOU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DptnGoIeuUA
References:
•Committee on the Prevention of Reading Difficulties in Young Children, Burns, M. S., Griffin, P., &
Snow, C. E. (1998). Preventing reading difficulties in young children. National Academy Press.
•Ehri, L. C. (1991). Development of the ability to read words. Handbook of reading research, 2, 383-
417.
•Haskell, D. W., Foorman, B. R., & Swank, P. R. (1992). Effects of three orthographic/phonological
units on first-grade reading. Remedial and Special Education, 13(2), 40-49.
•Juel, C. (1991). Beginning reading. Handbook of reading research, 2, 759-788.
•National Reading Panel (US), National Institute of Child Health, & Human Development (US).
(2000). Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature
on reading and its implications for reading instruction. National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development, National Institutes of Health.
Suggested Reading:
Burns, M. S., Griffin, P., & Snow, C. E. (1999). Starting Out Right: A Guide to Promoting
Children's Reading Success. Specific Recommendations from America's Leading Researchers on
How To Help Children Become Successful Readers. National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution
Avenue, NW, Lockbox 285, Washington, DC 20055. Available at:
https://www.nap.edu/catalog/6014/starting-out-right-a-guide-to-promoting-childrens-reading-
success