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What is phonological awareness?
Phonological awareness is the skill of identifying and manipulating speech sounds. The skills include rhyming, alliteration, counting the number of words in a sentence, counting the syllables or parts of syllables of words, and onset-rime awareness. Onset is the initial phonological unit of a word, and rime is the letters that follow after the initial letter. The rime is usually a vowel and final consonants. The onset of the word cat is c, and the rime is at. Alliteration is the identification and production of words that begin with the same initial sound.
Working on phonological awareness has a strong relationship with reading and spelling acquisition. Phonological awareness is essential for learning to read and write. This skill can help the child learn unfamiliar words, it helps children learn how to blend together letter sounds and words to teach themselves new words.
Some ways to work on phonological awareness
- Read lots of rhyming books
- Work on letter and sound identification with your child through alphabet flashcards, worksheets, books or alphabet magnets.
- Teach your child how to hold a book correctly
- Show your child that books are read from front to back and sentences are read from let to right
Megan M CF-SLP MA TSSLD
Sources
http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/onset_rime
