Phonics Teacher

You attended college in a state that mandated a course in phonics instruction for all early primary teachers. You systematically teach the phonics curriculum purchased by the school district. While a number of students seem to benefit from your instruction as evidenced by their ability to "sound out" words and their improving spelling ability, 15-20% of your students are having great difficulty in learning to read. To find an answer to this puzzle, you volunteer for the task force to look into beginning reading instruction. Through your investigation, you encounter the term Phonemic Awareness. You ask: What does Phonemic Awareness mean? Why is it so important? How is it related to phonics instruction? How do I measure it?

Your Task

Highlight the questions below. Select Copy from the Edit Menu. Open a new MS Word document, and then choose Paste from the Edit Menu. As you read, look for the answers the questions below. Record your answers on your word processing document.

What is Phonemic Awareness?

 

Why is Phonemic Awareness important?

 

What is the relationship of Phonemic Awareness to Phonics Instruction?

 

How does Phonemic Awareness fit into an early primary reading program?

 

How do I determine the level of phonemic awareness of my students?

Resources

• Summary of the International Reading Association's position on Phonemic Awareness.
• Phonemic Awareness: An Important Early Step in Learning to Read see the section entitled Relation to the Great Reading Wars.
• Phonics/Phonemic Awareness discusses the relationship of phonemic awareness and phonics
• Phonemic Awareness Assessment Tools
• Phonemic Awareness, Reading and Spelling

Project

Meet with members of your group and share the results of your investigations. Develop a PowerPoint presentation that summarizes and sythesizes the findings of all members of the group. Be sure to address the following points:

• Define Phonemic Awareness
• Explain why it is important
• Describe how it affects reading instruction in early primary classrooms
• Identify the tasks/abilities associated with Phonemic Awareness
• Describe how to assess Phonemic Awareness
• Suggest activities for parents and teachers to use to develop Phonemic Awareness in children

 

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