RWM Phonological + Phonemic Awareness

What are the Big 5 components of reading?

Phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, comprehension.

What is phonological awareness?

Hearing and manipulating the sound structure of language.

What levels are included in phonological awareness?

Word, syllable, onset-rime, and phoneme.

What is phonemic awareness?

Hearing and manipulating individual speech sounds.

What is a phoneme?

The smallest individual speech sound.

Phonological awareness vs. phonemic awareness?

Phonological = broad sound awareness; phonemic = individual sounds.

Phonemic awareness vs. phonics?

Phonemic awareness = sounds only; phonics = letters + sounds.

Why can phonemic awareness be “done in the dark”?

It requires hearing sounds, not seeing letters.

How long should PA activities generally be?

Short, engaging practice of about 10–15 minutes daily.

What is the easiest → hardest PA progression?

Word → syllable → onset-rime → phoneme

What sound positions are usually easiest → hardest?

Beginning → ending → middle

What are the 4 major phonemic-awareness skills?

Blending, segmenting, deletion, manipulation.

What is blending?

Combining separate sounds to make a word.

What is segmenting?

Breaking something into smaller sound units.

What is deletion?

Removing a sound from a word.

What is manipulation/substitution?

Changing a sound to make a new word.

What should a teacher do if a child struggles with a PA task?

Move back to an easier level of complexity.

What is a syllable?

A pronunciation unit containing one vowel sound.

What is an onset?

The consonant(s) before the first vowel.

What is a rime?

The vowel and everything after it.

What are the onset and rime in “run”?

/r/ + /un/

What is sentence segmentation?

Breaking a spoken sentence into individual words.

What are Elkonin boxes used for?

Helping students segment sounds.

Teacher says /s/ /u/ /n/. Student says “sun.” What skill?

Blending

Teacher says “tub.” Student says /t/ /u/ /b/. What skill?

Segmenting

“Say cat without /c/.” What skill?

Deletion

“Say mad. Change /m/ to /s/.” What skill?

Manipulation/substitution

Students clap 3 times for “elephant.” What skill?

Syllable segmentation

Teacher says “r-un,” and the student says “run.” What skill?

Onset-rime blending

Teacher shows the letter B and asks its sound. Is this pure phonemic awareness?

No — it is phonics because a written letter is involved.