The Five Parts of a Reading Program

Phonemic Awareness:

Instruction helps children hear, identify, and manipulate the smallest units of sounds in words. For example the word “cat” has three distinct sounds (or phonemes), /k/,/a/, nd /t/. Phonemic awareness builds a foundation that will later be applied when students begin phonics instruction.

Phonics:

Instruction includes working on consonants, consonant blends (such as bl, fr, sm, str...),consonant digraphs (such as sh, ch, ng, th...), short and long vowels, vowel digraphs (such as ea, ai, ay, oa...), vowel diphthongs (such as oi, oy, au, aw...), prefixes, suffixes, and multi-syllable words.

Fluency:

This includes the rate at which a student reads, but more importantly how accurately they read, as well as the expression used, and how smoothly or fluently they read.

Vocabulary:

Prior to reading children benefit from receiving some instruction about the new words they will encounter in a story. They benefit from seeing new words and learning their meaning. It is also helpful if those new words can be connected to something they know about already. Increasing a child’s vocabulary improves their ability to understand what they read.

Comprehension:

This is the ultimate goal of reading! A child needs to understand what they read. A child also needs to learn how to blend new knowledge they gain through reading with knowledge they already have. Comprehension is enhanced when a child is able to fluently read the text they are given. Teachers assist children in their comprehension when they talk about a subject before they read about it, again helping a child understand how the new information will fit with what the child already knows.

Return to Reading Home Page