Phonics Knowledge Can be Summarized on the Back of an Envelope
The beginning phonics knowledge ( letter sound relationships) a reader needs to know is summarized in the table below.
I really don’t know what all the fuss is about. Teaching a child to read involves
commonsense. Of course reading is a complex skill but it does have foundation skills.
The controversy about using phonics one of the foundation skills reminds me of the saying: “Too many cooks spoil the broth.”
The 44 Sounds in the English Language
|
5 Short-Vowel Sounds |
18 Consonant Sounds |
7 Digraphs |
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short /ă/ in apple short /ĕ/ in egg short /ĭ/ in Indian short /ŏ/ in orange short /ǔ/ in umbrella
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/b/ in boy /k/ in cat and kite /d/ in dog /f/ in frog /g/ in girl /h/ in hat /j/ in jet /l/ in lion /m/ in monkey /n/ in net /p/ in pig /r/ in rabbit /s/ in sun /t/ in turtle /v/ in van /w/ in watch /y/ in yacht /z/ in zip
|
/ch/ in chip /sh/ in ship /th/ in thin unvoiced /th/ in this voiced /hw/ in when /ng/ in long /nk/ in pink
|
|
6 Long-Vowel Sounds |
3 r-Controlled Vowel Sounds |
Diphthongs/Other Special Sounds |
|
long /ā/ in make long /ē/ in feet long /ī/ in pie long /ō/ in coat long /ū/ in mule long /ōō/ in moon and flew |
/ur/ in fern, bird, and hurt /ar/ in mark /or/ in pork |
/oi/ in oil and boy /ow/ in owl and ouch short /ŏŏ/ in cook and pull /aw/ in law and haul /zh/ in television |
Vowel sounds are speech sounds made when the mouth is open and the tip of the tongue is not touching the top of the mouth, the teeth or the lips.
Consonant sounds are speech sounds made when the breath is at least partly obstructed by either tongue or teeth.
A digraph is a combination of two letters that represent one speech sound.
A diphthong is a sound formed by the combination of two vowels in a single syllable.
Yes! Phonics knowledge can be summarized on the back of an envelope!
