Teaching Children with Reading Difficulties - Essay Example

Phonological Awareness Phonological awareness refers to the capa to concentrate on the sound structure of language as opposed to focusing on its meaning (Konza, 2006). The instructors put emphasis on spoken words, and focus on the intonation and rhyming words. Typically, the phonological awareness comprises of the skills that tend to develop sequentially and gradually during the late preschool period. The late preschool period exposes the students to grasp sounds in a specific language, identify rhymes, and break sentences into syllables, words, and sounds. Yopp and Yopp (2010) contend that phonological awareness is a strong indicator of learners’ long-term success in reading, as well as spelling. In effect, the phonological awareness predicts literacy performance with high precision as compared to variables such as vocabulary mastery, intelligence, and socioeconomic status. Rationale and Objectives The preschool children require a strong foundation in phonology. The natural curiosity in children should be advanced by creating vibrant activities that promote the development of reading, spelling, and writing skills. This personal development exercise aims at promoting phonological awareness, which is a central element in children’s reading and spelling growth. The program targets the early preschool children. Fundamentally, teachers should use this activity to assess the children’s level of the phonological awareness development. Similarly, the activity is a tool for evaluating whether the children are gaining phonological awareness skills through the early childhood education program. Background The rhythm and rhyme are the main early levels of phonological awareness. The two skills form the foundation of the advanced reading and spelling development in children. Hence, the personal development activities that promote phonological awareness are of paramount significance. Studies have indicated that children tend to first master the rhythm in a specific language. The syllables are attributable to rhythm in the English language (Antony et al, 2003). Hence, the children’s attempt to clap the beats in the multi-syllabic words helps them to capture the rhythm inherent in the English language. Consequently, the recognition of rhythm is a significant strategy that promotes the development of spelling and reading skills. Similarly, children become aware of the rhyming words at formative stages of intellectual development. The comprehension of the rhyming words demands the learners to have the knowledge of the parts of words that tend to rhyme (Konza, 2006). Therefore, the instructors should model production, as well as recognition of the rhyme. The children with the ability to identify and generating rhymes develop the skills they require to succeed in spelling and reading. In essence, the mastery of the rhythm and rhyming skills has long-term implications for children’s success in their reading development. Phonemic awareness that involves the hearing, identification, and manipulation of the distinct sound in the language is the final step of the phonological awareness. This skill enables the learners to focus on specific sounds in language. The children should perfect the reading skills of the alphabetic written language. Yopp and Yopp (2010) assert that the learners should be attentive to identify the phonemes in order to benefit hugely from the phonics instruction. The phonemic awareness is a necessary condition for learning and understanding the alphabetic code. Significance of Phonological Awareness The emphasis on phonological awareness at the preschool level should aim at monitoring the early phonological awareness development to ensure that the children are acquiring the essential skills, which will contribute to the strong foundation for spelling, writing, and reading experiences. Teachers have the prime role of choosing the best instructional methods that promote phonological awareness development in the preschool children. The personal development activity discussed in the following section will promote the development of the decoding skills in children to evaluate the known and unknown words. Description of the Game using Feely Bag The activity aims at developing the rhythm, which is the first skill in phonological awareness. The activity targets the children at the ages of four and five. The exercise involves a bag full of plastic toys for each child. The toys cover one, two, and three-syllable words. The teacher should place the plastic toys in a feely bag. Then, the instructor should have all the children seated in a circle, and start playing the game of syllables. Instructions of the Game for the Teachers Teachers should select a toy and then name it. Consequently, the instructor should inform the children that the words labeled on the toy have drumbeat. Demonstration of the drumbeats in the words is of paramount significance in this exercise. In this respect, the teacher should have the student to listen to the drumbeats in the various words. It is important for the teachers to tap their hands on the floor and attempt to create the syllable beats contained in each word while pronouncing the words slowly. In effect, the floor is the drum. Then, the teacher should engage the children to take part in the drumming of the syllable beats. The feely bag should be passed to each child to select a toy after the teacher demonstrates how to create drumbeats of the syllables. Then, the individual child should label the toy and drum the syllable on the floor. Consequently, the whole class should join and practice tapping out the drum beats in the same word. The class should repeat the exercise until all the toys in the feely bag are exhausted. A Note for Instructors It is crucial for the instructors to note that the tapping activity works well when the children can relate it to a theme or a particular book covered in the classroom. An awareness of the different sounds produced by varying syllabi tends to heighten phonological awareness. In cases where the teacher cannot find the toys, it is important to use picture cards as a substitute. The instructors should ensure that the tapping game is enjoyable, as well as stress-free. The teacher’s participation in the game is of critical significance. Notably, the participation creates interest, as well as excitement among the children. In addition, the instructors should respond in a positive manner to the children’s trials to tap the beats inherent in the words. The positive response boosts the children’s natural curiosity to manipulate and learn things around their environment. References Antony, J. et al (2003). Phonological sensitivity: A quasi-parallel progression of word structure units and cognitive operations. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 20 (4), 470-487. Konza, D. (2006). Teaching Children with Reading Difficulties. New York: Thomson Social Science Press. Yopp, H. & Yopp, R. (2010). Purposeful play for early childhood phonological. Calif: Shell Education. Read More