BoscoS_Oral Language and the Reading Process_LT 1

There are many elements that must be taught in a literacy program for students to become successful readers and writers. Before students are able to read, they must learn phonemic awareness and regularly practice these skills in their early elementary years. Hearing the sounds and being able to repeat these sounds and blend the sounds together is the first step in phonemic awareness. After students understand that sounds make up words, they are taught phonics. Phonics is also important in the reading process. This is a skill that needs to be taught directly and practiced in the early elementary levels. This skill is important because it helps students understand how to decode words and will help them understand the relationship between letters and sounds to make words. Phonics can be used to help decode words, rhyming, substitution, deletion of sounds, etc. Phonics should be taught directly and explicitly for students in kindergarten and first grade. The next important element is fluency. Fluency is the ability to read a text accurately and quickly. Without the background knowledge and practice of phonemic awareness and phonics, fluency would be impossible for students. Just like the other skills, fluency needs to be taught and modeled over and over by teachers. It is important that students hear what fluent reading should sound like. Fluency takes practice and it helps with comprehension, which is the ultimate goal of reading. Comprehension is when a student can tell you what they read about. Without the other steps, comprehension would be a very hard skill for students.

Oral language starts with phonemic awareness and ends with comprehension, the ultimate goal of reading. Without understanding the oral language piece, it would be difficult for a student to be successful with comprehending a story. All of these elements are linked to each other and are necessary for success.