Phonological awareness lays the groundwork for literacy development and helping children unlock the world of language when they embark on the journey of learning to read and write.
Phonics is understanding that letters represent sounds and that these sounds combine to form words. This is a crucial part in children’s development to enable them to decode words when reading and encode them when writing.
It is important that children are be able to hear and isolate sounds in the English spoken language before they can successfully link those sounds to written letters (phonics).
Studies have shown that over 80% of children who struggle with reading demonstrate early phonological weaknesses.
Therefore, it is necessary that children are aware of the sound structure of language which is independent of its written form. This is an essential skill that underlies learners’ reading and spelling abilities.
Phonological awareness, it is not only the key to learning to read but also forms the foundation upon which other reading and written skills are built.