

Presented by Carol Tolman, Ed.D.

Although we may not always know what came first, (the chicken or the egg?), we do know what came first in the world of literacy: speech. Both reading and writing are based on speech. We use a “speech-to-print” system, not a “print-to-speech” system when decoding and encoding words. Without an understanding of the way sounds are represented in print, many students continue to function well behind their peers. Evidence exists in support of phonemic awareness and its foundational role, but what does that really mean, and how does that translate to practical applications in the classroom? Join Dr. Carol Tolman as she outlines the role of phonological awareness, what misspellings tell us about students’ misunderstandings of phonemes, and what we can do about these errors to enhance their learning.

Attendees will learn to:

  • Listen to students’ articulation errors as a window into their understanding of phonemes
  • Identify reasons for specific misspellings, leading to targeted instructional responses that improve reading and spelling
  • Articulate why subphonemic features are an important component of instruction