What is phonemic awareness, and why is it so important for beginning readers?

In this first episode of our Science of Reading series, I break down what phonemic awareness is, why it matters, and how you can teach it in your classroom, tutoring sessions, or homeschool lessons.

We'll discuss:

• What phonemic awareness is (and what it is not)

• Examples of blending, segmenting, deleting, and manipulating sounds

• Simple phonemic awareness activities you can use right away

• How phonemic awareness connects to phonics instruction

• Why reading skills should be taught systematically and revisited throughout the year

I'll also share a resource that many teachers use for structured phonemic awareness instruction and explain how these skills fit into the bigger picture of reading success.

As alway ...