Phonology
Phonology is the the study of the speech sounds used in a particular language. The distinctive accents that many learners of English have are due to differences between the phonological system of their language and that of English. From birth, we learn to recognize and produce the distinctive sounds of our own language. We do not need to give any thought to how to have the lips, tongue, teeth, etc. working together to produce the desired sounds. The physical structures of parts of the sound system are adapted to produce native-language sounds.
Phonology and ELLs
English has some speech sounds (phonemes) that do not exist in other languages., Therefore, the native speakers of those languages have difficulties producing or even perceiving such sounds. This is particularly true for speakers from language families other than the Germanic one to which English belongs.
Also, the fact that English has many vowel sounds than other languages explains the struggle of ELL to learn them. An example; Arabic language has only three symbols for (A, E and O) long sounds. Words like 'pit', 'pet', 'put', 'pot', and 'pat' might be the hardest to distinguish between for Arabic speakers to pronounce and recognize. They will struggle with words that are only differentiated by their vowel sound.
Read More about phonology Here.
Phonology is the the study of the speech sounds used in a particular language. The distinctive accents that many learners of English have are due to differences between the phonological system of their language and that of English. From birth, we learn to recognize and produce the distinctive sounds of our own language. We do not need to give any thought to how to have the lips, tongue, teeth, etc. working together to produce the desired sounds. The physical structures of parts of the sound system are adapted to produce native-language sounds.
Phonology and ELLs
English has some speech sounds (phonemes) that do not exist in other languages., Therefore, the native speakers of those languages have difficulties producing or even perceiving such sounds. This is particularly true for speakers from language families other than the Germanic one to which English belongs.
Also, the fact that English has many vowel sounds than other languages explains the struggle of ELL to learn them. An example; Arabic language has only three symbols for (A, E and O) long sounds. Words like 'pit', 'pet', 'put', 'pot', and 'pat' might be the hardest to distinguish between for Arabic speakers to pronounce and recognize. They will struggle with words that are only differentiated by their vowel sound.
Read More about phonology Here.
Consonants: Order of 3-part descriptive terms: Voicing -- Place of Articulation -- Manner of Articulation
How many letters does the English language have?
How many sounds does the language have?
In modern English, we have 26 letters in our alphabet. But we have approximately 48 different sounds that can be created by these 26 letters. Some sounds do not exist in all languages which is why many ELLs struggle with them.
Some examples that pose difficulty for some ELLs; consider the following minimal pairs which have similar “sounds”. Pit and Bit & Tap and Tab
Remember that, depending on the students’ native language, these difficulties will vary from one learner to the other. Teachers are encouraged to try to know their students as individuals.
Vowels:
We also have five vowels in the English language but we have 14 - 16 possible sounds that can be created using these five vowels. These varieties of sounds made by vowels create difficulties for ELLs because we do not have a clear pattern that can guide them with the pronunciation of English words. English language also has confusing issues that relate to this inconsistency. Two words that look almost alike with only one letter difference. Example: Pool and Poor. The “oo” in the middle produce different sounds in both of these words.
We also have five vowels in the English language but we have 14 - 16 possible sounds that can be created using these five vowels. These varieties of sounds made by vowels create difficulties for ELLs because we do not have a clear pattern that can guide them with the pronunciation of English words. English language also has confusing issues that relate to this inconsistency. Two words that look almost alike with only one letter difference. Example: Pool and Poor. The “oo” in the middle produce different sounds in both of these words.
Phonemic Awareness & Pronunciation
Phonological awareness is the ability to hear sounds that make up words in spoken language. This includes recognizing words that rhyme, deciding whether words begin or end with the same sounds,understanding that sounds can be manipulated to create new words, and separating words into their individual sounds.
Phonemic Awareness can be transfer from one language to another, therefore supporting ELLs’ Phonemic Awareness in the Native Language is important.
ELLs in classrooms in which instruction is provided exclusively in English can also benefit from support in native language phonemic awareness.
Tip: Get families involved in teaching their children Phonemic Awareness in the Native Language.
Phonological awareness is the ability to hear sounds that make up words in spoken language. This includes recognizing words that rhyme, deciding whether words begin or end with the same sounds,understanding that sounds can be manipulated to create new words, and separating words into their individual sounds.
Phonemic Awareness can be transfer from one language to another, therefore supporting ELLs’ Phonemic Awareness in the Native Language is important.
ELLs in classrooms in which instruction is provided exclusively in English can also benefit from support in native language phonemic awareness.
Tip: Get families involved in teaching their children Phonemic Awareness in the Native Language.
Read more about Phonetics and Phonology
Levels of Phonemic Awareness
Awareness of Rhyming Words (age 3-4)
Is able to identify words that rhyme. For example, "Put your thumbs up if these two words rhyme, pail-tail or cow-pig?" or "Finish this rhyme, Red bed, blue ____."
Awareness of Syllables (age 4-5)
Realizes that words are made up of syllables. For example, "Can you clap and count the syllables or the word parts in rainbow?"
Awareness of Onsets and Rimes-Sound Substitution (age 6)
Is aware of onsets and rimes in words. For example, "What rhymes with /at/ and begins with /f/?"
Sound Isolation - Awareness of Beginning, Middle and Ending Sounds (age 6)
Identifies beginning, middle, and ending sounds in words. For example, "What is the beginning sound in neck?" "What is the ending sound in jog? "What sound do you hear in the middle of kitten?"
Phonemic Blending (age 6)
Is able to blend phonemes heard auditorily into a word.For example, after hearing /c/ /a/ /t/ said in a stretched pronunciation, the child says cat.
Phoneme Segmentation (age 6-7)
Is able to count the sounds in a word (age 6). For example, "How many sounds do you hear in the word dog?"
Is able to identify the sounds heard in a word. For example, "What sounds do you hear in the word man?" This is the skill required in the Yopp-Singer Assessment.
Phoneme Manipulation (Age 7+)
Is able to omit or substitute phonemes to make new words. For example, "What word would we have if we changed the /t/ in Tommy to an /m/?" (mommy) or "What word would we have if we left out the /t/ in the middle of stand?" (sand).
Check these websites to learn more;
Five Essential Components of Reading Instruction
Phonemic Awareness Instruction for ELL's
Teams Educational Resources
Awareness of Rhyming Words (age 3-4)
Is able to identify words that rhyme. For example, "Put your thumbs up if these two words rhyme, pail-tail or cow-pig?" or "Finish this rhyme, Red bed, blue ____."
Awareness of Syllables (age 4-5)
Realizes that words are made up of syllables. For example, "Can you clap and count the syllables or the word parts in rainbow?"
Awareness of Onsets and Rimes-Sound Substitution (age 6)
Is aware of onsets and rimes in words. For example, "What rhymes with /at/ and begins with /f/?"
Sound Isolation - Awareness of Beginning, Middle and Ending Sounds (age 6)
Identifies beginning, middle, and ending sounds in words. For example, "What is the beginning sound in neck?" "What is the ending sound in jog? "What sound do you hear in the middle of kitten?"
Phonemic Blending (age 6)
Is able to blend phonemes heard auditorily into a word.For example, after hearing /c/ /a/ /t/ said in a stretched pronunciation, the child says cat.
Phoneme Segmentation (age 6-7)
Is able to count the sounds in a word (age 6). For example, "How many sounds do you hear in the word dog?"
Is able to identify the sounds heard in a word. For example, "What sounds do you hear in the word man?" This is the skill required in the Yopp-Singer Assessment.
Phoneme Manipulation (Age 7+)
Is able to omit or substitute phonemes to make new words. For example, "What word would we have if we changed the /t/ in Tommy to an /m/?" (mommy) or "What word would we have if we left out the /t/ in the middle of stand?" (sand).
Check these websites to learn more;
Five Essential Components of Reading Instruction
Phonemic Awareness Instruction for ELL's
Teams Educational Resources
Here are some suggested activities that will help you extend phonemic awareness concepts and skills.
Some Ways Teachers Can Help Students Learn and Practice Phonemes:
Help students by teaching them the different tongue positions for each sound.
Allow students to use mirrors to look at their tongue positions as they make the sounds.
Use minimal pairs (a pair of words with one phoneme different like rock and lock). it is helpful to teach these words in context rather than in isolation so students can work on learning the words and also use context clues to help understand meaning.
Use poems or chants with the targeted phoneme repeated many times.
Teachers should have students learn the language naturally as they read, write, and talk about content. This is why language objectives, ESL strategies and use of WIDA are so important to include in all lessons.
Teachers should speak slower to help make what they are saying more comprehensible to students. The reason that language learners think that speakers of the new language talk fast is because language learners are not so good at ignoring variations in phonemes.
Teachers should also read to students to help them develop graphophonic.
"Graphophonics combines their subconscious knowledge of sounds with knowledge of letters and knowledge of the correspondences between sounds and letters. During reading instruction, the focus stays on making meaning, not on the specific properties of phonemes. Later, as children learn to spell words, they become conscious of the connections between sounds and letters" .
Teachers should read authentic stories/books and big books and point to the words/print as they read to them. This will help students make connections between the sounds they hear and the print.
Help students by teaching them the different tongue positions for each sound.
Allow students to use mirrors to look at their tongue positions as they make the sounds.
Use minimal pairs (a pair of words with one phoneme different like rock and lock). it is helpful to teach these words in context rather than in isolation so students can work on learning the words and also use context clues to help understand meaning.
Use poems or chants with the targeted phoneme repeated many times.
Teachers should have students learn the language naturally as they read, write, and talk about content. This is why language objectives, ESL strategies and use of WIDA are so important to include in all lessons.
Teachers should speak slower to help make what they are saying more comprehensible to students. The reason that language learners think that speakers of the new language talk fast is because language learners are not so good at ignoring variations in phonemes.
Teachers should also read to students to help them develop graphophonic.
"Graphophonics combines their subconscious knowledge of sounds with knowledge of letters and knowledge of the correspondences between sounds and letters. During reading instruction, the focus stays on making meaning, not on the specific properties of phonemes. Later, as children learn to spell words, they become conscious of the connections between sounds and letters" .
Teachers should read authentic stories/books and big books and point to the words/print as they read to them. This will help students make connections between the sounds they hear and the print.