Phonics and Fluency Flashcards
Prefix
A letter or letters at the beginning of a root word that changes its meaning
Example:
re, de, un
Vowel Digraph
two vowels that make a single vowel sound when together in a word, also known as “vowel teams”
Example:
the “ai” in paint; the “ee” in need; the “oa” in boat
Partner / Small Group Reading
A strategy in which students read semi-independently in pairs or small groups.
R-Controlled Vowel
a vowel followed by the letter r where the “r” that doesn’t make its normal short or long sound
Example:
In the word, “tiger,” the letter e is an r-controlled vowel, as its pronunciation changes because it is followed by an r.
Consolidated Alphabetic Stage
a stage of word recognition in which students read by using memorized letter chunks, affixes, and syllables to read words
Example:
A student in this stage would not need to sound out each letter in a word like “reminder” but would decode it by breaking it into recognizable chunks, “re-mind-er.”
Context Clues / Contextual Analysis
using the words before and after an unknown word to determine its meaning
Example:
It was a beautiful day that made it idyllic for swimming.
Speed (when reading)
the pace at which the reader reads the text
Affix
A letter or letters that change a root word’s meaning
Ex:
prefixes or suffixes
Reading fluency
ability to read with appropriate speed, accuracy, and prosody
connotation
the implied meaning of a word; the feeling a word conveys
Example:
Describing a person as “shrewd” may make them feel negatively, even though the definition (sharp-witted, intelligent) is positive.
Full Alphabetic Stage
a stage of word recognition in which students use their full working knowledge of letter-sound correspondence to decode unfamiliar words letter-by-letter
Example:
a child comes across the word “desk” while reading and sounds it out “d-e-s-k”
Grapheme
A written letter or a combination of letters that represents a single sound.
Example:
“ph” makes a “f” sound
Final Stable syllable
A consonant + -le syllable occurs at the end of a word. If the consonant + -le syllable is found next to an open syllable, then the vowel in the open syllable stays long. If the consonant + -le is next to a closed syllable, the vowel in the closed syllable stays short.
Example:
bugle, candle, bubble, circle, and trample
Diphthong
one vowel sound made by the combination of two vowel sounds
Example:
the “ou” in south; the “au” in taught; the “oy” in oyster
Synonyms
words with the same or a similar meaning
Example:
angry/mad/furious; bad/evil/immoral/tainted; and fast/quick/rapid.
Vowel-Consonant-E Syllable
The vowel-consonant-e syllable has a silent “e” and makes the vowel before it long; this syllable is usually found at the end of a word
Example:
name, mice, cake, compete
Prosody
the reader’s ability to convey expression, including using correct emphasis, punctuation, and tone, while reading aloud
Decoding
In reading out loud, being able to sound out words by breaking them into simple forms.
In reading for comprehension, the understanding of how to read each letter or letter pattern in a word to determine the word’s meaning
Supervised Oral Reading
A strategy in which a student reads aloud to a teacher or tutor.
Automaticity
the ability to read words effortlessly
Phoneme
the smallest individual sounds in a word
Example:
The word “bit” has three phonemes – b – i – t.
Root (Word Formation)
the smallest unit or core of a word that carries the meaning
Example:
form means “shape,” as in reform, conform, formulate
Homographs
words that have the same spelling as another word but have different meaning
Example:
tired meaning fatigue (verb); tire meaning a rubber cushion that fits around a wheel of an automobile (noun)
Audio/Video-Assisted Reading
A strategy in which a teacher plays an audio recording of a book or show an animated illustration of a book while students read along
Pre-alphabetic stage
a stage of word recognition in which students have no working knowledge of the alphabetic system and “read” words based on memorizing what they look like
Example:
a child says “Wal-Mart” when passing the store’s sign
Inference
a conclusion based on evidence, observation, and reasoning
Word families
a group of words with a shared ending letter group/sound
Example:
back, black, stack, shack, quack, lack, tack
Accuracy (when reading)
the reader’s ability to correctly pronounce words
Antonyms
words with the opposite meanings
Example:
hot/cold; and big/little
Rereading Familiar Text
Strategy in which students reread a familiar text to increase their rate, prosody, and confidence.
Term,Choral Reading / Echo Reading
A strategy in which students first listens to the teacher read a short passage aloud, and then the class and the teacher all read it aloud at the same time
Automatic stage
the final stage of word recognition in which a person decodes fluently and knows many strategies to identify new words
Students in the automatic stage of word recognition are able to read fluently and with greater comprehension because their focus shifts more toward the meaning of the text as a whole and less on individual words.
Denotation
a literal, dictionary meaning of a word
Suffix
letter or letters at the end of a root word that changes its meaning
Example:
s, es, ed, ing, ly, er, or, ion, tion, able, and ible
Encode
using individual sounds to spell a word
Example:
To encode, a student must represent the sounds of a word with letters. For example, the word cat would be encoded as /c/, /a/ and /t/.
Literature circles
strategy in which a teacher organizes students into small groups to discuss a common text
Structural/morphemic analysis
using meaningful word parts (morphemes) to study a word and determine its meaning
Independent reading
reading done by students independent of the teacher. This reading can be either assigned or student selected. Typically silent.
alphabetic knowledge
The ability to recognize, name, and write letters.
Phonics / Graphophonemic Principle
Using the relationship between symbols (letters and words) and sounds of a language to read and write
Partial Alphabetic stage
a stage of word recognition in which students combine their limited alphabetic knowledge with context clues to read
Example:
a child sees a picture of a truck in a book about vehicles, locates a word that starts with ‘t’ on the same pages, and says “truck”
Constant digraph
two consonants that make a single consonant sound when together in a word
Example:
In the word “wish,” the letters s and h form the consonant digraph, sh.
Closed syllable
Syllable that ends in a consonant; vowel has its short sound
Example:
hot, help, dog, mistake
Teacher-modeled reading
A strategy in which a teacher reads aloud to students emphasizing his/her own fluency and prosody.
Morpheme
A combination of sounds that has meaning in speech or writing and cannot be divided into smaller grammatical parts. This includes prefixes and suffixes.
Example:
write, cat, laugh, box
Readers’ theater
A strategy in which a teacher directs students in a dramatic enactment of a play or book
Word lists
Term definition.
a list of words taken out of context and written or printed consecutively
Word lists will specifically require students to read the words without the help of context from a sentence or story, an important factor in determining their stage of word recognition.
Open Syllable
Syllable that ends in a vowel; the vowel has its long sound
Example:
vacant, brutal, agent
R-Controlled Syllable
Syllable that contains a vowel followed by the letter r; the r controls the vowel and changes the way the vowel is pronounced
Example:
car, guitar, mother, and manor
Consonant blend
two or more consonants that blend together when decoded, but each retains its own sound
Example:
In the word “blue,” the letters b and l form the consonant blend, bl.
Morphology
The study of forms of words, including affixes, roots, stems, and parts of speech.
Example:
The word “bicycles” is made up of three individual morphemes. The prefix bi-, the stem cycle, and the suffix -s.
