Literacy is the umbrella term for a range of skills required for a child to be functional with written language. The ability to read, comprehend and write play a vital role in learning and accessing the world around you. Difficulties in this area are most often presented to parents and caregivers once a child is in formal schooling, however there are pre-cursor skills that you can monitor before they even start!
Phonological Awareness, is the foundational ability to recognise and work with sounds in words and starts developing around 3 years of age. Children with weak phonological awareness may struggle to break words into their separate sounds, rhyme words, or identify the first or last sound in a word. Once a child cements these skills, they can apply a visual representation to the sounds (letters).
Challenges with Phonological Awareness can lead to difficulties segmenting, blending and manipulating sounds– represented by letters for decoding (Reading) or encoding (Writing).
Language often ties in with Phonological awareness skills for comprehension and expression- as seen in Scarborough’s Reading Rope below.
Some children have specific learning disorders such as dyslexia and dysgraphia. Others may struggle with literacy due to language delays, hearing difficulties, or limited exposure to books and reading at home. Early identification and support are important for helping children develop strong literacy skills.
SLPs at Coastal Kids use evidence-based programs such as the Sounds-Write Approach- a systematic and synthetic phonics approach based on the science of reading.
Talk to your child’s teacher or contact a speech pathologist if you are concerned about your child’s literacy development.
