This document discusses several theories and concepts related to beginning reading instruction. It describes the bottom-up theory which emphasizes mastering basic phonics and phonemic awareness skills before reading words. The whole language/psycholinguistic theory takes a top-down approach and focuses on authentic texts. Schema theory builds on background knowledge to aid reading. Metacognitive theory teaches reading strategies to increase awareness. Finally, it identifies five key early literacy skills that affect reading performance: phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

1. THEORIES AND CONCEPTS OF
BEGINNING READING INSTRUCTION

2. Reading Theories for First
Graders

3.  First grade is a critical year in learning to read as children who fall behind
will have a difficult time catching up in later grades.
 Many of the nation’s children have problems learning to read. If they don’t
get the help they need, these children will fall behind in school and
struggle with reading throughout their lives. Although parents, teachers ,
and school officials work hard to help children learn to read, there have
been many different many ideas about what ways of teaching reading
worked the best

4.  According to some theories, students should master the basic skills of
phonics and phonemic awareness when learning to read. This means
students first learn letter names and sounds and then are taught to
decode simple words by sounding them out one letter at a time.

5. BOTTOM-UP THEORY
According to this theory, students should master the basic skills of
phonics and phonemic awareness when learning to read. This means
students first learn sounds and letter names and then are taught to
decode simple words by sounding them out one letter at a time.
Beginning reading books include many words, students are able to sound
out. For example, Pat sat on the mat. Instructional time is devoted to
practicing individual skills which build on each other.

6. •Phoneme---is a single sound that maps to
one or more printed letters. It is the
smallest sound in spoken language.
•Phonetics---is a study of speech
sounds

7. The following is a list of specific phonemic awareness skills. Keep in mind, all of
these are done at the auditory/spoken level, NO print:
•Recognize words in a set begin with the same sound (cat, cake, kite all begin with
the /k/ sound)
•Isolate and say the first/last/middle sound/s in a word (cat begins with the /k/
sound and ends with the /t/ sound, etc.)
•Blend separate sounds (phonemes) into words (/k/- /a/ - /t/ = cat)
•Segment words into sounds (cat = /k/- /a/ - /t/)
•Delete/manipulate sounds in spoken words (What is "cat" without the /k/? - "at"

9. WHOLE
LANGUAGE/PSYCHOLINGUISTI
C THEORY
 Professor and author Kenneth Goodman is credited with developing this top-down
theory and model. He likened learning to read to learning language, a natural process.
Emphasis is placed on authentic texts students can relate to and take meaning from.
Beginning reading books are likely to have repetitive patterns with words and pictures
that are closely matched. Students are taught to think about what makes sense when
figuring out words they don’t know. This theory de-emphasizes direct phonics
in favor of more authentic reading. It includes making a variety of titles available,
selection of texts and immersion in reading throughout the classroom day. Analyzing
mistakes readers make while reading, called miscue analysis, provides insight into the
thinking process of beginning readers.

11. SCHEMA THEORY
 This theory is based on students using schema, or background knowledge, of words and
how they work to help them learn to read. As students learn about letter patterns within
words and sentence structure they begin to anticipate what to expect when reading. This
allows readers to read quickly and focus on meaning rather than only accurately reading
words. Building the reader’s background knowledge becomes a key part of learning to read
according to this theory.

13. METACOGNITIVE THEORY
 Metacognition refers to becoming aware of your thought processes. Metacognitive
theory emphasizes the strategies readers use to decode words and make meaning while
they are reading. Struggling readers and beginning readers benefit from being explicitly
taught strategies such as rereading, reading slower and stopping to check for
understanding. These strategies are introduced and modeled by the teacher, and
students are taught to become aware of their thought processes as they utilize them. As
students gain experience with strategies, they are encouraged to become independent in
applying them.

15.  A child's reading ability can be affected by many factors including background knowledge,
ability, home environment, school experiences and interest level. However, pure reading
performance is most directly linked to a child's success with five early literacy skills--phonemic
awareness, alphabetic principle, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. By understanding and
nurturing these five fundamental skills, parents and teachers can better encourage successful
reading performance

16. What Are the Factors Affecting Reading Performance?

17. FIVE EARLY LITERACY
KILLS

18. PHONEMIC AWARENESS
 Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear and orally manipulate the individual sounds
that make words. This skill is performed entirely with oral, not written, language. Students
with strong phonemic awareness are better prepared to sound out words while reading
and more likely to become fluent, proficient readers.
 Phonemic awareness includes the ability to segment words into individual sounds, blend
sounds to produce words, recognize words with sentences, distinguish syllables and
identify and produce rhyming words.
 Phonemic awareness can be a difficult task for young students and must be explicitly
taught to early readers.

19. ALPHABETIC PRINCIPLE
 The alphabetic principle encompasses recognition of letters, an understanding that words
are made from individual letters and the ability to connect sounds with letters in print.
Working with the alphabetic principle means deciphering the alphabetic code of words.
Decoding, or sounding out words, is an essential skill involved with the alphabetic
principle. However, the English alphabet is complex and difficult to master. Many letters
have more than one possible sound and many sounds have more than one possible
letter. Rigorous practice with identifying letters, connecting sounds to the letters and
utilizing these skills within words encourages a strong grasp of the alphabetic principle.

20. FLUENCY VOCABULARY
 Vocabulary involves gaining meaning from words while reading. Essentially, a student
cannot comprehend or construct meaning from text without understanding the words
within the passage. A child with strong vocabulary knowledge is able to read more
fluently and with more purpose. A child's vocabulary grows daily through conversation,
reading, direct instruction and life experiences. Reading aloud to children everyday and
explicitly teaching selected words help nurture strong vocabulary knowledge.

21. COMPREHENSION
 Comprehension involves constructing meaning from what is being read. Reading truly
has no purpose without comprehension. In order to comprehend text, a reader must
actively and intentionally think about and analyze meaning while reading. Good
comprehension requires strong abilities in all four of the other fundamental literacy skills.
Students must consider many bits of information while reading to comprehend the text
such as genre, text structure, the author's purpose and familiar and unfamiliar words.
Strong comprehension encourages self-directed learning and lifelong reading.