PNU Reading Society

Department of Reading and Literacy

College of College of Languages, Linguistics and Literature
Philippine Normal University
Manila

Notes Correcting Perceptual and Decoding Deficits in Word Recognition

Prepared by Prof. Roderick Motril Aguirre

I. Introduction
Visual analysis of an unfamiliar word must precede the application of knowledge of word parts. Both of
these come before the final synthesis of the parts into recognition of words (Ekwall & Shanker, 1988). We can
identify the child who has insufficient competence in the visual analysis of words in two ways. First, the child when
pronouncing words verbally selects inappropriate elements to sound out and often he tries again and again to use
the same analysis even when it does not work. Second, when the teacher shows him/her the word covering up
parts of it, if the child is able to recognize it, then at least one of his problems in word recognition is faulty visual
analysis (Ekwall & Shanker, 1988).

II. Definition of Terms

A. Alphabetic Knowledge: understanding that letters represent sound so that words may be read by
saying the sounds represented by the letters and words may be spelled by writing the letters that
represent the sounds in a word.
B. Sight-Word Knowledge: refer to all words any one reader can recognize instantly (with automaticity)
not necessarily with meaning.
C. Basic Sight Words: refer to a designated list of words, usually of high utility.
D. Knowledge on Sound-Symbol Correspondence: (a.k.a. graphophonic knowledge) refers to the
readers ability to use phonics, phonemic, and structural analysis knowledge.

III. Correcting Sight-Word Knowledge Deficit

A. Write a sentence on the chalkboard with the new word used in context. Underline the word.
B. Let students read the sentence and attempt to say the new word using context clues along with other
word-attack skills. If you are introducing a new story, it is especially important that you not tell them
each new word in advance, as this deprives them of the opportunity to apply word-attack skills
themselves.
C. Discuss the meaning of the word or how it is used in talking and writing. Try to tie to something in
their experience. If possible, illustrate the word with a picture or concrete object.
D. Write the word as students watch. Ask them to look for certain configuration clues such as double
letters, extenders, and descenders. Also as them to look for any well-known phonograms or word
families, e.g. ill, ant, ake, but do not call attention to little words in longer words.
E. Ask students to write the word themselves and to be sure and say the word while they write it.
Research by the Socony-Vaccum Oil Co. showed that people tend to remember about 90 percent of
what they say as they do a thing, 70 percent of what they say as they talk, 50 percent of what they
see and hear, and only 10 to 20 percent of what read or hear.
F. Have students make up and wirte sentences in which the word is used in context. Have them read
these sentences to each other and discuss them.

IV. Correcting Basic Sight Vocabulary Deficit

A. Have the student trace the word, write it on paper, or use chalk or magic slates.
B. Have the student repeat the word each time it is written.
C. Have the student write the word without looking at the flash card; then compare the two.
D. Create “study buddies.” Match learners in the classroom with fellow students who have mastered the
words. Take time to teach the “tutors” how to reinforce new words. Provide a big reward to both tutor
and learner once the learner has attained the goal.
E. Provide reinforcement games for students to use on their own or with their study buddies. Games
may be open-ended game boards or developed by levels according to the sublists.
F. Provide charts, graphs, and other devices for students to display their progress. These serve as
excellent motivators, especially since students are competing with themselves rather than each other.
G. Use your imagination. Have students dramatize phrases, build a sight-word “cave,” practice words
while lining up, read sight-word “plays,” etc.

Some Common Word Games for Correcting Sight-Words and Basic Sight Words Deficits
A. Head-Chair Game. Line up chairs and designate the chair on one end as the “head chair.” Students
occupy the chairs. The teacher flashes words to the student in the head chair. The student in the
head chair continues to occupy that chair until missing a word. After missing, the student goes to the
end of the line and everyone moves up one chair. The idea is to see who can stay in the head chair.
B. Sight-Word Bee. Use the same rules as you would for a spelling bee, but instead of spelling words
have students say words as they are flashed.
C. Sight-Word Hunt. Two or more students are blindfolded; other students hide sight-word cards
around the room. When the signal is given, the blindfolded students remove the blindfolds and begin
to hunt the sight-word cards. After the hunt students must say all of the words on the cards they have
found in order to keep them. The one who has the most cards after saying the words is the winner.
D. What Word? Fill the pocket chart with sight words. Let children take turns trying to answer questions
such as: “What word tells a number?” “What word is a color?” “What word begins with the p sound?”
etc. Either the teacher or students can make up the question.
V. Correcting Knowledge on Sound-Symbol Correspondence

Vowel Rules or Principles and Accent Generalizations

1. In words containing a single vowel letter at the end of the word, the vowel letter usually has
the long vowel sound. (Note that this rule refers to words and not just syllables. There is a
similar rule for single word letters at the end of syllables
2. In syllables containing a single vowel letter at the end of the syllable, the vowel letter may
have either the long or short vowel sound. Try the long sound first. (Note that this has the
same effect as rule 1.) Research indicates that a single-syllable word with a vowel at the
end, as in number 1 above, is much likelier to be long than short. On the other hand, a
vowel at the end of a syllable in a multisyllable word is only likelier to be long than short;
therefore, we express the rule as try the long sound first.
3. A single vowel in a syllable usually has the short vowel sound if it is not the last letter or is
not followed by r, w, or l. When explaining this to students it is often helpful to indicate that
a single vowel in a closed syllable is usually short. Students should be taught that a closed
syllable is one in which there is a consonant on the right-hand side. They will also need to
know, as indicated above, the r, w, and l control rules.
4. Vowels followed by r usually have a sound that is neither long nor short
5. A y at the beginning of a word has the “y” consonant sound; y at the end of a single-syllable
word, when preceded by a consonant, usually has the long I sound; and y at the end of a
multisyllable word, when preceded by a consonant, usually has the long e sound. (Some
people hear it as short i.)
6. In words ending with vowel-consonant-silent e the e is silent and the first vowel may be
either long or short. Try the long sound first. In teaching this rule, stress that the student
should be flexible; i.e. try the short vowel sound if the long one does not form a word in his
or her speaking-listening vocabulary. It has been demonstrated that students who are
taught to be flexible in attacking words when applying rules such as this become more
adept at using word-attack skills than those who are not taught this flexibility.
7. When aj, ay, ea, ee, and oa are found together, the first vowel is usually long and the
second is usually silent.
8. The vowel pair ow may have either the sound heard in cow or the sound heard in crow.
9. When au, aw, ou, oi, and oy are found together, they usually blend to form a dipthong.
10. The oo sound is either long as in moon or short as in book.
11. If a is the only vowel in a syllable and is followed by l or w, then the a is usually neither long
nor short.

NOTE: Accent has less importance for a corrective reader than the vowel rules. This is true
partially because a student who properly attacks a new word in his or her speaking-listening
vocabulary but not sight vocabulary is likely to get the right accent without any knowledge of
accent generalizations.
Also, teach students the use of affixes so they will have better understanding of
contractions; inflectional and derivational endings for change tense, number form and function.
These will lead to students’ sufficient use of structural analysis strategy.

Syllabication Principles
1. When two consonants stand between two vowels, the word is usually divided between the
consonants, e.g., dag-ger and cir-cus. In some of the newer materials, materials are divided
after the double consonant, e.g., dagg-er. It should be remembered that in reading we are
usually teaching syllabication as a means of word attack. Therefore, you should also accept a
division after double consonants as correct even though the dictionary would not show it that
way.
2. When one consonant stands between two vowels, try dividing first so that the consonant goes
with the second vowels, e,g., pa-per and motor, Students should be taught that flexibility is
required in using this rule; if this does not give a word in the student’s speaking-listening
vocabulary, then the student should divide it so that the consonant goes with the first vowel,
as in riv-er and le-ver.
3. When a word ends in aconsonant and le, the consonant usually begins the last syllable, e.g.,
ta-ble and hum-ble.
4. Compound words are usually divided between word parts and between syllables in this parts,
e.g., hen-house and po-olice-man.
5. Prefixes and suffixes usually form separate syllables.

Remediation through Phonemic Awareness. The following are Critical Phonemic Awareness skills
students should learn

1. Sound Isolation. Example: The first sound in sun is /ssss/.

Example Instruction: In sound isolation use conspicuous strategies.

1. Show children how to do all the steps in the task before asking children to do the task. Example:
(Put down 2 pictures that begin with different sounds and say the names of the pictures.) "My turn
to say the first sound in man, /mmm/. Mmman begins with /mmm/. Everyone, say the first sound
in man, /mmm/." Non-example: "Who can tell me the first sounds in these pictures?"
 2. Use consistent and brief wording. Example: "The first sound in Mmman is /mmm/. Everyone say
the first sound in man, /mmm/."Non-example: "Man starts with the same sound as the first sounds
in mountain, mop, and Miranda. Does anyone know other words that begin with the same sound
as man?"
3. Correct errors by telling the answer and having children repeat the correct answer. Example: "The
first sound in Man is /mmm/. Say the first sound in mmman with me, /mmm/. /Mmmm/." Non-
example: Asking the question again or asking more questions. "Look at the picture again. What is
the first sound?"

2. Blending (Example: /sss/ - / uuu/ - /nnn/ is sun). In blending instruction, use scaffold task difficulty.

1. When children are first learning to blend, use examples with continuous sounds, because the
sounds can be stretched and held.Example: "Listen, my lion puppet likes to talk in a broken way.
When he says /mmm/ - /ooo/ - /mmm/ he means mom." Non-example: "Listen, my lion puppet
likes to talk in a broken way. When he says /b/ - /e/ - /d/ he means bed."
2. When children are first learning the task, use short words in teaching and practice examples. Use
pictures when possible. Example: Put down 3 pictures of CVC words and say: "My lion puppet
wants one of these pictures. Listen to hear which picture he wants, /sss/ - /uuu/ - /nnn/. Which
picture?" Non-example: ".../p/ - /e/ - /n/ - /c/ - /i/ - /l/. Which picture?" (This is a more advanced
model that should be used later.)
3. When children are first learning the task, use materials that reduce memory load and to represent
sounds. Example: Use pictures to help children remember the words and to focus their attention.
Use a 3-square strip or blocks to represent sounds in a word. Non-example: Provide only verbal
activities.
4. As children become successful during initial learning, remove scaffolds by using progressively
more difficult examples. As children become successful with more difficult examples, use fewer
scaffolds, such as pictures. Example: Move from syllable or onset-rime blending to blending with
all sounds in a word (phoneme blending). Remove scaffolds, such as pictures. "Listen, /s/ - /t/ -
/o/ - /p/. Which picture?" "Listen, /s/ - /t/ - /o/ - /p/. What word?" Non-example: Provide instruction
and practice at only the easiest levels with all the scaffolds.

3. Segmenting (Example:The sounds in sun are /sss/ - /uuu/ - /nnn/) In phoneme segmentation instruction,
strategically integrate familiar and new information.

1. Recycle instructional and practice examples used for blending. Blending and segmenting are
sides of the same coin. The only difference is whether children hear or produce a segmented
word. Note: A segmenting response is more difficult for children to reproduce than a blending
response. Example: "Listen, my lion puppet likes to say the sounds in words. The sounds in mom
are /mmm/ - /ooo/ - /mmm/. Say the sounds in mom with us. "
2. Concurrently teach letter-sound correspondences for the sounds children will be segmenting in
words. Example: Letter sound /s/ and words sun and sit. Put down letter cards for familiar letter-
sounds. Then, have children place pictures by the letter that begins with the same sound as the
picture. Non-example: Use letter-sounds that have not been taught when teaching first sound in
pictures for phoneme isolation activities.
3. Make the connections between sounds in words and sounds of letters. Example: After children
can segment the first sound, have them use letter tiles to represent the sounds. Non-example:
Letters in mastered phonologic activities are not used. Explicit connections between alphabetic
and phonologic activities are not made.
4. Use phonologic skills to teach more advanced reading skills, such as blending letter-sounds to
read words. Example: (Give children a 3-square strip and the letter tiles for s, u, n.) Have children
do familiar tasks and blending to teach stretched blending with letters.

VI. References

Bond, Guy L. et al. 1984. Reading Difficulties. Their Diagnosis and Correction. New Jersey, USA: Prentice Hall, Inc.

Crystal, David. 1987. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

De Saussure, Ferdinand. 1996. Course in General Linguistics. Chicago and La Salle, Illinois, USA: Carus Publishing Company

Ekwall, Eldon and Shanker, James. 1988. Diagnosis and Remediation of the Disabled Reader. Massachussetts, USA: Allyn and Bacon.

Gunning, Thomas G. (2003). Creating Literacy Instruction for All Children (4 th ed.) NY, USA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Hermosa, Nemah N. 2002. The Psychology of Reading.UP, Diliman: University of the Philippines Open University

Hittleman, Daniel R. 1978. Developmental Reading: A Psycholinguistic Perspective. Chicago, USA: Rand McNally College Publishing
Company

Jannedy, Stefanie, Poletto, Robert, and Weldon, Tracey (editors). 1994. Language Files (7 th Edition). Columbus, USA: Ohio State University
Press.

Manzo, Anthony and Manzo, Ula. 1993. Literacy Disorders. Holistic Diagnosis and Remediation. Australia: Wadsworth Thompson Learning.