FTCE Professional Education Practice Exam

What does phonemic awareness allow a child to do?

1. Identify and manipulate larger sound units

2. Understand written language

3. Hear, identify, and manipulate phonemes

4. Recognize facial expressions in communication

The correct answer is: Hear, identify, and manipulate phonemes

Phonemic awareness is a crucial skill in early literacy development, focusing specifically on the sounds of spoken language. It refers to the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual phonemes, which are the smallest units of sound that can distinguish one word from another. For instance, a child with strong phonemic awareness can recognize that the words "bat" and "cat" have different initial sounds, or they might be able to segment the sounds in the word "dog" into three distinct phonemes: /d/, /o/, and /g/. This skill is foundational for reading and writing, as it leads to a child’s ability to understand how sounds correspond to letters and words in written form. With effective phonemic awareness, children can improve their decoding skills as they learn to read, since they can break words down into manageable parts. In contrast, options about manipulating larger sound units or understanding written language involve broader language skills rather than the focused aspect of phonemes, while recognizing facial expressions pertains to social and emotional communication rather than phonemic awareness.