Glossary
Alphabetic Principle
Le principe alphabétique
The principle that each sound in spoken language corresponds to a letter or a combination of letters.
Connected text
Words that are linked (as opposed to words in a list) as in sentences, phrases, and paragraphs.
Decodable or Controlled text
Un texte déchiffrable
Texts that are composed of words that primarily contain only those phonetic elements that have been explicitly taught to the reader.
Decoding
le décodage/décoder (v.)
In reading, the ability to sound out graphemes and words.
Dialogic Reading
La lecture dialogique
Dialogic Reading is the process of turning book reading into a conversation. Dialogic reading focuses on open ended questions, to help students explore the text at a deeper level, as well as building vocabulary, making predictions, discussing story components and talking about the text
Explicit Instruction
L’enseignement explicite
Clear, direct, and purposeful teaching of specific knowledge/skills/abilities. The teacher does not assume that students will learn through implied methods. Explicit teaching uses modelling, sharing, guiding, and coaching strategies before requiring students to demonstrate their learning in an independent manner.
Fluency
La fluidité
Fluent reading comprises three key elements: accurate reading of connected text, at a conversational rate, with appropriate prosody or expression.
Grapheme
Le graphème
The smallest part of written language that represents a phoneme in the spelling of a word. A grapheme may be just one letter, such as b, d, f, p, s; or several letters, such as ch, sh, th, -ck, ea, -igh.
Letter Recognition
La reconnaissance des lettres
The ability to name a letter automatically that is displayed, or find a letter in a group.
Onset
L’attaque
The part of the syllable before the vowel (e.g., sh-ine)
Orthographic Mapping
L’intervention orthographique/ la mise en relation des patrons orthographiques
The mental process used for storing words in memory for automatic retrieval. This depends on proficiency with phonemic awareness, letter-sound correspondence, and recognition of patterns in print.
Phoneme
Le phonème
The smallest part of spoken language that makes a difference in the meaning of words. English has about 44 phonemes. A few words, such as a or oh, have only one phoneme. Most words, however, have more than one phoneme. The word if has two phonemes (/i/ /f/); check has three phonemes (/ch/ /e/ /k/); and stop has four phonemes (/s/ /t/ /o/ /p/). More than one letter or grapheme can represent a single phoneme, like in night (/n/ /igh/ /t/).
Phonemic Awareness
La conscience phonémique
The ability to hear, identify, and manipulate the individual sounds (phonemes) in spoken words.
Phonics
Les phoniques
Instruction that teaches the relationship between the letters (graphemes) of written language and the individual sounds (phonemes) of spoken language.
Phonological Awareness
La conscience phonologique
The ability to focus on and manipulate units of language, including phonemes and larger spoken units such as syllables and words.
Check out this narrated slide deck to find out more about Phonological Awareness
Phonemic Awareness
La conscience phonémique
The ability to hear, identify, and manipulate the individual sounds (phonemes) in spoken words.
Rhyme
Une rime/Rimer (v.)
Rhymes result when words or word endings have the same or similar sounds (e.g., cat - mat).
Rime
La rime
The part of a syllable that contains the vowel and all that follows it. A rime is smaller than a syllable but larger than a phoneme. For example: b-one, d-ime, sh-op.
Sight Words
Mots familiers
A word that is recognized and read instantly without having to sound it out. This differs from the memorization of words or word lists. Sight words are the product of orthographic mapping.
Syllable
La syllabe
The smallest part that a word can be divided into than includes a vowel. For example, "watermelon" has four syllables: wa-ter-mel-on.