Phonemic
Awareness Assessments Identify A Weak Cognitive Skill Necessary
For Learning
A phonemic awareness assessment can help your child identify
a weak cognitive skill which is necessary for learning. Weak
cognitive skills are a large factor in the majority of learning
disabilities which affect people from all walks of life. Phonemic
awareness is the ability to hear and analyze discreet sounds.
It is the cognitive skill that allows us to connect speech
sounds to the letters in words. There are various stages that
your children will go through in their learning development,
and you can notice if they lack phonemic awareness during
each of these stages. If you notice any of the risk factors
which indicate a lack of phonemic awareness in your child
you are highly encouraged to schedule a complete phonemic
awareness assessment at a qualified learning training center.
Students as young as Pre-K to Kindergarten age can lack phonemic
awareness. Warning signs to watch for include a difficulty
recognizing rhymes, trouble remembering names of friends or
classmates, and a difficulty with the development of normal
speech. At the end of first grade the warning signs to watch
for include those mentioned above and if your child has difficulty
with spelling common words, reading aloud, sounding out words,
blending sounds, and trouble applying the mechanics of sounds
within words to reading and spelling.
At the end of second grade you will continue to see warning
signs that will indicate weak phonemic awareness skills. If
you find that your child has difficulty recalling simple facts
and details it is important to get them tested. Other factors
affecting your child at the end of second grade may be a difficulty
spelling previously studied and commonly seen words, difficulty
reading aloud, and difficulty using phonics to sound out words.
By the age of five, phonemic awareness is typically established
in around 80% of children. The other 20% will continue to
show warning signs past the age of nine and into the teen
years, and beyond. The common signs to watch out for are a
history of reading and spelling struggles, a dislike of reading,
not wanting to read aloud, or having to spend extra time doing
homework. If you see any of these symptoms in your child schedule
a complete cognitive skills assessment. A phonemic awareness
assessment will be included in this overall assessment at
a quality learning training center. This test will also indicate
any other weak cognitive skills that may become, or already
are a problem for your child. By running this test you will
help avoid future learning disabilities, ensuring your child
healthy learning for the rest of their life. The learning
training center will map out a plan for strengthening this
cognitive skill.
To further emphasize the importance of strong phonemic awareness
skills the Institute of Health and Child Development discovered
that 88% of reading difficulties were a result of weak phonemic
awareness. This was found during a ten-year study from 1985
to 1995. Make sure you get your child tested if you notice
any of the warning signs and struggles listed above. Their
future depends on your action.
LearningRx is a child and adult learning
training center which provides cognitive skills testing
to help individuals pinpoint the causes of their learning
disabilities. To find a LearningRx testing center near you,
or to take a free self-screening test visit www.learningrx.com.
