Phonemic Awareness Instruction for Pre-First Graders

This monograph presents a study of pre-first graders
who participated in a summer program of teaching and
learning featuring phonemic awareness instruction.
Sixty-two children were selected for this
intervention; 40 participated and 22 did not. Daily
instruction in phonemic awareness was an integral
component of the five-week program. Phonemic
awareness pre and post-tests were administered to the
62 children; results were examined. Ten other
reading tests and surveys were administered during
their first and second grade school-years. Results
from these assessments were also examined. The
analysis of student outcomes, on these assessments
and surveys, indicate phonemic awareness proficiency
was significantly improved by participation in the
extended school-year summer program. No other
measure of reading proficiency, as highlighted by the
first and second grade pre and post-tests, revealed a
significant difference between children who attended
the extended school-year program and those
who did not. Implications of these findings are
discussed.