What is the Science of Reading?

“The science of reading” refers to two related concepts: the study of how the brain learns to read, and to methods for teaching reading that high-quality scientific studies have shown to be effective. When it comes to ensuring children develop the skills needed to enjoy literature and nonfiction texts, parents can benefit from understanding the science behind learning to read.

A key component of scientifically based literacy instruction is instruction in phonological awareness and systematic phonics.

• Phonological awareness includes skills like rhyming, alliteration, identifying syllables, and blending syllables together. It also includes phonemic awareness, which is the ability to identify and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words. Individual sounds are called phonemes. Phonemic awareness skills are critical for learning to read. Children practice these skills through activities such as removing the /k/ sound from the word “cat” and substituting the /r/ sound to make “rat.” Through rhyming, substituting, and manipulating sounds in other ways, children get ready to learn to read.

• Systematic phonics refers to the process of teaching children to associate sounds (phonemes) with letters (also called graphemes). In English, there are often multiple ways to spell phonemes. For example, the sound /k/ – the symbol for the sound at the beginning of the words “cat” and “ketchup” – can be made with the letters c-, k-, and even sometimes ch-, as in “architect.” Systematic phonics involves learning these letter-sound correspondences in an organized, step-by-step way that reflects the findings of high-quality research studies.

The sound-letter connection is how children learn to read effectively. When all children are taught phonological awareness skills and systematic phonics directly, most can learn to read effectively and at or above grade level, and with moderate additional support, almost all children can learn to read proficiently.