Reading with TLC

Brief Phonics Screening
Is someone you know experiencing difficulty when trying to sound out words? You may use the quick screening task below to help determine if this individual may be in need of systematic instruction in phonemic awareness and phonics. The first task screens the ability to name letter sounds in isolation, and the second activity screens the ability to decode (sound out) nonsense words. If the student has difficulty with either of these tasks, further testing may be warranted, and he or she may be someone who would benefit from instruction with the Reading with TLC Lively Letters program.

Sample Letter Sound Association Screening
We have also provided a sample screening list of letters and nonsense words for a student to decode (sound out). Point to each letter (or letter combination) and ask the student to name the sound it makes.

b	w	h	m
t	n	f	s
k	d	z	x
y	sh	th	u
a	i	o	e
ou	er	oi	aw

Pronunciation Guide

a ( the short “a” sound as in “apple”)	ou (as in “loud”)
i ( the short “i” sound asin “sit”)	er (as in “Bert”)
o (the short “o” sound as in Bob”)	oi (as in “join”)
u ( the short “u” sound as in “cup”)	aw (as in “saw”)
e (the short “e” sound as in “pet”)
The correct sound for “x” is “ks” as in “box.”

Sample Nonsense Word Decoding Screening

Point to each nonsense word and ask the student to try to read it by sounding it out. Make sure you tell the student that these are “make believe” words.

fob	liv	roz	tud
jek	shan	boke	sife
dis	glon	hisp	mef
blag	skabe	fropt	stimps