Early literacy

Language Component

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Examples of Difficulty

1

Phonology

Sound system; awareness of speech sounds

· Difficulty identifying main ideas/details in text

· Disorganized or limited retelling ability

· Problems with listening comprehension during read aloud

2

Orthography

Spelling system; knowledge of letters

· Demands instead of asks

· Difficulty taking turns in conversation

· Lack of awareness of appropriate voice volume and/or physical boundaries when conversing

3

Morphology

System of units of meaning in words

· Uses wrong verb forms or pronouns when speaking or writing

· Speaks in short and/or incomplete sentences

· Poor sentence structure when writing

4

Semantics

Knowledge of word meanings and relationships

· Can’t remember the letters in irregularly spelled words

· Uses unreasonable letters and letter sequences when writing

5

Syntax

System of rules of grammar; awareness of permissible word order in sentences

· Mispronunciation of sounds and words

· Poor memory for names

· Inability to blend or segment sounds in spoken words

6

Discourse

Ability to combine sentences to communicate ideas

· Leaves off word endings or confuses them

· Lack of knowledge of prefix or suffix meaning

· Mixes up prefixes and suffixes

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7

Pragmatics

Social rules about language use

· Spoken vocabulary is limited in range

· Alternate meanings for common words not known

· Trouble with synonyms, antonyms, analogies