A student with strong phonics knowledge is able to:

A student with strong phonics knowledge is able to:

• A. rapidly name grade-level sight words
• B. correctly define and use new terminology
• C. read text with accuracy, speed and inflection
• D. use relationships between symbols and sounds to read and write words

Answer: (D)

Phonics is about linking sounds to written symbols and using that link to read and spell. A student with strong phonics knowledge can map each sound to its letter or letter pattern, blend sounds together to read unfamiliar words, and segment sounds to spell them. This is why reading and writing words by using relationships between symbols and sounds fits best—it directly describes decoding and encoding through sound–letter connections. The other skills describe related reading abilities but not the core function of phonics. Rapidly naming grade-level sight words relies on recognizing whole words by sight rather than decoding them from sounds. Correctly defining and using new terminology is about vocabulary and language knowledge. Reading with accuracy, speed, and inflection describes fluency, which includes prosody as well as decoding, but phonics centers on the sound–symbol mappings that make reading and writing possible overall.

Phonics is about linking sounds to written symbols and using that link to read and spell. A student with strong phonics knowledge can map each sound to its letter or letter pattern, blend sounds together to read unfamiliar words, and segment sounds to spell them. This is why reading and writing words by using relationships between symbols and sounds fits best—it directly describes decoding and encoding through sound–letter connections.

The other skills describe related reading abilities but not the core function of phonics. Rapidly naming grade-level sight words relies on recognizing whole words by sight rather than decoding them from sounds. Correctly defining and using new terminology is about vocabulary and language knowledge. Reading with accuracy, speed, and inflection describes fluency, which includes prosody as well as decoding, but phonics centers on the sound–symbol mappings that make reading and writing possible overall.