![]() ![]() Efficient phonological memory might enable children to maintain an accurate representation of the phonemes associated with the letters of a word while decoding and, therefore, devote more cognitive resources to word decoding and comprehension processes. Phonological memory refers to the coding of information in a sound-based representation system for temporary storage ( Baddeley, 1986), and it is typically measured by immediate recall of verbally presented material (e.g., repetition of nonwords). ![]() This ability to access smaller and smaller units of sound within spoken words helps children make the connection between the sounds and the letters that represent them in print (i.e., the alphabetic code). Phonological awareness refers to the ability to detect, apprehend, or manipulate the sound structure of oral language independent of meaning, and it is measured commonly by tasks requiring matching, blending, deleting, or counting sounds within words. Wagner and Torgesen (1987), based on research with school-age children, identified three interrelated clusters of reading-related phonological processing abilities: phonological awareness, phonological memory, and phonological access to lexical store. There is now a strong consensus that the most common cause of early reading difficulties is a weakness in children’s phonological processing skills ( Metsala, Stanovich, & Brown, 1998 Morris et al., 1998 Stanovich, 1988, 1992 Stanovich & Siegel, 1994 Stanovich, Siegal, & Gottardo, 1997). Although older theories of the causes of reading difficulties posited significant involvement of visual-perceptual systems or hypothesized subtle vision difficulties (e.g., Black, 1973 Brod, 1969 Guthrie & Goldberg, 1972 Roberts, 1958 Rosen, 1965 Snyder & Freud, 1967), most recent conceptualizations of reading difficulties have focused on linguistic factors. These skills are often referred to as emergent literacy skills, which Whitehurst and Lonigan defined as the “developmental precursors to conventional forms of reading and writing” (p. This growing body of evidence highlights the significance of the preschool period for the development of several critically important early literacy skills (e.g., Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998 Whitehurst & Lonigan, 1998). Knowledge about the causes, correlates, and predictors of school-age children’s reading successes and failures has increased substantially over the past three decades (see e.g., National Reading Panel, 2000) however, only within the past 10 years have sizable efforts been directed toward understanding the development and contribution of reading-related skills prior to school entry. Reading and writing skills serve as the cornerstone to acquiring content knowledge in other domains both in school and throughout life. In a literate society, learning to read and write are key developmental milestones.
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