The genetic factor structure of a range of learning measures was explored in twin children, recruited in preschool and followed to Grade 2 ("N"?=?2,084). Measures of orthographic learning and word reading were included in the analyses to determine how these patterned with the learning processes. An exploratory factor analysis of the…

Differences in literacy growth over the summer versus the school year were examined to isolate how schooling affects children's literacy development from preschool through second grade across four literacy skills. Children (n = 383) were tested individually twice each year for up to 4 years on measures of phonological awareness, decoding, reading…

We examined the double-deficit hypothesis in Finnish. One hundred five Finnish children with high familial risk for dyslexia and 90 children with low family risk were followed from the age of 3 1/2 years until Grade 3. Children's phonological awareness, rapid naming speed, text reading, and spelling were assessed. A deficit in rapid automatized…

There is a gap between "w..aa..sss" and "woz" ("was"). This is a gap between the output from a phonological recoding of a word and its lexical pronunciation. We suggest that ease of recognition of words from spelling pronunciations (like "w..aa..sss") contributes independent variance to word decoding ability with both regularly and irregularly…

This article queries whether consonant sonority (sonorant vs. obstruent) and status (coda vs. onset) within intervocalic clusters influence syllable-based segmentation strategies. We used a modified version of the illusory conjunction paradigm to test whether French beginning, intermediate, and advanced readers were sensitive to an optimal…

The contributions of six important reading-related skills (phonological awareness, rapid naming, orthographic skills, morphological awareness, listening comprehension, and syntactic skills) to Chinese word and text reading were examined among 290 Chinese first graders in Hong Kong. Rapid naming, but not phonological awareness, was a significant…

In the present study, we examined oral and silent reading fluency and their relations with reading comprehension. In a series of structural equation models with latent variables using data from 316 first-grade students, (a) silent and oral reading fluency were found to be related yet distinct forms of reading fluency, (b) silent reading fluency…

Serial rapid automized naming (RAN) has been often found to correlate more strongly with reading than discrete RAN. This study aimed to demonstrate that the strength of the RAN-reading fluency relationship is dependent on the format of both RAN and the reading task if the reading task consists of sight words. Seventy-one first-grade, 74…

We examined the efficacy of 20 weeks of individual supplemental phonics-based instruction for language minority (LM) and non-LM first graders. Students were designated LM if the primary home language was not English (otherwise non-LM). Those performing in the bottom half of their classroom LM/non-LM group in letter knowledge and phonological…

This study investigates effects of early bilingualism on phonological awareness that are abstract and beyond cross-language transfer. It extends the scope of previous research by systematically examining hypotheses derived from "structural sensitivity theory." The theory postulates that having access to two languages renders structural…

In two experiments we examined how children's nonword pronunciations are influenced by learning words. In Experiment 1, children pronounced nonwords before and after learning words sharing orthographic rimes with the nonwords. These rimes varied in spelling-to-sound consistency and regularity. Children's nonword pronunciations were more sensitive…

Effects of syllable structure and of alphabetic reading skills on the development of phoneme awareness were investigated in a longitudinal study. Awareness of phonemes in syllable onsets and codas was examined in first graders speaking Czech (n = 45) and German (n = 33). Czech children showed higher awareness of phonemes in onsets than in codas,…

A disproportionally high number of children with specific language impairment (SLI) develop dyslexia. Yet it is hard to predict which individual child is at risk. This article presents a longitudinal study of phonological and early literacy development of 18 Dutch-speaking children with SLI, compared to 18 typically developing controls over a…

The study examines the home literacy experiences, emergent literacy skills, and instructional experiences of a sample of Chilean kindergarten children (n = 126) and kindergarten families (n = 188) nested in 12 kindergarten classrooms from different socioeconomic status groups and types of schools. Descriptive information is given showing the level…

We examined the relations of teacher knowledge (n = 42 first-grade teachers), explicit decoding instruction provided, and students' (n = 437) word-reading gains. Results revealed an interaction between teacher knowledge and observed decoding instruction: For students of more knowledgeable teachers, more time in explicit instruction predicted…