TEXES Science of Teaching Reading Practice Test

What is an effective informal assessment strategy for determining a student's ability to spell simple words involving letter-sound knowledge?

1. The student spells words with the same initial consonants

2. The student makes words with the same rimes but different onsets

3. The student names each letter and its sound

4. The student writes all the letters of the alphabet

The correct answer is: The student makes words with the same rimes but different onsets

The effective informal assessment strategy for determining a student's ability to spell simple words involving letter-sound knowledge focuses on the concept of rime and onset. When a student makes words with the same rimes but different onsets, they are demonstrating their understanding of how to manipulate sounds within words. This skill is crucial for spelling, as it shows that they can maintain the same vowel sound and ending while changing the initial consonants. This ability reflects a deeper understanding of phonological awareness, which is essential in the development of spelling skills. By assessing a student's ability to create variations of words based on common rimes, educators can gain insights into the student’s grasp of letter-sound relationships, which allows for effective instruction tailored to their specific needs. The other approaches do not effectively assess the same level of understanding. For example, simply naming each letter and its sound does not indicate the application of that knowledge in spelling contexts. Writing all the letters of the alphabet focuses on letter recognition rather than spelling capabilities, and spelling words with the same initial consonants doesn't provide information about the student's grasp of rime, which is what connects their letter-sound knowledge to real spelling exercises.