Home Literacy Environment and Phonological Awareness Skills in Preschool Children

Abstract

Participating in activities such as book reading before learning to read makes it easier to learn the letters' names, shapes, and sounds. Individuals who have difficulty in recognizing letters experience problems in decoding words in the future. This study aims to analyze the differences between the knowledge of early literacy experiences of parents whose children are typically developing (TD) 5-6 year-olds and children who have language impairment (LI), and between children's existing phonological awareness skills and early literacy experiences. The sample of the study consists of a total of 20 preschoolers aged 5-6 (3 girls and 7 boys with LI, and 4 girls and 6 boys with TD). Ankara Development Screening Inventory was used to determine the developmental performance of children. The children were assessed by using the Phonological Awareness Checklist. Family Literacy Questionnaire is used in order to collect information about the characteristics of home literacy environment. The results from the study reveal that children with TD and children with LI differ in terms of phonological awareness and early literacy experiences within the family. It also reveals that children with LI and their families display lower performance in the related skills (p<.05).