3 Simple Reasons Why the Alphabetic Principle is Important

The alphabetic principle is the fundamental concept that letters and combinations of letters represent sounds in spoken language. This principle is crucial for developing reading and writing skills, particularly for children learning to read. In this blog post, we will explore three simple reasons why the principle is important. By the end of this post, you will understand the significance of the principle and its role in fostering literacy development.

Before we can look at why the alphabetic principle is important, let’s define what it is.

What is the Alphabetic Principle?

According to Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton, and Johnston (the authors of Words Their Way), the alphabetical principle can be defined as: “Letters represent sounds in a systematic way, and words can be segmented into sequences of sound from left to right.” In other words, letters and their sounds represent spoken language.

As you can see from Bear, et al. this definition is comprised of two parts.

1. Letters, which represent sounds, make up all words.
2. Words are written by hearing the sounds in the word and translating them into letters.

So what does this mean? Students need a clear understanding that there is a relationship between sounds they hear in words (phonemic awareness) and letter sounds (phonics)

Why is the Alphabetic Principle Important?

Reading Text

For students to read with automaticity, they must have a firm understanding of the alphabetic principle. Think about what happens when a beginning reader looks at an unknown word – first, they identify the word is unknown, then they look at each letter in the word, next they recall the sound each letter makes, and finally, they blend those sounds together to read the word. Is that just a complicated way to say they decoded the word? Yep. But they couldn’t decode the world without understanding the alphabetic principle. When students can connect predictable patterns between written letters and spoken sounds, they can begin reading.

 

Understanding Text

So, it’s clear students need a good grasp of the alphabetic principle to read, but why does that matter for comprehension? Well, if your student is focused on figuring out what the words on the page say, then they can’t focus on what the words mean. A strong understanding of the alphabetic principle means your students can spend more time reading with automaticity and fluency, thus allowing them to use more brainpower on comprehending the text.

 

Writing Text

Writing text is just as important as reading and understanding it. It also requires the same background knowledge. If your students don’t connect the sounds they hear to the symbols they record, you won’t be able to read anything they write.