Writing development: A neglected variable in the consideration of phonological awareness

In this article, Sofia Vernon and Emilia Ferreiro Present the results of an experimental study that looks at the relationship between the development of phonological awareness and the development of writing in Spanish-speakin g kindergartners. The results of this study speak to the ongoing controvers y about approaches to early literacy instruction - that is, whether childre n's ability to segment words into phonemes (phonological awareness) is a pr erequisite for learning how to read and write. These results show that Phon ological awareness is not an either/or phenomenon, but that it develops acr oss levels and that this development is related to children's writing devel opment. Vernon and Ferreiro discuss several important education implication s based on their findings first, that children's ability to benefit from sy stematic phonics instruction depends on their level of writing development; and second, that encouraging children to write in kindrgarten and first gr ade is an important way to stimulate the analysis of spoken words or other meaningful units.