Now that we know what PA is, the next question is: How do we assess it effectively and use that data to drive real growth in reading?
Why Typical Screeners Aren’t Enough
Many schools rely on screeners like DIBELS or Acadience to assess phonological awareness. These tools are helpful, but they assess only one phonological awareness skill, which is segmenting. Phonological awareness is so much more than that. Just assessing segments may miss many students who lack more complex phonological awareness skills that are needed for decoding and orthographic mapping.
To truly understand where a student is, we need to go beyond surface-level skills. That’s where tools like the PAST (Phonological Awareness Screening Test) come into play.
What Makes the PAST So Powerful?
The PAST doesn’t just assess if a student can “break apart a word.” It walks us through the entire phonological awareness continuum, including:
Syllable segmentation and compound word deletion
Onset-rime manipulation
Phoneme deletion and substitution (initial, final, and internal sounds)
Automaticity is also taken into consideration because fluency of these skills matters, not just accuracy
“Reading comprehension is our goal, and the most direct route to good reading comprehension is to make the word recognition process automatic so a student can focus all of his or her mental energy on the meaning.” —Kilpatrick
A Quick Example: Meet Jordan
Let’s say we assess a second grader named Jordan. His PAST results show:
Automatic through syllable and onset-rime levels (Levels D–G)
Struggles with initial phoneme deletion in blends (Level H1)
Some success with final phoneme deletion (Level I), but not automatic
This tells us Jordan needs explicit instruction at Level H1. This is deleting the first sound in a blend. Without fluency in this skill, he won’t be able to move into orthographic mapping and fluent decoding.
“Children who struggle with phoneme awareness struggle in reading. Why? Because they do not notice the logical/meaningful relationship between the word pronunciation and the letters used to represent that pronunciation in print.”—Kilpatrick
What Do We Do With the Data?
Once we identify the skill a student needs, instruction becomes simple and focused.
“Just 5 minutes a day of the right skill at the right time can accelerate growth by up to 40%.” —Burkins & Yates
What Does Instruction Look Like?
Dr. David Kilpatrick outlines multisensory stages to scaffold phonological awareness instruction and build toward fluency. The stages move from the most support to the least. It’s important that we only use what’s needed.
Letters and Spelling
Use letters to help students visually understand sound changes if they need that much support. This is appropriate for older students (like Jordan), but not for K–early 1st grade.
This stage adds the most concrete examples by helping students see the sound-to-letter relationship, which reinforces how sound manipulation connects to real reading and spelling. It’s useful for older students who already have basic letter-sound knowledge but struggle with sound-level flexibility.
Example: Write slump. Say: “Take off the /s/. What word is left?” Response: lump
Visual-Spatial
Use manipulatives (e.g., counters, Elkonin boxes) to represent sounds. This helps students “see” the structure of spoken words in a visual way. It builds sound-to-position awareness, helping them understand where sounds live in a word. This skill is crucial for manipulating those sounds later.
Example: Chips for /s/ /l/ /ē/ /p/. Remove the first. Response: leap
Visual-Sequencing
Segment without visuals, using tapping or body cues. This stage transitions students away from visuals but still supports sound order and segmentation through motor memory. It keeps sound structure in mind while reducing reliance on objects.
Example: Tap each sound in crane. Then say it without the first tap. Response: rain
Oral Stage
No visuals, just oral deletion or substitution. This is the true test of internalized phoneme awareness. If a student can perform the task accurately and quickly without support, they’re ready for orthographic mapping to happen naturally.
Example: “Say glide. Now say it without the /g/.” Response: lied
Fluency Drills
Once accurate, build speed through timed tasks. Automaticity is the goal. Reading fluency depends on a student’s ability to manipulate sounds without conscious effort. Drills help transfer skills from working memory into long-term storage, supporting faster decoding and word recognition.
Drill examples:
sleep → leap
crane → rain
smile → mile
glide → lied
“There is no age where a student is ‘too old’ for phoneme awareness training. Older struggling readers almost always have difficulties in phoneme awareness that were never addressed.” —Kilpatrick
Final Thoughts: From Assessment to Empowerment
If your phonics instruction isn’t sticking, it might not be the program, it might be the foundation of the child. By using the PAST and Kilpatrick’s approach, you’ll know exactly what to teach, when, and why.
“Reading problems can be prevented if all students are trained in letter-sound skills and phonological awareness, starting in kindergarten.” —Kilpatrick
References: Kilpatrick, D. (2016). Equipped for Reading Success Kilpatrick, D. (2015). Essentials of Assessing, Preventing, and Overcoming Reading Difficulties Burkins, J., & Yates, K. (2021). Shifting the Balance
I am passionate about helping ALL students be successful. I want to find, create, and share resources. I continue to learn and educate so I can help teacher and parents support their students and children.
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