Common Core Standards
A Section of "Reading Standards: Foundational Skills (K-5)"
Value |
Kindergartners |
Grade 1 Students |
Print Concepts |
1. Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print. a. Follow words from left to right, top to bottom, and page by page. b. Recognize that spoken words are represented in written language by specific sequences of letters. c. Understand that words are separated by spaces in print. d. Recognize and name all upper- and lowercase letters of the alphabet. |
1. Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print. a. Recognize the distinguishing features of a sentence (e.g., first word, capitalization, ending punctuation). |
Phonetics and Word Recognition |
3. Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words. a. Demonstrate basic knowledge of one-to-one letter-sound correspondences by producing the primary sound or many of the most frequent sounds for each consonant. b. Associate the long and short sounds with common spellings (graphemes) for the five major vowels. c. Read common high-frequency words by sight (e.g., the, of, to, you, she, my, is, are, do, does). d. Distinguish between similarly spelled words by identifying the sounds of the letters that differ. |
3. Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words. a. Know the spelling-sound correspondences for common consonant digraphs. b. Decode regularly spelled one-syllable words. c. Know final -e and common vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds. d. Use knowledge that every syllable must have a vowel sound to determine the number of syllables in a printed word. e. Decode two-syllable words following basic patterns by breaking the words into syllables. f. Read words with inflectional endings. g. Recognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words. |
(Common Core, p. 15 & 16)
The Common Core's Stance on AccessibilityThe Standards should also be read as allowing for the widest possible range of students to participate fully from the outset and as permitting appropriate accommodations to ensure maximum participation of students with special education needs. For example, for students with disabilities reading should allow for the use of Braille, screen-reader technology, or other assistive devices, while writing should include the use of a scribe, computer, or speech-to-text technology. In a similar vein, speaking and listening should be interpreted broadly to include sign language (Common Core p. 6). |
Why Braille is Necessary - Common Core Standards
Braille allows for the full definition, at least by Common Core State Standards, of 'literacy' – including digital literacy (Mahurin). |
Although Common Core Standards claim to be adaptable for screen readers and other technology that Blind and Visually Impaired students may use, it is clear that Braille is a needed resource for full literacy by Common Core Standards, as Kathleen Mahurin, the Bellingham Public Schools Teacher of Students with Visual Impairment pointed out.
There are many examples in the bolded sections of the table above that show places were Braille would achieve the standard more than technology could. This is shown in print concepts. For instance, a screen reader typically would not tell a student where spaces are between words, or which words are capitalized. Braille is also important for phonetics and word recognition. A large part of this is that if a student hears a word, it does not count in the same way as recognizing that word by how it "looks" or "feels" and spelling it out. These are just a few ways in which Braille is necessary to help students reach literacy at Common Core Standards. Braille is just as important as print is for any other child or adult. |
A video discussing Braille Literacy and its correlation to print literacy