Glossary

This is an ongoing list of terms used in the many resources consulted for this website. The goal of listing these terms is for teachers to speak the same language and avoid misunderstanding.

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Title	Definition	Source
Blends	Usually two consonant sounds, occasionally three sounds, that are closely associated; they can be harder to segment into separate sounds (e.g. bl in the word blend).	by Rose Elliot
Contextual clues	Hints in a text and int he physical and socio-cultural elements surrounding an interaction that help a person to comprehend meaning (e.g. body language, tone, pictures, etc.)	from CLB Document page 206
Contextual clues	Hints in a text and in the physical and socio-cultural elements surrounding an interaction that help a person to comprehend meaning (e.g. body language, tone, pictures, etc.)	from CLB Document page 206
Cursive	A written in a style of writing with the letters joined together.	from Longman Dictionary
Decode	The process of creating meaning from the symbols on the page (one part of reading).	from A Practical Guide to Teaching ESL Literacy
Digraphs	Two letter consonants that represent one sound together (e.g. ph).	by Rose Elliot
Diphthongs	A vowel sound made by pronouncing two vowels quickly one after the other (e.g. main).	from Longman Dictionary
Directionality	The direction that text goes in order to be meaningful. In English, directionality is left to right, top to bottom.	from A Practical Guide to Teaching ESL Literacy
Emoticons	A special sign that is used to show an emotion in email and on the Internet, often by making a picture (e.g. :-) means happy face or a joke).	from Longman Dictionary
Encode	The process of creating meaning by making symbols on a page (one part of writing).	from A Practical Guide to Teaching ESL Literacy
Function words	A word that does not mean anything on its own, but shows the relationship between other words in a sentence (e.g. but, or, if)	from Longman Dictionary
Hanging letters	Letters that have a portion going below its base. There are five hanging letters: g, j, p, q and y.	from Wikipedia