Mississippi Foundations of Reading Practice Test

What do word parts refer to in reading?

1. Components that make up words

2. Types of phonics instruction

3. Phonetic sounds represented by letters

4. The rules of grammar

The correct answer is: Components that make up words

Word parts refer to the components that make up words, which include prefixes, roots, and suffixes. Understanding these components is essential for decoding and comprehending complex words. By breaking down a word into its parts, readers can gain insights into its meaning, pronunciation, and grammatical function. This skill is particularly beneficial for increasing vocabulary and for understanding unfamiliar words by recognizing familiar parts. In contrast, the other options address different aspects of language and reading. Types of phonics instruction pertain to methods used to teach reading through the relationships between letters and sounds, rather than the structure of words themselves. Phonetic sounds represented by letters focus specifically on the sounds in language rather than how those sounds combine into meaningful units. Finally, the rules of grammar involve the structure of sentences and the relationships between words, which is a different focus from the specific analysis of individual word components.