Reading Instruction Competence Assessment (RICA) Practice Test

Which question best defines a digraph?

1. Two letters that produce two different sounds

2. Two letters that combine to form a vowel sound

3. Two letters that spell a single phoneme

4. Two consonant sounds that are pronounced separately

The correct answer is: Two letters that spell a single phoneme

A digraph is defined as a pair of letters that work together to represent a single phoneme, or sound, in a word. This means that, rather than the individual sounds of each letter being pronounced separately, they combine to create one distinct sound. An example of a digraph is "ch" in "chair" which represents a single sound that is different from the sounds represented by the individual letters 'c' and 'h'. The other options do not accurately describe a digraph: - The first choice implies that two letters produce two different sounds, which aligns more with letter combinations that do not form a single phoneme. - The second choice focuses specifically on vowel sounds, while digraphs can also include consonants, such as "sh" in "ship." - The last option suggests that the two letters in the combination are pronounced separately, which contradicts the very definition of a digraph. Understanding that a digraph is about the combination of letters resulting in one sound is crucial for recognizing how certain phonetic representations work in reading and phonics instruction.