New Hampshire Foundations of Reading Practice Test 2025 - Free Reading Practice Questions and Study Guide

Using manipulatives when teaching phoneme blending serves the purpose of providing a visual and tactile aid that enhances students' understanding of sounds. Manipulatives can include items like blocks or tokens that represent individual phonemes. When children physically manipulate these objects, they can better visualize how sounds come together to form words. This hands-on experience helps them grasp the concept of phoneme blending in a more concrete manner, as they see and feel the components coming together, which reinforces their learning.

The other options do not align as neatly with the primary purpose of manipulatives in this context. Limiting distractions helps create a conducive learning environment, but it does not directly relate to the phoneme blending process. While memorization may occur, it is not the focus when using manipulatives; rather, the goal is comprehension and application of phonemes. Additionally, slowing down the learning process can be counterproductive, as manipulatives are intended to facilitate and engage students in active learning rather than hinder progress.