What is the term for the process of pronouncing each sound that represents letters in a word and blending them together?

The correct term for the process of pronouncing each sound that corresponds to the letters in a word and then blending those sounds together is referred to as "sounding out." This method is crucial in phonics instruction, particularly for early readers and those learning to decode words.

When children sound out a word, they typically begin by identifying each individual phoneme, or sound, associated with the letters or combinations of letters in the word. For example, in the word "cat," a child would articulate the sounds /k/, /æ/, and /t/, and then blend them together to pronounce the entire word. This process enhances reading skills by developing a deeper understanding of the relationship between letters and sounds, thus facilitating more fluent reading as students become adept at recognizing words.

The other terms provided refer to different concepts in literacy and phonics. Syllables are units of sound within words but do not directly involve the blending of individual phonemes. Letter combinations can refer to groups of letters that produce unique sounds, and CVC(e) refers specifically to a consonant-vowel-consonant structure with a silent 'e' at the end but does not encompass the broader skill of blending sounds in general.