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Blending is a crucial process in the development of reading skills, particularly as children progress from understanding compound words to mastering phonemes. This process involves the ability to combine individual sounds or units of language to form words. For example, when children learn about compound words like "sunflower," they start by recognizing the two independent words—"sun" and "flower"—and then blend them into a new meaning.

As their skills advance, they begin to blend sounds at the phoneme level, where they learn to combine individual sounds (like /s/, /u/, /n/) to create complete words. This foundational skill is vital for reading fluency and comprehension; students who can effectively blend sounds are better equipped to decode new words as they encounter them in text.

The other options, while related to reading processes, do not focus on the blending aspect. Segmentation refers to breaking words down into smaller parts, the Elkonin method utilizes sound boxes to teach phoneme awareness, and automaticity relates to the fast and effortless recognition of words without the need for conscious decoding. Blending effectively bridges the understanding of larger units of language to its smallest sounds, making it foundational for developing reading skills.