What does sound substitution involve?

Sound substitution refers specifically to the process of replacing one phoneme with another within a word, which aligns with the concept of switching phonetic representations. This instructional strategy is particularly useful in phonemic awareness activities, where learners develop the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate phonemes in spoken words. For example, if students substitute the initial sound in the word "bat" with the sound for "c," they would produce the word "cat."

The other options do not accurately describe sound substitution. Removing phonemes pertains to deletion, while combining sounds refers to blending, and rearranging phonemes typically relates to manipulation that does not produce meaningful language but rather gibberish or non-words. Thus, switching phonetic representations is the central action of sound substitution, making it the correct answer.