An introduction to phonics How to support your child with learning letters and sounds by K Laidler

What is phonics? Phonics is about the links between letters and the sounds they make ‘Synthetic phonics’ is the method of combining sounds to make a word (synthesis) ‘Analytic phonics’ involves reading whole words and breaking them down into sounds at a later stage

How do we teach phonics? learn alphabet letter sounds (letter names are taught later!) Combine or ‘blend’ the sounds to make words (Reading) Break up or ‘segment’ a word. (Spelling) 26 letters but 44 speech sounds Hear different sounds within words.

Groups of letter sounds in the order they are taught s a t i p n c k e h r m d g o u l f b z w v y x qu sh ch th ng oo (short and long) ai oa ie ee or ou oi ue er ar

Tricky words (words that are difficult to sound out) I, the, he, to, you, was High frequency (essential) words that children need to be able to recognise on sight Need to be taught to enable children to read books for themselves Practise until the pronunciation is known and the word can be recognised on sight

How can I help my child at home? Read to your child on a regular basis Let them see you reading Choose a quiet time to sit together Play reading games for short periods (little and often is most effective) Give time for practise Be positive, give lots of praise and encouragement Be enthusiastic and make it fun

Games to play I-spy (use letter sound not name) Ask your child to find objects around the room that begin with a particular letter Make a scrapbook with a different letter on each page. Collect pictures that begin with each letter Make letter shapes out of playdough Use magnetic letters/homemade letter cards to practise word building Play word list games. Make a word ‘hat’ and change the first letter to make other words (bat, cat, sat, hat etc) Put up an alphabet chart in your child’s bedroom Lots of sound talking activities e.g. Put on your ‘h-a-t’, Where is the ‘d-o-g’ Display ‘tricky’ words where your child will see them on a regular basis

Don’t worry Remember, children do not all learn at the same rate – some take longer than others to learn their sounds and how to put them together into words. This could merely be because they do not have a good memory for symbols and words. The more practice they have at home, the easier it will be for them to remember.