What are initial sounds?
Look at these words. The first letter is the initial sound. When you say each word, your mouth, teeth and tongue move into position to make the initial sound.
cat man danger house zebra light
We don't stop to think about it as it happens instinctively. Learning to read through phonics means becoming aware of the sounds that make words.
In order to learn to read and spell with phonics, a child first needs to learn the sounds for which the letters of the alphabet stand for and which can be heard at the beginning of words - the initial sounds. Having learnt to read with phonics, children will eventually be able to read many words that they have never seen before, by themselves. Teaching by phonics is a powerful method! It creates readers. No wonder it has not been liked by many progressives through the years! Take care when teaching initial sounds
It is very important that care is taken to teach this stage well, as it is the foundation for the development of all future reading and spelling.
Three things are necessary when teaching a child the initial sounds:
If any of these three are neglected, or only partially taught, then the child will not make progress. Despite this seeming very simple, many teachers and parents go wrong at this point. Many children fail to learn the sounds that each letter stand for sufficiently well to be able to recall them instantly. Others learn the sounds the letters stand for, but do not hear them at the beginning of words. These children can then appear to be in need of catch up work - when the truth is they were not taught properly to start with. First, make sure that you yourself know the initial sounds.How to teach initial sounds
Progress is quickest when the above three aspects are taught hand in hand together.
As a sound is learnt the child can be taught to apply his/her knowledge to find things that begin with that sound. If the child is also taught to write the letter, this further reinforces his/her knowledge and helps to develop spelling skills as well. It is best is, once you have decided that your child is ready to start learning to read, to keep the momentum going by teaching one new sound a day, five days a week. Follow this simple procedure. You will need:
You can also use our video (below) which provides pictures for each letter of the alphabet and is phonetically correct. Pause the video on a sound. You can use it to say the alphabet rhyme each day too (see below).
1. Introduce the new sound on a flashcard, or in an alphabet book. Tell your child:
This is the letter '_' and it makes the sound '_'.
2. Then look and see how many things on the 'a' page begin with that sound (or if using flashcards, how many things you can think of between you beginning with that sound).
To begin with you will have to help – if not tell - your child which words begin with the given sound. Emphasise the first sound as you say a word.
Here is an apple. Apple begins with ă' (sound not name). ' a..a.....a...apple. ' 'Here is an arrow, a..a...arrow'. 'What can you see that starts with 'a'?' a...a.............. See if the pupil can fill in the blank with a word beginning with the sound 'a'. If the pupil says another word, not starting with 'a', say: 'Yes, I can see a house too, but listen...hhhhhouse. Does 'hhhouse start with 'aaaaa'? No it doesn't. Listen, aaaaapple, aaanchor. Here's a word. (Point to another picture starting with 'a'). What's this? Child: 'ant' Teacher: 'Yes!' aaant starts with 'a'. Some children will sit for a while happy to look, others will be eager to go! Either way, keep the session short. We don't expect pupils to grasp this in one lesson. What must happen is that the pupil starts to learn that this symbol stands for the sound 'a' and some words begin with that sound. Watch for signs that the child is beginning to hear the intial sound for him/herself. Optional: Jolly Phonics assigns an action to the sound which many children find helpful. You don't need to use the same actions as Jolly Phonics to do this; simply find a word that is meaningful to your student that can be mimed and make the action along with saying the alphabet sounds. My class used to mime eating an apple, or making an ant crawl up their arms. They would pretend to bounce a ball for 'b', drive a car for 'c' and so on. If you wish to use the Jolly Phonics actions you can find them free here.
PLUS - every day say the alphabet rhyme
Practice the sounds already taught by saying the Alphabet Rhyme before you teach the new sound. Go through the flashcards of the initial sounds taught and say the alphabet rhyme, stopping at the letter that was last taught, ready to learn a new one. So: Day 2: Show the 'a' flashcard: Together say: Ay says 'a'. And then learn about the sound 'b'. Day 3: Show the 'a' flashcard and together say: Ay says 'a'. Show the 'b' flashcard and say together: Bee says 'b' - and then learn about the sound 'c'. Day 4: As before: Ay says 'a', Bee says 'b', See says 'c' - and then learn about the sound 'd'. And so on, adding a new card each day until you are saying it all the way to 'z'! This repetition is vital to the success of the programme. Continue to recite the Alphabet Rhyme in this way while the knowledge is cemented and until you are sure the pupil can give you the correct letter for any sound you make, or tell you which sound each letter stands for.
Then:
1. Throughout the day keep emphasising ‘AY says 'a'. Encourage the pupil to finish the sentence: ’AY says…?’ Say it for the pupil if s/he can’t remember. Encourage your child to look for things around the house that start with each day’s sound. It is a good idea if you can be constantly emphasising the first sound of words at suitable moments. Here are some ideas: ‘Where is your bbball? ‘Are you playing with your dddoll?’ 'Time for bbbbed!' 'Where is your ccccup?' 2. When you see words around and about, point to the first letter of the word (if it says the right sound, e.g not 'c' for 'circle') and say (for example) : 'Look, 't' for tomato.' This will help to train the child's ear to hear initial sounds.
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Assessment is the key
a) the child is beginning to learn which letter stands for which sound
b) the child is hearing sounds at the beginning of words
Then do whatever is necessary to help the child grasp the bits s/he is having trouble with. There is a useful video here explaining how to help children who have trouble hearing initial sounds of words.
For example, if it is a particular sound, then focus on that sound. Paint it, draw it in the sand, pin it up around the house/classroom and make frequent reference to it. Use your imagination and think what will help THIS child to get this point.
**Do not try to teach the child to blend cvc words until you are sure s/he is hearing the initial sounds of words.** Otherwise you will risk confusing the child and stalling progress.
Go at the child's pace, not the pace of a 'curriculum'.
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Welcome
Hello, I'm Lilibette, qualified teacher (B.Ed Hons). I have taught phonics in mainstream education, followed by have home-educated my two sons to 18, and am now a private tutor.
Reading Made Simple (a completely free systematic phonic reading programme) and Sound-it-out are the results!
I aim to bring advice and resources aimed at enabling parents and teachers to EASILY teach phonics effectively. That is: to help children become life-long readers, forming a bedrock on which all further education can be built. My mother helps to draw the pictures and between us we have many years experience of teaching KS1, special needs and ESL. We hope you enjoy browsing our site!
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