How to help your child with phonics at home
Children in England learn to read with systematic synthetic phonics, starting in Reception. They learn the sounds letters make, then blend those sounds to read words. A few minutes of practice at home each day makes a big difference.
Your child's school uses a phonics programme approved by the Department for Education. Ask which one, so you can use the same sounds, actions and words at home.
The words teachers use
| Word | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Phoneme | A single sound in a word | cat has three phonemes: c, a, t |
| Grapheme | The letter or letters that write a sound | sh, ai and igh are graphemes |
| Digraph | Two letters that make one sound | sh in ship, ee in feet |
| Trigraph | Three letters that make one sound | igh in night |
| Blending | Saying the sounds and pushing them together to read a word | c-a-t, cat |
| Segmenting | Splitting a word into its sounds to spell it | dog: d-o-g |
| Tricky words | Common words that do not follow the usual patterns yet | the, said, was |
Say pure sounds
Say each sound as cleanly as you can, without adding "uh". Say "mmm", not "muh", and "sss", not "suh". Extra sounds make blending harder: "cuh-a-tuh" does not sound like cat.
Your school's programme may have videos of each sound. Watching one together is the easiest way to get them right.
Five-minute games that help
- Sound talk: say a word in sounds, such as "pass me the c-u-p", and let your child blend it.
- I spy with sounds: "I spy something beginning with sss."
- Magnetic letters: make a word, change one letter (cat, hat, hot), and read each new word.
- Robot spelling: your child says a word in robot sounds, then writes a letter or letters for each sound.
- Read the decodable book from school every day, and let your child read it more than once. Rereading builds speed and confidence.
The Year 1 phonics screening check
In June of Year 1, children in England read 40 words aloud to a teacher. Some are real words and some are pseudo-words, often shown with a picture of an alien, which check that a child can decode rather than remember.
It takes a few minutes and is not a test to revise for. Children who do not meet the expected standard get extra support and take the check again in Year 2.
When to ask for more help
- Your child still cannot blend simple three-sound words after a term or two of practice.
- They guess words from the first letter or the picture instead of sounding out.
- Reading at home has become a battle every day.
- Start by talking to the class teacher. Extra one-to-one practice with a patient tutor can help a child who needs more time.
Next steps
Use our free resources, or compare tutors and book a free first lesson.
Frequently asked questions
What age do children learn phonics?
In England, phonics teaching starts in Reception, at age 4 to 5, and continues through Year 1 and into Year 2.
What is the phonics screening check?
A short check in June of Year 1 where children read 40 real and pseudo-words to a teacher. Children who do not meet the expected standard take it again in Year 2.
What are alien words in phonics?
Pseudo-words such as "vap" or "strom" that are not real English words. They check that children can decode new words by blending sounds.
Should I teach letter names or sounds first?
Sounds first. Children read by blending sounds, so letter names come later. Follow the order your school's programme uses.
How long should we practise phonics at home?
Five to ten minutes a day is plenty. Short, regular practice works much better than long sessions.