Phonics is a method of teaching reading, based on sounding out letters to read words. Let’s say that you learn the letter i makes the /i/ sound, and that the letter t makes the /t/ sound. And when you read these sounds together, /i/ /t/, you have it. You’ve just used phonics to read the word it.

Rag Minibook Activity

Here’s an easy activity you can do with your child using our phonics teaching method. In just 20 minutes, your child will be able to read a book all by himself by playing an easy flash card game and creating our free Learn to Read Minibook.

How to get started:

1. Make one flash card for each of the letters: r, a, g, s, d, c, t, p, n, and w, for a total of 10 cards. You can use index cards or just cut up a piece of plain paper.
2. Lay them on the table.
3. Help your child to put the cards together that form the words rag, sad, cat, pat, can, and wag. Call out the name of each letter and the sound it makes as you push the cards together.
4. Do this a few times until your child can do it all by himself.

Then print out our free mini-book:

Learn to Read Minibook Printable

To Assemble the Minibook:

1. Cut each page in half by cutting on the dotted line.
2. Stack all of the pages together with the cover on the front, followed by page 1, page 2, etc., until all of the pages are in order. Do not include the instructions.
3. Staple along the left side of the pages.
4. Finish the book by tracing all of the words with dotted lines.
5. Have your child color all of the pages.
6. Your child has already learned to read each word by playing the flash card game, so he is ready to read the book he just made all by himself!

Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read is full of activities just like this one, plus story books, workbooks, online games, flashcards, and much, much more. Check it out here.

Learning to read is an incredibly complex and taxing task for little ones. Their brains are growing and stretching to recognize letters, sounds, words, meaning, and context. It is a rewarding, and sometimes frustrating, experience. Compounding what sometimes feels like a classroom competition are literacy urban myths—like the genius three-year-old who can read at a fourth grade level—that can set the bar intimidatingly high. On the flip side, parents are bombarded with panic-driven and opportunistic marketing campaigns for toys and games that make miraculous claims (often with little results). All parents want to support and facilitate the best learning experience for their child and that includes being able to detect and correct any struggles that may come up.

Problem…What Problem?

Reading issues can be brought to a parent’s attention in different ways, and oftentimes, it is a teacher or caretaker who first notices that there may be a challenge to surmount. Even parents who are very in-tune with their child may be surprised to learn that their child is a struggling reader.

If a concern is broached, specific questions can help clarify exactly what the problem is and the best way to address it. Here are some questions to consider:

• When was the issue first identified?
• How often does the child run into this issue?
• Have there been other red flags in class (like behavior issues)?
• Have alternative teaching methods been introduced?
• What are the next steps in terms of research and assessment?

What to Watch For

Even if the bulk of learning is done at school, parents can still watch for issues when singing, playing, and reading at home. Stumbling through books isn’t necessarily cause for panic, but if some of the following issues seem to be present, it may be worth further time and investigation:

• Trouble remembering and recognizing letters of the alphabet
• Inability to identify rhyming words or complete familiar rhymes despite frequent repetition and practice
• Struggling to sound out words and/or string sounds together
• Laboring over a word despite seeing or reading it several times before
• Guessing or making up words when reading
• General disinterest in words and letters
• Resisting reading aloud
• Delayed speech

The ABC of Possibilities

The golden rule of children’s literacy is simple: read every day. Engage your little one in a book whenever possible. Ask them to pick their own bedtime story, identify familiar characters and, for simple texts, prompt them to complete sentences. Make that time enjoyable, not stressful, for both of you. If your child feels like reading is a punishment or chore, he or she is sure to resist. Introduce plenty of silly nursery rhymes and songs during the day, and incorporate brain-stimulating toys like puzzles, flashcards, and magnetic letters. The “real world” is full of opportunities to spot letters and numbers, like stop signs, grocery aisle numbers, and digital clocks.

Hooked on Phonics is another effective tool to help struggling readers—both in book and app form, depending on what’s more effective for your child’s learning style. Each lesson takes 20 minutes or less and offers a fun, interactive activity to help you mix up your child’s reading routine.

You’ve read and rhymed your heart out, and you still can’t see progress in your child’s reading abilities. So what now? Create a support group for your little one and your family: Check in with your child’s “team”—teachers and caretakers, in particular. Share your concerns and formulate a plan to get your child extra help and attention during reading time. From there, make an appointment with your doctor, who can recommend channels for proper testing for ADD, ADHD, and dyslexia, if necessary. It’s easy to jump to a conclusion about learning disabilities, especially after spending 20 minutes on Internet comment boards. But there is no need to panic as resources and support are available. Your child has the best advocate in their corner—you. Simply continue to foster a love of reading and learning, one day (and page) at a time.

Top photo credit: Maria Uspenskaya/Shutterstock

By the time second grade starts, most kids are able to read on their own. Often, kids and parents stop reading together often by this point—but reading out loud to your child is still a great way to help build his skills and to have fun together.

If your child is struggling to read in second grade, take action. Talk with his teacher about your concerns, and see what school recommends. Research tells us that children should be reading confidently and fluently on their own in second grade. If that’s not happening for your child yet, don’t wait. Ask school for help and information. Consider doing extra systematic work at home, either with you or through a tutor who uses research-based methods of phonics instruction like those in Hooked on Phonics products and mobile apps.

Learning to read is a huge job and it involves several key parts. Here’s an overview of what goes into the process and what you should expect in your second grade reader.

Phonemic Awareness

• Phonemic awareness is the knowledge that spoken words can be broken apart into smaller chunks of sound. These units of sound are called phonemes.
• Here’s an example: the word bat is made of three phonemes: the sounds /b/, /a/, and /t/. When kids know that these three sounds are part of the word bat, they are showing that they have phonemic awareness.

• Your child should confidently know all letter sounds. If she doesn’t, talk with her teacher if school hasn’t contacted you already.

• Reading stories out loud with lots of rhyming words helps build phonemic awareness. Dr. Seuss books are the perfect choice! Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read is a great, comprehensive program to use with your child at home.

Phonics

• Phonics connect the knowledge of sounds (also called phonemes) to letter symbols.
• Here’s an example: The letter X looks like “X” and makes the sound “ks.”

What should my second grader know?

• Phonics should also be an area of strength for your second grader. She should be able to sound out words without a huge amount of difficulty.
• Write paragraphs with more detail. Spelling should be getting closer to correct on a more regular basis in second grade.

• If phonics is a struggle in second grade, it’s important to take action. Talk with his teacher, and consider doing structured practice at home using Hooked on Phonics products or mobile apps with you and/or a tutor.
• Encourage your child to take on more responsibility in sounding out and writing words, especially if the words they are working with follow phonics rules. (If she asks: “How do you spell bedroom’? “Well, what sound do you hear at the beginning? Good köpa priligy. Keep going.” If he gets stuck—like on how to write the “oo”—then help out.)

Fluency

• Fluency is the ability to read words smoothly, at a good pace, and with expression.
  o Here’s an example: If a character is very excited, the reader’s voice should sound excited, too. The child should not have to stop to sound out each word; the words should flow smoothly.

• Second graders should read confidently and at a good pace. They will stumble on a few words, of course, but should be able to handle most words in a second grade level story.

• Keep reading together as often as you can.
• If fluency is a struggle for your second grader, choose stories that use predictable rhyming patterns and more simple word choices.

Vocabulary

• Vocabulary is the dictionary in your child’s mind. The more word meanings your child knows, the larger her vocabulary.

• When you don’t know what a word means, or how to sound it out, you can look for clues in the pictures or the rest of the sentence to help figure it out.
• Your child can understand many more word meanings than she can use in her own speaking and writing. Keep talking about new words and their meanings.

• Encourage your child to use a broader range of words, and encourage her to express her thoughts clearly and thoroughly. (“How was school today?” “Fine.” “Tell me more. Did anything interesting happen at recess?”)
• Read to your child often. Research shows that children’s books expose kids to a much broader range of vocabulary words than they would otherwise hear in conversation.

Comprehension

• Comprehension is understanding what a story is all about.
• Here’s an example: Being able to identify the main characters in a story, talk about what they do and how they feel, and explain what happens during the beginning, middle, and end of a story are all important parts of reading comprehension.

• Retell stories he has read, including important details, the main message or lesson. These stories are more challenging and can include fables, folktales, and factual text.
• Identify the main idea of individual paragraphs within a text.
• Tell what is similar or different in two different versions of the same story. (For example, Goldilocks told by two different authors will be presented in varying ways.)

• Keep reading out loud and talking about stories together.
• Talk with your child about what you are reading. Ask probing questions that encourage your child to explain more details or reasons for their answers.
• Have fun with this process; don’t feel like you have to drill your child with questions on every page. Just have a conversation about the parts of the story you think are interesting.

First grade is usually a time when kids grow by leaps and bounds in their reading skills. It’s exciting—but it can be a little nerve-wracking when they haven’t yet put all the pieces together! Give them time, and keep reading together as much as you can.

Learning to read is a huge job and it involves several key parts. Here’s an overview of what goes into the process and how you can help your 6-to-7-year-old grow as a reader during this very important first-grade year.

Phonemic Awareness

What is it?

• Phonemic awareness is the knowledge that spoken words can be broken apart into smaller chunks of sound. These units of sound are called phonemes.
• Here’s an example: the word bat is made of three phonemes: the sounds “b,” “a,” and “t.” When kids know that these three sounds are part of the word bat, they are showing that they have phonemic awareness.

What should my first-grader know?

• Understands that words are made up of different sounds that come together, and be able to separate them (“What sounds do you hear in fan?” “fff, aaa, nnn!”)

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Reading stories out loud with lots of rhyming words helps build phonemic awareness. Beginner Books from Dr. Seuss and his friends are specifically written for first-grade readers.
• Use word play together in a fun, casual way. Play rhyming games, sing songs and speak clearly to your child when you’re introducing new words.

Phonics

What is it?

• Phonics connect the knowledge of sounds (also called phonemes) to letter symbols.
  Here’s an example: The letter X looks like “X” and makes the sound “ks.”

What should my first-grader know?

• Blend letter sounds together to form words. First-grade readers often need to take their time sounding out words—that’s how it should be!
• Write words, sentences, and short paragraphs. Spelling is probably coming along, but definitely not perfect yet. That’s okay.

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Challenge your child to take on more responsibility in sounding out and writing words, especially if the words they are working with follow phonics rules. (If she asks: “How do you spell bedroom?” “Well, what sound do you hear at the beginning? Good. Keep going.” If he gets stuck—like on how to write the “oo”—then help out.)
• As your child’s reading abilities grow, start to share the read-aloud job with them. (“You read this page out loud to me, and I’ll read the next one to you!”)
• When you’re reading to your child, use your finger to track the words as you read them. Encourage your child to do the same when she reads, especially if she’s struggling to sound out a word.
• Start your child on a phonics-based learn-to-read system for first-graders such as Hooked on Phonics First Grade Complete.

Fluency

What is it?

• Fluency is the ability to read words smoothly, at a good pace, and with expression. Here’s an example. If a character is very excited, the reader’s voice should sound excited, too. The child should not have to stop to sound out each word; the words should flow smoothly.

What should my first-grader know?

• Your child’s reading rate will probably grow a lot during the first grade year! Many children start the year not yet reading but end it with the ability to read short stories comfortably.

Vocabulary

What is it?

• Vocabulary is the dictionary in your child’s mind. The more word meanings your child knows the larger her vocabulary.

What should my first-grader know?

• When you don’t know what a word means, or how to sound it out, you can look for clues in the pictures or the rest of the sentence to help figure it out.
• Your child can understand many more word meanings than she can use in her own speaking and writing. Keep talking about new words and their meanings.

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Encourage your child to use a broader range of words, and encourage her to express her thoughts clearly and thoroughly. (“How was school today?” “Fine.” “Tell me more. What did you learn in math class today?”)
• Read to your child often. Research shows that children’s books expose kids to a much broader range of vocabulary words than they would otherwise hear in conversation.

Comprehension

What is it?

• Comprehension is understanding what a story is all about. Here’s an example. Being able to identify the main characters in a story, talk about what they do and how they feel, and explain what happens during the beginning, middle, and end of a story are all important parts of reading comprehension.

What should my first-grader know?

• Retell stories he has read himself or heard read out loud. He should include important details, the main message or lesson. He should also describe characters, setting, and the major events in the right order.
• Identify things that are the same or different between two books on
  the same topic.
• Describe the connections between different characters or events in a story.

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Keep reading out loud and talking about stories together.
• Talk with your child about what you are reading. Ask questions about the important things that are happening in a story, and help them make connections. (“It seems like these two characters feel differently about the party. What do you notice about each one? How are their feelings different?”)
• Have fun with this process; don’t feel like you have to drill your child with questions on every page. Just have a conversation about the parts of the story you think are interesting.

Preschoolers are busy learning and growing at an incredible pace every day. You’re probably noticing big changes in your little one’s speech—kids this age often have a deeper understanding of their world than we think. Other times, they make hilarious mistakes with words and other concepts!

Learning to read is a huge job, and it involves several key parts. Here’s an overview of what goes into the process and how you can help your preschooler head to school with a firm foundation of essential reading skills.

1. Hears and identifies beginning sounds. (“What sound do you hear at the beginning of lap?” “llll!”) Be sure to say the sound of the letter rather than its name when talking with your child about this idea. In this example, you would say the lll sound rather than the name of the letter L.
2. Thinks of other words with the same beginning sound. (“Can you think of other words that start with the llll sound? How about light, leg, etc.” Then let your child brainstorm.)
3. Begins to understand that words are made up of different sounds that come together.
   Phonics
4. Each letter has its own special look and sound.
5. Recognizes many letters in print (Four-year-olds often recognize 12-15 letters.)
6. Recognizes the letters in their first name
7. Connects several letter names and their sounds. (“That’s an N! The letter N makes the nnnnn sound.”)
   Fluency
8. Because young children do not yet read independently, they are not fluent readers. Fluency comes with time and practice.
   Vocabulary
9. Young children are building their vocabulary at a very rapid pace.
10. Preschoolers should talk in sentences and be able to explain their ideas and thoughts—even though sometimes it’s a struggle.
    Comprehension
11. Ask and answer questions about stories that are read out loud.
12. Use pictures in books to understand what is happening—and use them to make a prediction about what might happen next.
13. Make connections between what happens in a book and their own lives. (“Hey, one time I woke up late, too!”)
14. Understand the important message of a story. (“Those friends really showed how much they love each other. That was so kind.”)

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Phonemic Awareness

What is it?

• Phonemic awareness is the knowledge that spoken words can be broken apart into smaller chunks of sound. These units of sound are called phonemes.
• Here’s an example: the word bat is made of three phonemes: the sounds /b/, /a,/ and /t/. When kids know that these three sounds are part of the word bat, they are showing that they have phonemic awareness.

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Reading stories out loud with lots of rhyming words helps build phonemic awareness. Dr. Seuss books are perfect for this.
• Ask your preschooler to rhyme. (“Let’s see how many words we can think of that rhyme with ball!”)
• Practice not just letter names, but also letter sounds (“What is the name of this letter?” “M!” “Great job. Do you know what sound the letter M makes?” “Mmmmm!”)

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Phonics

What is it?

• Phonics connect the knowledge of sounds (also called phonemes) to letter symbols.
• Here’s an example: The letter X looks like “X” and makes the sound ks.”

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Point out letters and talk about their sounds every once in a while you read. This is easy to do if you are reading an alphabet book but can be done with any story. Sesame Street’s The ABCs of Cookies and Dr. Seuss’s ABCs are great books for this activity.
• Talk about the letters and sounds you see in your everyday life together. (“See that stop sign? What letter does the word stop start with? What sound does the letter S make?”)
• When your child knows many letters she sees and can say their sounds, start to talk about how letters work together to build words. (“Let’s look at this word. What sound does the first letter make?” “Nnnnn.” “Great! What about the second letter?” “Ohhh.” “You got it. Let’s put them together. Nnnnn . . . ohhhh . . . those letters make the word no!”) Keep this practice casual and fun!
• Start your child on a phonics learn to read program like the one from Hooked on Phonics, download a mobile app such as the Hooked on Phonics app which includes a section called ‘The Big Reading Show’, especially for preschoolers or Hooked on Phonics Online.

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Fluency

What is it?

• Fluency is the ability to read words smoothly, at a good pace, and with expression.
• Here’s an example. If a character is very excited, the reader’s voice should sound excited, too. The child should not have to stop to sound out each word; the words should flow smoothly.

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Read out loud to your child as much as possible!
• Make your voice match the feeling of the story to show your child how it sounds to read with expression. Bring your personality to your reading—it makes it more fun for both of you.

Vocabulary

What is it?

• Vocabulary is the dictionary in your child’s mind. The more word meanings your child knows the larger her vocabulary.

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Talk with your child often and in a meaningful way. Help him learn new words about the world around him. (“Wow, look at this beautiful leaf. Did you know that leaves grow on trees and come off in the autumn? Autumn is another word for the season of fall.”)
• Read to your child often. Research shows that children’s books expose kids to a much broader range of vocabulary words than they would otherwise hear in conversation.
• Encourage your child to express himself clearly and completely. The more he speaks, the stronger his vocabulary.

Comprehension

What is it?

• Comprehension is understanding what a story is all about.
• Here’s an example. Being able to identify the main characters in a story, talk about what they do and how they feel, and explain what happens during the beginning, middle, and end of a story are all important parts of reading comprehension.

How can I help my child develop in this area?

• Read out loud to your child as much as possible!
• Talk with your child about what you are reading. Ask questions about the important things that are happening in a story, and help them make connections. (“This barn looks like the one we saw last week! Do you remember that?”)
• Have fun with this process; don’t feel like you have to drill your child with questions on every page. Just have a conversation about the parts of the story you think are interesting.

Wanikka from Sandviks Publishing on Vimeo.

For more info: https://hookedonphonics.com/

Everybody Sing the Alphabet with Me from Sandviks Publishing on Vimeo.

The Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read Program is your partner in building a confident reader, one step at a time.

Learn to Read Promotion from Sandviks Publishing on Vimeo.

We have received hundreds of testimonials from parents who have used Hooked on Phonics over the years and want to share their story. Our educational specialists have teamed up with award-winning artists and authors to create the best Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read yet. Hear what Dan has to say about the new Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read.

Dan and his daughter from Sandviks Publishing on Vimeo.

We have received hundreds of testimonials from parents who have used Hooked on Phonics over the years and want to share their story. Our educational specialists have teamed up with award-winning artists and authors to create the best Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read yet. Hear what Melissa has to say about the new Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read.