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English · Early Years · The School
Blending: sounds into a word
Say the sounds slowly: c-a-t. Now say them faster, running them together: cat! That squashing-together is BLENDING, and it is what reading actually is. Start with words of three sounds: pin, mop, sun, bed, tap. Say each sound, then blend. Do not spell out letter NAMES — the sounds are what blend.
Segmenting: the other direction
Now the opposite. I say "dog" — you break it into d-o-g. That is SEGMENTING, and it is what spelling is. Blending reads, segmenting spells; they are the same skill facing opposite ways, so practising one strengthens the other. Use your fingers: one finger per sound.
Your first reading list
Read these yourself, blending each: sat, pin, top, mud, red, bag, hen, fox. Do not rush — accurate beats fast at this stage, always. When all eight come easily, you are reading. Everything that follows is more sounds and longer words, built on exactly this move.
Blend it: c … a … t, then c-a-t, then cat. Now go the other way — SEGMENT it. Say 'cat' and break it into sounds, holding up a finger for each: c (one), a (two), t (three). Three sounds. Now do 'ship': sh (one), i (two), p (three). Four letters, three sounds, because sh is one sound made of two letters. Blending is for reading and segmenting is for spelling, and they are the same skill both ways round.