Sounds make words
English · Key Stage 1 · The School
Letters have sounds
Every letter has a name (like "bee" for b) and a sound (like "b" in ball). Reading uses the SOUNDS. When you see a new word, say each sound slowly, then say them faster and faster until they join into one word. This joining is called blending.
Blending practice
Try it: s-u-n. Say the three sounds slowly. Now faster: sss-uuu-nnn. Faster again — sun! Words like dog, map, pin, and bed all work this way: three sounds, blended into one word.
Tricky words
Some words break the rules — "the", "said", "was". You cannot sound them out; you learn them by sight. Grown-ups call these common exception words. Meeting them often is how they stick.
When two letters make one sound
Some sounds need two letters standing together: sh, ch, th, ck, ng. In "ship" there are four letters but only THREE sounds — sh-i-p — because sh is one sound made by two letters. Blend it the same way: sh…i…p, faster, ship. Try chip (ch-i-p), bath (b-a-th) and sock (s-o-ck). Now go backwards, which is what spelling is: say "shop" slowly and count the sounds on your fingers — sh, o, p, three fingers — then write one sound at a time. Counting sounds before writing stops letters going missing.