Phonics games
Hear every sound said clearly, find the letters that write it, and blend sounds into words, from letter sounds to vowel teams. Free, with no account.
Sound match
Thena says a sound. Tap the letters that write it.
Your sticker book
0 of 24 stickers. Finish a round of any game to win one, and get three stars to make it shiny.
Kept on this device only, like the garden. Nothing is sent anywhere.
How schools teach phonics
Most schools in the US teach phonics from kindergarten to 2nd grade, and more and more follow the science of reading: teaching the sounds of English and the letters that write them directly and in order, rather than asking children to guess words from pictures.
Common Core’s reading standards set the order. In kindergarten, children learn the main sound of each consonant and the short and long sounds of the five vowels, and start blending simple words like cat and sun. In 1st grade come digraphs (sh, ch, th), silent e and the common vowel teams, like ai and ee. In 2nd grade, more vowel teams and the spellings that take longer to learn.
Pure sounds
Say “mmm”, not “muh”, and “sss”, not “suh”. An extra “uh” makes blending much harder: m-uh-a-t doesn’t sound like mat. Listen to Thena’s sounds together.
Faster and faster
To blend, say the sounds, then say them again a little faster, until they squash into a word. The sound buttons under each word show how many sounds there are.
Little and often
Five minutes a day does more than an hour on the weekend. One round of ten is about right.
Ask the school
Ask which phonics program your child’s class uses, so you say the sounds and name the letters the same way at home.
More for early readers
- List and game
CVC words
The first words children blend, sorted by vowel, with cards to print.
- List and game
Sight words
The Dolch lists by grade and the first 100 Fry words, with games and flash cards.
- Games
Free math games
Times tables, number bonds and division, drawn by Thena.
- Worksheets
Phonics worksheets
Match words to pictures and fill in missing sounds, stage by stage. With answers.
- Worksheets
Elkonin boxes worksheets
One box for every sound: say the word, then fill the boxes.
- Printable
Phonics chart
Every letter sound, digraph and vowel team on one page, with a picture for each.
Reading starts with sounds.
In Thena’s lessons every sound is said clearly, and children tap, blend and read with her, at their own level.
Try 3 lessons free