How to help your child with phonics. 

• Listen for sounds every day. 
• Hold up an object and ask questions such as "What sound does this start with?"
• Play games such as I-spy using phonic sounds, eg I spy with my little eye something beginning with (say letter sound).
• Help your child to form the letter correctly (see sheet below) as they say the sound - this could be using their finger in the air or using a variety of drawing equipment,  pencils, crayons, felt tips etc
• Play a blending game eg you sound out the word c-a-t and they have to say the word (start with simple three letter words)
• Make sure you are using lower case letters to start with (not capitals). 
• Use the letter name and the sound it makes. 
• We use 'pure' sounds when sounding out the letters, ie the shortest sound possible.  For good examples of how to do this see Mr Thorne's phonics http://mrthorne.com/home/phonics/introduction/.  There are also videos for each letter sound on this website.
• Another good website for phonics games is Phonics Play http://www.phonicsplay.co.uk/ParentsMenu.htm.  There is lots of advice and interactive resources.  Most children in Robins are working on Phase 2 or Phase 3.  Check with Mrs Taylor  to find out which is best for your child.

Cued articulation 

Cued articulation is the name of the actions we use to support the learning if phonics. Recommended by speech and language therapists, it uses simple hand gestures to show how and where a sound is made.  For some great videos, explaining cued articulation further, please search for 'cued articulation by Jane Passy'. A great video for the basic sounds and actions can be found here.