Importance of phonics

The advantage of phonics over simply teaching the alphabet is that once they have mastered the main sounds, they can then read many English words! It is a method of reading instruction that breaks language down into its simplest components.

Children learn the sounds of individual letters first, then the sounds of letters in combination and in simple words. Simple reading exercises with a controlled vocabulary reinforce the process.

A well-designed phonics program also teaches the most common spelling, pronunciation, and syllable division rules needed to figure out which sound to use when. It can also improve your spelling, even if you manage to read very well.

Phonics helps to develop a good solid sight vocabulary so that they do not need to sound out every single word they come across in their reading.
Signs that you may need phonics:
- Very slow reading

- Dislike of reading
- Poor spelling
- Difficulty reading technical material
- Difficulty reading the following words: Cardiomyopathy, Bibliography, etc

Glossary

1. Alphabetic Principle--The sound symbol relationship found in alphabetic languages such as English.
2. Balanced Reading Instruction--Combines aspects of the phonics and whole language approaches to teaching reading.
3. Basal Reading Series--Also known just as basals, basal reading series are graded series of textbooks used to teach reading in elementary schools.
4. Phonics--The sound/symbol relationship between the spelling of words and the way they are spoken.
5. Phonics Emphasis--The approach to teaching reading that emphasizes the sound symbol relationship in alphabetic writing systems such as English.
6. Phonemic Awareness--Knowing that spoken words are made up of sequences of individual sounds and the ability to manipulate those sounds.
7. Reading Wars--The dispute over the best way to teach reading that is being carried out by advocates of the phonics and whole language approaches to teaching reading.
8. Whole Language--The approach to teaching reading that focuses on getting meaning through text and teaching reading, writing, and other subjects together.

Introduction to phonics

Phonics basically refers to the connections between letter patterns and the sounds they represent (e.g., sound /s/ can be represented by s, es, ese). It defines the set of relationships between written letters and the spoken sounds that those letters represent.

Phonics is a widely used method of teaching children to read usually at the age of 5 or 6. Phonics teaches the 71 basic letters and letter combinations (phonograms) needed to pronounce the 44 sounds of the English language.

The singular or group of letters used to represent these sounds, are called graphemes. A phonogram is a letter-sound combination that includes more than one grapheme or phoneme.

Phonics is a tool for decoding words; it is not a reading program. Knowledge of phonics does not ensure that one will comprehend printed texts because reading is a far more complex process than simply sounding out words.

Closely related to phonics is "phonemic awareness", an understanding of the idea that spoken words can be broken down into constituent sounds. It is an oral skill and not a reading skill as in phonics.

Phonics was taught successfully by mostly young teachers in the days of one-room schoolhouses. Phonics has fallen in favor in the last 50 years, but is beginning to make a comeback.