The Phonics Blog
Practical phonics articles for parents and teachers. Research-backed methods, age-by-age guides, free printables, and tried-at-home tips. 44 articles and counting.
Hard C and Soft C: The Simple Rule (with 100+ Words)
One rule covers almost every C in English: soft /s/ before e, i, y; hard /k/ elsewhere. Word lists, rare exceptions, and a mnemonic that sticks.
Auditory Processing Disorder and Phonics: What Parents Need to Know
Why APD is often mistaken for a phonics-teaching problem, and which adaptations actually help.
7 min readThe 6 Syllable Types: Closed, Open, Magic-E, Vowel Team, R-Controlled, C+le
The complete guide to all 6 syllable types with word examples, syllable division rules, and a teaching order — the toolkit for decoding multi-syllable words.
9 min read
Silent Letters List: kn, wr, gh, mb — Why English Keeps Them
Every common silent-letter pattern grouped and explained, why English kept them, and how to teach them without confusing a child new to phonics.
7 min read
Reading Age vs Actual Age: What the Gap Really Means
How schools calculate reading age, and which size of gap is normal noise vs a signal worth acting on.
6 min read
Phonics Intervention at Home: A Simple 4-Week Catch-Up Plan
A structured 4-week plan for closing a specific skill gap at home before deciding whether outside tutoring is needed.
8 min read
Teaching Phonics to a Child With ADHD: What Actually Works
Session structure, pacing and materials adapted for attention differences — without lowering the actual phonics bar.
7 min read
First Grade Phonics: What Changes After Kindergarten
The shift from decoding to automatic word recognition — vowel teams, magic-e, r-controlled vowels — and why comprehension starts to matter too.
8 min read
Child Hates Reading: How to Rebuild Motivation Without Pressure
Reading avoidance is usually a competence problem wearing a motivation mask — how to fix the real cause first.
7 min read
Phonics for 6-Year-Olds: Closing Gaps Before Year 2
For 6-year-olds who didn't quite meet the Phonics Screening Check standard — the 3 common gaps at this age and a catch-up plan before Year 2.
7 min read
Phonics for 5-Year-Olds: The Curriculum Explained
Term-by-term what to teach at age 5 — building on single letters into digraphs, blends, and first tricky words — with a milestone checklist for the year.
8 min read
Phonics in Kindergarten: What Your Child Should Know by June
The 4 strands most kindergarten reading standards are built from — print concepts, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency — in practice.
8 min read
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