Letter Sounds
Kindergarten is almost over and my son is having trouble learning the letter sounds. What should I do?
Schedule a meeting with your son's teacher to discuss your concerns. The teacher can provide insights into his progress, any specific challenges he may be facing, and recommendations for targeted support. Supplement your son's learning at school with focused practice at home. Engage in activities that promote letter-sound recognition, such as letter sound matching games, letter flashcards, or interactive phonics apps. Make it a fun and interactive experience to maintain his engagement and motivation. Consider providing explicit phonics instruction to help your son develop a solid foundation in letter sounds. Explore multisensory techniques to enhance your son's learning. For example, encourage him to trace letters with his finger while saying the corresponding sounds aloud, use tactile materials like sand or play dough to shape letters, or incorporate movement by having him act out letter sounds. Explore multisensory techniques to enhance your son's learning. For example, encourage him to trace letters with his finger while saying the corresponding sounds aloud, use tactile materials like sand or play dough to shape letters, or incorporate movement by having him act out letter sounds.Focus on a few letters at a time. If your son's difficulty with letter sounds persists despite your efforts, consider seeking additional support from a reading specialist, learning resource teacher, or speech-language pathologist. They can conduct assessments, identify specific areas of need, and provide targeted interventions.
In addition to talking to my sons teacher, I have also found that the multi sensory approach works best for my son. He is more engaged in learning the letter sounds. Once I became a member of reading help 911 I have found the assessments to be user friendly and easy for me to do with my son. I will continue to work on these skills using the assessments and if he needs additional support I will contact his school.
My daughter has also had some difficulty retaining the letter names. I have purchased the assessments on Reading Help 911 and purchased some hands on literacy activities that she enjoys. I also focus on 4-5 letters a day so she doesn't get overwhelmed. I will continue to be in touch with her teacher until the end of the year.
Thats a great way to teach the letter sounds. You don't want to overwhelm your child so choosing a few sounds at a time is a great start. Continue to add more sounds and review the ones that have been taught. We have linked a variety of educational games and activities that can support this skill on the home page.