Articles

Inspire a love of learning through phonics.

Whether you’re a teacher, family member, tutor, or childcare professional, you can have a positive impact on a child’s life. One of the most extraordinary gifts a child ever receives is the ability to read and write.

Although literacy doesn’t come naturally to humans, it’s an essential part of our everyday lives. Explicit, effective, and encouraging phonics instruction is vital to creating a more literate world.  Explore the trusted resources, articles, and reviews from phonics.org to instill a love of learning in someone you care about.

Phonics Resources for All

teach your monster to read review

Building Early Literacy Skills: Teach Your Monster to Read Review 

Teach Your Monster to Read is an engaging and visually appealing literacy app intended...

phonics rules

10 Tricky Phonics Rules to Understand 

The more advanced children become at reading, the more complex certain phonics rules become....

reading eggs app review

Reading Eggs Review for Phonics Education

Reading Eggs is a well-known education app. It has a comprehensive and expansive array...

teaching letter sounds effectively to kids

A Guide to Teaching Letter Sounds Effectively

Knowing the connection between letters (graphemes) and sounds (phonemes) is one of the first...

homer learn and grow app review

HOMER Learn and Grow App Review

HOMER Learn and Grow is an educational app tailored for children ages 2 to...

learn to reach decoding in reading for kids

Methods of Effective Decoding in Reading

When children are learning to read, they must be taught how to “sound out”...

endless reader app review for parents

Endless Reader App Review: Phonics Games

Endless Reader, a popular educational app designed for young learners, captivates children with its...

what is phonics?

What is Phonics? An Introduction for Parents and Educators

Anyone who can read and write in an alphabetical language has mastered an important...

abcmouse review phonics program

ABCmouse Review: Quantity vs. Quality for New Readers

ABCmouse.com is an educational app tailored for children ages 2 to 8. It offers...

kids learning phonemic awareness activities

Classroom Phonemic Awareness Activities for Kids

Before learning to read, children must understand their spoken language. The first step in...

Reading.com App Review

Reading.com App Review

A Unique, Research-Based Approach to Teaching Children to Read At phonics.org, we evaluate phonics programs designed for children—empowering you to make informed decisions about the most suitable apps for your…

Phonics for Preschoolers: What’s Too Early vs. Just Right?

Phonics for Preschoolers: What’s Too Early vs. Just Right?

Your three-year-old walks up to you holding a book, points to the letter ‘M’, and declares, “That’s my letter!” Your heart swells with pride, but then doubt creeps in. Should…

When Phonics Progress Stalls: Troubleshooting Common Roadblocks

When Phonics Progress Stalls: Troubleshooting Common Roadblocks

Your five-year-old was excitedly sounding out simple words just last month, proudly reading “cat” and “dog” with confidence. But suddenly, they’re stuck. New words feel impossible, tears come easily during…

Phonological Awareness vs. Phonics

Phonological Awareness vs. Phonics

Did you know that before children can successfully crack the reading code, they must first develop the ability to hear and manipulate the invisible sounds that make up spoken words?…

Can Worksheets Teach Phonics?

Can Worksheets Teach Phonics?

Your child sits at the kitchen table, pencil in hand, dutifully filling in letters on a phonics worksheet while you prepare dinner nearby. They seem focused and productive, and you…

Phonics and Executive Function

Phonics and Executive Function

Here’s something that might surprise you: when your child sits down to sound out the word “cat,” their brain is performing an intricate dance that involves far more than just…

Systematic vs. Incidental Phonics: Which Approach Gets Kids Reading Faster?

Systematic vs. Incidental Phonics: Which Approach Gets Kids Reading Faster?

When it comes to teaching children how to read, not all approaches are created equal. Behind classroom doors across America, a quiet battle is taking place between two fundamentally different…

Essential Phonics Terms Every Parent Should Know

Essential Phonics Terms Every Parent Should Know

When you start helping your child with reading, you’ll quickly encounter terms that might sound like a foreign language. Understanding these phonics terms will help you communicate better with teachers,…

Phonics FAQs: Let’s Support Young Readers

Phonics FAQs: Let’s Support Young Readers

As a parent, you probably have questions about phonics and how to support your child’s reading development. These frequently asked questions address the most common concerns parents have about phonics…

Common Phonics Teaching Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Common Phonics Teaching Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Sarah thought she was doing everything right. She bought colorful phonics workbooks, downloaded popular reading apps, and spent hours each evening helping her six-year-old son with letter sounds. Yet after…

Federal Focus on Evidence-Based Reading: What This Means for Your Child’s Education

Federal Focus on Evidence-Based Reading: What This Means for Your Child’s Education

In a historic shift that could transform how millions of American children learn to read, the U.S. Department of Education has announced that evidence-based literacy instruction will be a top…