How We Strengthen Phonics Skills in Everyday Learning

Giulietta has a natural curiosity and a genuine love for learning, especially when activities connect to her everyday experiences and favorite things.

Giulietta learns best through hands-on, meaningful engagement, so we make a point to incorporate items and routines from around the house into her literacy activities. Whether she’s sorting food items by their beginning sounds, finding letters on packaging, or blending sounds using her favorite snacks, Giulietta is most motivated when learning is fun and relevant to her world. By integrating her interests into each activity, we not only make learning fun but also help her build lasting connections between letters, sounds, and real-life objects. ‎

Giulietta also thrives when learning extends beyond home. She loves visiting the library and discovering new books. Trips to Indigo have become another meaningful part of her routine, where she excitedly searches for new books to add to her collection. We encourage her to talk with the librarian and the staff at Indigo, giving her opportunities to practice communication skills, build confidence, and share her enthusiasm for reading with others.

Here are some phonological awareness activities we use to make learning interactive and fun for Giulietta:

I Spy with Sounds

The goal of this activity is to build Giulietta’s ability to recognize specific sounds. Using food items around the house, you can play a game of “I Spy” to encourage sound recognition. For example, you can say, “I spy something that starts with the sound /p/,” prompting Giulietta to identify food items like “pickle.” As she recognizes the food items, emphasize the beginning sound. This engaging activity allows Giulietta to connect letter sounds to familiar food items, reinforcing her sound isolation skills.

Beginning Sound Sort

To help Giulietta strengthen her ability to identify and recognize beginning sounds in words, you can use a sorting activity with picture cards or food items. Start by showing Giulietta a variety of pictures or actual food items and saying each word aloud, emphasizing the beginning sound. For example, say “watermelon” and stress the “w” sound. Then, have Giulietta sort the pictures or objects into categories based on their beginning sounds. For instance, group items like “cake,” “cucumber,” and “corn.”

Sound Search in the Kitchen

A fun and engaging way for Giulietta to practice identifying initial sounds is by using food items around the house or grocery store. You can ask Giulietta to find food items that start with a specific sound, like “Can you find something that starts with the sound /b/?”. If she selects a “banana,” emphasize the /b/ sound.

Beginning Sound Bingo

An interactive and fun way to practice initial sound recognition is through a game of bingo. On Giulietta’s learning app, IXL, she works on letters and sound recognition.

Sound Blending

To develop Giulietta’s sound blending skills, we use a variety of engaging, interest-based activities. She practices blending individual sounds into whole words using familiar food items, picture cards, or books. For example, with food items like “pickle,” “spinach,” or “cake,” we say each sound slowly, “c” / “a” / “k” / “e”, and then blend them together to form the word, gradually increasing speed as she becomes more confident. Picture cards featuring foods such as “pickle,” “cake,” “watermelon,” “olive,” and “tomato” are also used, helping Giulietta connect the individual sounds to the written word. Additionally, while reading a book, we pause on key words and emphasize each sound before blending them, reinforcing her understanding that combining sounds creates words.