If your child is starting school or currently in primary school in England, they will learn to read through the teaching of phonics. Phonics has been taught in a variety of ways for many, many years and over those years it has changed.
Back in the 1960's when I learnt to read, there was focus on sounds being long when they were pronounced. For example ss was pronounced suh. Today we prefer to focus on the 'pure sounds' so instead of saying 'muh,' 'a,' 'puh use 'mmm,' 'a,' 'pppp making the word 'map.'
By dropping the 'uh' sound, children find it easier to gather the sounds together and blend words - the first steps towards reading.
As adults it is very important that we model these 'pure' sounds so that children replicate the sounds correctly and then begin to blend words independently.
Here are some common sounds where 'uh' is added unnecessarily;
mmm not muh
ppp not puh
sss not suh
lllll not luh
Happy reading and enjoy!
Mrs H
Comments