Letter sounds

What is this skill?

Letter sounds are the link between print and speech: M says mmm, S says sss, T says tuh. A letter's name and its sound are two different things, and that is the first idea a kindergartner has to sort out. Knowing that this shape is called S does not yet tell a child what to do with it in a word. Reading starts when a child can look at a letter and produce its sound without stopping to think.

This practice covers consonants, the letters whose sounds are easiest to hear and hold, including M, S, B, T, F, N, K, D, P, L, G, H and R. Each question ties the sound to a word: "Which letter says mmm, like in moon?" Children also see a letter and pick the picture that starts with its sound, decide whether a letter says a certain sound, and sort pictures into two groups by first sound. Vowel sounds come up later, in the short-vowel word practice.

Why it matters

Every word a child sounds out depends on this skill. To read sun, a child needs the sound of s, the sound of u and the sound of n, ready at once. If each one takes several seconds to recall, the first sound is gone by the time the last arrives, and the word falls apart. Quick letter sounds are what make blending possible.

Letter sounds also unlock early spelling. A child who knows them can start writing the sounds they hear, which is why kindergarten writing often looks like "my dg is big." That is a good sign: the child is using sounds to put words on paper, and every word they try to write gives them more practice with the same letter-sound links.

Common mistakes

• Giving the letter name instead of its sound, so that "what does this say?" gets "em." Show your child that the two questions are different: "Its name is M. Its sound is mmm."
• Mixing letters whose sounds feel alike in the mouth. B and P, D and T, and G and K are made in the same place, and the only difference is the voice. Have your child put a hand on their throat and feel the buzz in buh, which is missing in puh.
• Stretching sounds that cannot be stretched. M, S, F and L can be held for as long as your breath lasts, but B, T, D and K are quick. The app says buh and tuh so that a child can hear them; at home keep the uh as short as you can, since the word bat does not have a buh-a-tuh in it.

How to help at home

• Play "I spy" with sounds rather than letters: "I spy something that starts with mmm." Milk, mop and mom all count, whatever is on the table.
• Teach a few at a time. Pick two sounds that look and feel different, like M and T, and stay with them for a few days before adding one more.
• Choose one key word for each letter and keep it the same: M is for moon, S is for sun. When a sound will not come, the key word brings it back.
• Label things around the house with a single letter on a sticky note, such as D on the door, and say the sound whenever you pass it.

Worked examples

These are real questions from the Tutorsaurus letter sounds practice, with the answers worked out.

1. Example 1

   Which letter makes this sound?

   The app reads this aloud: “Which letter says sss, like in sun?”

   Choices: F, S, B

   Answer: S. S says sss. Sun and snake start with S.

2. Example 2

   Sort the pictures by first sound.

   To sort: 🌙 moon, ☀️ sun, 🧹 mop, 🧦 sock, 🥛 milk, 🦭 seal

   Answer: M says mmm: moon, mop, milk · S says sss: sun, sock, seal. Moon, mop and milk start with mmm. Sun, sock and seal start with sss.

3. Example 3

   Does this letter say sss?

   T

   Answer: No. This is T, and T says tuh. S is the letter that says sss.

Printable worksheet (PDF) — one page of questions from this practice that work on paper, easier ones first, with an answer key on page 2. Free to print, no sign-up.