You know that moment when a kindergartner proudly sings the alphabet song, but then struggles to use those same letters to read a simple word? I was just talking about this with a group of teachers during our planning meeting, and it sparked such an interesting discussion about teaching letter names and sounds. One teacher shared how her students knew all their letter names but froze when asked about sounds, while another wondered if she should focus on sounds first since that’s what kids need for reading.

Letter Names and Sounds

Let me tell you – I’ve been there! When I first started teaching, I wasn’t sure which should come first either. But here’s what years of working with teachers and diving into research has taught me about letter names and sounds: it’s not actually an either/or situation. Let me explain why.

What Research Tells Us (In Regular Human Words)

I love what literacy expert Louisa Moats says about this. She points out that many of us have been teaching “the code backwards” – starting with letter names and then trying to connect them to sounds. Think about it: if a child only knows that squiggly symbol is called “w,” they’re not any closer to knowing what sound to make when they see it in a word.

But don’t toss those letter names out the window! They’re actually super important too. Try explaining to a five-year-old which sound /k/ makes in “cat” without being able to say “the letter c.” Not so easy, right? That’s why teaching letter names and sounds together makes so much sense.

Here’s What Actually Works

The research is crystal clear – kids learn best when we teach letter names and sounds as a dynamic duo. I saw this play out beautifully in a kindergarten classroom last week. The teacher was introducing letter names and sounds through a morning routine that had her kids totally engaged. For each letter, they’d say its name, make its sound, and do a little movement. The excitement was contagious!

Rethinking Letter of the Week

Okay, here’s something that might surprise you – that tried-and-true “letter of the week” approach? It might actually be slowing our kids down. I know, I know – I used it for years myself! But here’s the thing: research shows kids can handle learning three new letter names and sounds per week, as long as we keep practicing the ones we’ve already taught.

One of my favorite teachers completely transformed her morning routine around this idea. Instead of spending a whole week on one letter, she introduces three new letter names and sounds each week, but – and this is key – she starts every morning with a quick, fun review of all they’ve learned so far. Her kids are making incredible progress, and they’re having fun doing it!

Making This Work in Your Classroom

So how do we actually do this? Let me share some strategies that I’ve seen work wonders:

  1. Start with your kids’ names. There’s nothing more motivating than learning the letters in your own name! I watched a first grader absolutely beam with pride when she recognized that her name, Jennifer, started with the same sound as “jump.” Names give us the perfect opportunity to connect letter names and sounds in a meaningful way.
  2. Give them something they can hold on to. When teaching letter sounds, start with the ones that they can stretch and hold – we call these “continuous sounds.” At the beginning, it’s a lot easier to demonstrate and for kids to practice sounds they can hold. This is also true when your students start to blend sounds to read words.
  3. Think frequency. Letters like ‘e’, ‘t’, and ‘a’ show up everywhere in kids’ books. They’re like the celebrities of the alphabet – familiar faces that kids get excited to recognize! Starting with these common letters helps build confidence quickly.
  4. Use letter-sound connections that make sense. Some letters practically teach themselves because their names contain their sounds – think ‘b’ or ‘m’. Others (hello, ‘w’!) need a little more support. This is where being strategic with our letter names and sounds instruction really pays off.

Here’s one of my absolute favorite tricks: embedded mnemonics. Fancy term, super simple idea. It’s just turning letters into pictures that show their sounds. Picture an octopus curled into an ‘o’ shape, or a snake curved into an ‘s’. One teacher I work with has her kids make up little stories about each letter-picture, and they remember them for months!

Supporting Every Reader

Let’s be real – some kids are going to need more practice with letter names and sounds, and that’s totally okay. I worked with a student recently who was really struggling with these connections. We started using movement along with our practice – jumping for letter names, clapping for sounds – and something just clicked. Sometimes it’s about finding that just-right approach for each kid.

I had another student who needed extra support with both letter names and sounds. We created a special “alphabet detective” game where she would hunt for letters in her favorite books and practice both the name and sound when she found them. The pride on her face when she started recognizing those letters in her own writing was absolutely priceless!

What This Looks Like Day to Day

Here’s what I’ve seen work really well in classrooms:

  • Show both uppercase and lowercase letters right from the start
  • Make explicit connections between names and sounds (“This is the letter ‘m’. It makes the /m/ sound like in ‘monkey'”)
  • Weave quick practice into your daily routines (transitions are perfect for this!)
  • Use movement and hands-on activities whenever you can
  • Keep reviewing previously taught letters – quick and fun is the name of the game

Remember, you know your kids best. Some might zoom through learning letter names and sounds, while others need more time and practice. That’s completely normal! The key is keeping it engaging and meaningful while making those connections crystal clear.

Teaching letter names and sounds isn’t about picking one over the other – it’s about helping kids make those crucial connections that will set them up for reading success. And from what I’ve seen in countless classrooms, when we teach them together, that’s when the magic happens.

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Additional Resources

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