Help your primary-age child read at home

Use this guide if your child is in the early or middle years of primary school and you want to help with reading without battles. Have their school reading book, any phonics guidance from school and a few books they enjoy.

Step by step

1. Find out how school teaches reading

   Schools in England teach early reading through a systematic synthetic phonics programme, and many share videos or guides for parents showing how each sound is said. Ask the class teacher: 'Which phonics scheme do you use, and how should I say the sounds at home so I match what you do?' Saying sounds the same way as school avoids confusing your child, for example 'mmm' rather than 'muh'.