Guide
Blending
Teach blending sounds to read with Jolly Phonics guidance, practical techniques, fluency tips and classroom resources.
Blending Sounds to Read
Building confident and fluent readers
What is Blending?
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Blending
Blending is the skill of combining individual sounds to read a word. It is introduced from the very beginning and practised daily with decodable words. With support and repetition, all pupils can master this vital reading skill.
Step 1
Start Blending Early in Every Phonics Lesson
- Begin with auditory blending and move onto blending regular words as soon as enough letter sounds have been taught.
- Model with the “I say it, we say it, you say it” routine.
- For success the pupils need to be tuned in to hear the word after saying the sounds and blending them together.
Step 2
Techniques for Developing Blending Fluency
- Use word-blending boxes or Little Words Books or Read & See Books.
- Practice using games, such as word and picture matching.
- Practise consonant-vowel pairs (e.g., pa, pe, pi, cri, sta).
Step 3
Encouraging Silent Blending
- Once you are sure the children can blend words for themselves, encourage them to blend words silently in their head.
Step 4
Progressing with More Complex Words
- Use various length words and not just cvc as soon as possible.
- Include words with alternative spellings, once they have been taught, in Steps 2 and 3.
- Use the Jolly Phonics Word Bank Book for suitable words, phrases and sentences.
Step 5
Fluency & Comprehension
- Fluency is developed through practice, which leads to improved comprehension and reading confidence.
- In the beginning a pupil's comprehension usually depends on their experiences before starting school, as well as their mother tongue, general knowledge and intelligence. It develops through listening, speaking and reading many books.
- Nearly always if a pupil is able to understand something that is spoken to them then they will understand it when they read it.
Need extra support for struggling pupils?
Resources for Blending
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Jolly Phonics Read & See Books
Jolly Phonics Read & See BooksFourteen starter books that build blending skills step by step. Children sound out and blend one word per page before checking with a picture, making these ideal first readers for home or school phonics practice.
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Jolly Phonics Blends Wheels
Jolly Phonics Blends WheelsDouble-sided wheels for exploring initial blends on one side and final blends on the other. Children spin and combine sounds to build words, giving engaging practice in blending, segmenting and early reading fluency.
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Jolly Phonics Cards
Jolly Phonics CardsFour flashcard sets for daily teaching, revision and games. Covering letter sounds, regular and alternative word blending (with sound dots for support) and tricky words in teaching order. A practical resource for reinforcing phonics skills at every stage.
Ready to strengthen blending skills?