From sounds to words
- Beginning sounds. Hear the first sound of a word and match it to its letter.
- Ending sounds. Listen to the end of the word, which is harder to hear.
- Short vowels. The middle sound: c _ t, p _ g, s _ n.
- Build the word. Write all three sounds, one in each box.
- Rhymes. Hear that cat and hat end the same way.
- Word families. Change the first sound: cat, hat, bat.
- Digraphs and blends. Two letters, one sound (sh, ch) or two quick sounds (fr, st).
Pictures first
Phonics practice works when children say the word out loud. A picture gives them the word without needing to read it, so they can focus on the sounds. Each picture is chosen to have one obvious name, and the letters use simple shapes children learn first, like the single-story a.
Keep going
Pair these with spelling worksheets for the words that can’t be sounded out, and withpicture puzzles for spelling whole words with pictures.
Irish curriculum links
- ReadingPhonological and phonemic awareness: hearing rhymes, first sounds and the separate sounds in a word.
- Word studyPhonics, word recognition and word study: linking sounds and letters to read words, including digraphs, blends and word families.
- GaeilgeThe Stage 3 reading outcomes ask children to compare sounds in English, Irish and other languages, building on this early work.
The Primary Language Curriculum (2019) sets out phonics skills but not a phonics programme, so Irish schools choose their own. Whatever scheme your school uses, the order here, first sounds, then CVC words, then digraphs and blends, follows the broad path most schemes take.
Children in English-medium schools also meet a second sound system in Gaeilge from Junior Infants. When a child sounds out a word, it helps to say which language you are in: “bh” in Irish does not sound like an English b followed by h.
Summarised in our own words from the Primary Language Curriculum (2019, NCCA).
