As a teacher, you already know the primary focus of phonics games is to help readers understand how letters are linked to sounds (called phonemes). Building strong phonics skills is crucial to building strong reading skills.
As a reading specialist, I’ve noticed a common problem among struggling readers. While they may have a solid foundation in basic phonics during the early grades, they often struggle with vowel teams, diphthongs, and syllabication in later years. Surprisingly, this issue affects students all the way up to 4th grade.
Why does this happen? In my experience, there are three main reasons:
1. Students are often taught a skill, but it’s assumed that they’ve mastered it. The class moves on to the next skill, leaving some students behind.
2. There is not enough time to adequately address phonics instruction, and these important skills can be overlooked.
3. Phonics instruction can be boring, especially when it involves worksheets. Older students may lose interest and engagement.
So, how can you help students master phonics skills?
PHONICS GAMES = FUN!
FUN = MOTIVATION
MOTIVATION = LEARNING
I work with students in grades k-4 and my students beg to play games at the end of our regular reading intervention lessons. I love that my students are motivated to play educational phonics games! For me it is a no brainer. Increasing a student’s phonics skills increases reading skills. Want to experience what I’m talking about?
 Download our FREE VOWEL TEAM GAME below ⬇
I hope you have found this blog post helpful. To stay connected with Teacher Features’ teaching tips and classroom freebies be sure to follow on Facebook, Pinterest, and Teachers Pay Teachers!
Like Freebies?
Get your Muddy Pigs Vowel Team Game!
