Did You Know That...
Before children can learn to read, they need to understand that their spoken language is made up of separate sounds?
Although young children may have mastered spoken language, they do not necessarily understand that their speech is made up of separate words and that those words are made up of separate syllables, which are made up of separate sounds called phonemes. One of the best ways to help young children learn about the sounds in language is to engage them in playful activities that use rhyming and alliteration.
For more on this topic, see the Eric Digest Phonemic Awareness: An Important Early Step in Learning to Read.