Blending and segmenting

Blending is how we read a new word: say each sound, then push the sounds together until you hear the word (⟦c-a-t⟧ → ⟦cat⟧). Segmenting is the opposite, how we spell: say the word, split it into its sounds, and write the letters for each sound (⟦frog⟧ → ⟦f-r-o-g⟧).

Key facts

• To blend, say the sounds in order, then say them faster and faster: ⟦s… u… n⟧, ⟦s-u-n⟧, ⟦sun⟧.
• To segment, say the word slowly, stretching it out, and count the sounds on your fingers.
• A digraph is one sound, so it is one part: ⟦sh-i-p⟧, not ⟦s-h-i-p⟧.
• Two consonants next to each other are usually two sounds: ⟦f-r-o-g⟧, ⟦l-a-m-p⟧, ⟦s-t-o-p⟧.
• When you have written a word, read it back by blending, to check it says what you meant.

Worked examples