Blending is a key skill, perhaps the key skill, children need when learning to read.  At the same time as they are being introduces to the phonemes your child will begin to learn how to blend them together, to read words. So, /c/ /a/ /t/ can be ‘sounded out’ and they’ll blend it to read ‘cat’. Children develop this skill at different rates but it does take practice; and lots of it!

If your not saying the correct word when blending isolated sounds, try these other blending techniques:

• Isolated blending – say the first sound the loudest and then get softer as you get to the end of the word. Children do tend to start blending with the loudest sound they heard. So make sure your first sound is the loudest.


• Final blending – blend the first two letter sounds together and then snap it with the final letter sound. For example:
  
  This helps with children who are not following through with their blending or with those who just cannot hear the spoken word being formed.


 
• Successive blending – stretch the word in a continuous flow of sounds. For example:
  
  I find that most children who struggle with blending get it with this technique.