Is your child a struggling reader? You’re not alone. Hooked on Phonics was created by a father for his son who also had difficulties learning to read.
Phonics teaches kids how letters represent the individual sounds in words. Simply put: Kids learn to read—or decode—words by sounding them out.
Phonics works because it breaks reading down into simple, manageable steps. By teaching kids how letters connect to sounds, it gives them the tools to decode new words on their own, as well as the structure, practice, and confidence they need to become successful readers.
Many parents wonder how to help a child with reading difficulties. It starts with building confidence as kids begin blending sounds to read words. Hooked on Phonics guides kids through each stage, turning practice into progress and progress into success!
Hooked on Phonics uses a multisensory approach that can be especially effective for struggling readers. Music, videos, games, and hands-on activities engage different learning needs and build strong reading skills.
Reading shouldn’t feel like a battle. Reading intervention programs should be targeted to your child’s specific needs. With the right support, your child can thrive—and it can start with Hooked on Phonics.
Struggling readers sometimes lack understanding of how letters and sounds work together. The Pre-reader section of the App teaches letter-sound relationships though music videos, games, and stories.
Games and videos in this section of the App are designed to help children blend letter sounds to form words. Repetition and practice in different contexts build fluency and automaticity over time.
Each lesson builds on the one before and ends with a decodable book using the words the learner has just practiced. This scaffolded instruction helps struggling readers make progress in small, achievable steps.
The lessons in the Pre-reader workbooks align with the App to encourage letter recognition with coloring, games, and letter writing. There are parent tips and ideas, and books to read together.
The program combines audio, visual, and kinesthetic activities—kids see the letters, hear the sounds, say the words, and practice writing.
Songs, games, videos and stories make learning to read fun and encourage repeated, independent practice in a low-pressure setting.
Parents don’t need to be reading experts. The program guides adults on how to help at home, making it easier to reinforce skills outside of school.
In this systematic phonics program, each step contains three interconnected lessons that build upon one another for effective learning.
Children with reading challenges may struggle with recognizing and manipulating the sounds in words. Hooked on Phonics uses a systematic phonics approach that explicitly teaches the relationship between letters and sounds. It builds phonemic awareness (a phonological awareness skill) through guided practice in segmenting and blending sounds, helping children develop the ability to hear and manipulate the individual sounds in words. By seeing, hearing, and interacting with words over and over, kids build a strong foundation and grow more confident every time they read.
Some children have trouble reading smoothly, which can make reading slow and frustrating. Hooked on Phonics helps improve reading fluency by starting with simple steps and gradually building up, so kids gain confidence as they go. The program uses short, easy-to-read books for struggling readers that can be read again and again, helping kids read more quickly and easily. They can also listen to a story read aloud while following along with it in the App, which is a great way to build rhythm, flow, and confidence in their reading.
Some children can sound out words just fine but still have trouble understanding what they read. Hooked on Phonics helps build vocabulary and background knowledge with fun stories and activities that make reading more meaningful.
The workbooks include other reading strategies for struggling readers, such as discussion activities so that you can talk about the story with your child. Kids are encouraged to think about what they’re reading by answering questions, making predictions, and retelling the story in their own words.
With age-appropriate content and engaging storytelling, the program helps children connect with the text and develop the reading comprehension skills they need to really understand what they read.
This program is designed for children ages 3–8 who are just starting their reading journey or could use a boost in order to read at (or above!) grade level. We know that every child learns at their own pace, so we intentionally don’t include reading levels by grade on printed material so that learners can progress without worrying about grade-level comparisons.
Our standards-aligned phonics program covers foundational reading skills for Pre-K through second grade. Your child should start in the section that best matches their current skill level.
The program starts with the Pre-reader section, which introduces the alphabet and letter sounds. It continues with the Learn to Read section, where your child will have a chance to read a new book after each lesson.
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