Phonogram Facts

In Greek, phono means sound and gram means picture, so phonograms are pictures of sounds.

  • basic phonogram flashcard

    Phonograms can make between one and six sounds.

    Phonograms can represent one sound such as m in mop; two sounds such as g in goat and gem; three sounds such as o in top, hope, and to, and on rare occasions, four, five, or six sounds.

  • phonogram game cards

    Phonograms may be spelled with more than one letter.

    Phonograms can be spelled with one letter like t, two letters like sh, three letters like igh, or four letters like eigh.

Tips for Teaching Phonograms

sound icon

Emphasize the sounds, not the letter names.

Sounds, not letter names, help students read and spell. Once a student knows the sounds of the phonograms, the student can blend the sounds to discover the word. Practice all of the phonogram sounds with our Interactive Phonogram Chart!

Interactive Phonogram Chart
student practicing phonograms with flashcards

Teach all the sounds from the beginning.

Learning all the sounds provides students with vital information for decoding, eliminates unnecessary exceptions, and prevents confusion!

A-Z phonograms

Start with A-Z.

Introducing the single-letter phonograms, plus QU, helps students become familiar with the shape of each letter and prepares them to read the multi-letter phonograms.

student practicing cursive handwriting

Teach students how to write the phonograms.

Reading research shows that learning to write the phonograms while saying the sounds activates the letterbox region of the brain, resulting in students learning the phonograms more quickly (Dehaene, 2013a; Longcamp et.al, 2008; Stavanger, 2011; Mangen & Velay, 2010).

Learn More About Handwriting
computer depicting spelling analysis

Analyze the use of phonograms to spell words.

When students analyze words and apply the phonograms, they develop the necessary tools to decode and encode without guessing.

Learn More About Spelling Analysis
girl writing lowercase D on white board

Teach using all the learning modalities.

When teaching phonograms, it is best to use all the learning modalities. When students hear, see, say, and write the phonograms, they master the letter-sound correspondences more quickly.

student playing Slap It with phonogram game cards

Practice with games.

Students who play a wide variety of educational games enjoy learning and master the skills faster.

phonogram mastery chart

Teach the basic phonograms to mastery.

Knowing the basic phonograms provides students with the vital information needed to read and spell. Students have developed mastery when they see a phonogram and can immediately and without hesitation recall the sounds.

Download Phonogram Mastery Chart

Basic and Advanced Phonograms

  • basic phonogram flash card

    Basic Phonograms

    Basic phonograms are found in high-frequency words and/or are used extensively in English spelling. Basic phonograms are best taught explicitly and to mastery. Logic of English teaches 75 basic phonograms.

  • advanced phonogram flashcard

    Advanced Phonograms

    Advanced phonograms are used in advanced vocabulary or words imported from another language. When students understand the basic phonograms, most students will implicitly learn how to decode advanced phonograms.

phonogram and spelling rule wall

Free Phonogram and Spelling Rule Wall Template

Support students learning the phonograms and spelling rules by collecting words under each phonogram.

Phonogram Wall Template

Shop Phonogram Resources

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Spelling rule and phonogram flashcards

Phonograms work together with spelling rules.

Phonograms tell you the sounds each letter makes, but spelling rules tell you when they make each sound. In other words, spelling rules often explain why a phonogram is saying a particular sound.

Learn More About Spelling Rules

References

Dehaene, S. (2013). Inside the Letterbox: How Literacy Transforms the Human Brain. Cerebrum, 2013:7. http://www.dana.org/news/cerebrum

Longcamp, M., Boucard, C., Gilhodes, J.-C., Anton, J.-L., Roth, M., Nazarian, B., & Velay, J.-L. (2008). Learning through Hand- or Typewriting Influences Visual Recognition of New Graphic Shapes: Behavioral and Functional Imaging Evidence. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 20(5), 802–815. https://doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2008.20504

Mangen, A., & Velay, J.-L. (2010). Advances in Haptics. https://doi.org/10.5772/8710

Stavanger, T. U. of. (2011). Science Daily. Better Learning through Handwriting. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110119095458.htm