Steve Parish Publishing

Phonemes and graphemes…the beginning of phonics
As children's book publishers, Steve Parish Publishing couldn't believe more in the importance of early literacy in children. The English language is based on word sounds (that is, it is phonetic) and, despite its complexities, consistencies in the language enable children to learn to read with ease if writing is presented simply and logically.

Pronouncing sounds correctly is very important in learning to read. As mentioned earlier, the letter names ("ay", "bee", "cee" etc) are not the same as the actual sounds a letter makes within words. Phonemes are the "pure" sounds of letters, as we hear them in words. Teaching children how to read using the pure sounds of letters is called phonics.The written representation of each sound (the actual letter or letter combination) is called a grapheme.

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