The "wh" Sound

Welcome back to Read Not Guess. Today we’re going to work on the “wh” sound.

Remember that we’re going to focus on the sounds the letters make. Both parent and child will need to be able to see the screen.

Let’s get started.

Today’s Letter Sounds

Today we’re going to work on the "wh" sound. In the U.S., the “wh” usually makes the same sound as the letter “w” by itself.

Have your son or daughter read the "wh" sound as they point to the letters:

wh

wh

wh

Ask your child if they can think of any words that start with the “wh” sound. (It’s ok if they come up with words that start with “w,” what’s important here is that they’re getting the sound correct.) If they need help, the words whale, whip, and white all start with the “wh” sound.

Word Practice

Now we’re going to work on “blending” letter sounds into words. Your child can start slowly by saying each sound individually, but each time, they should try to say it just a bit faster.

Ask your child to say the correct sounds as they point to the letters:

wh en

when

And:

wh am

wham

And:

wh ip

whip

And:

wh ack

whack

And:

wh ich

which

Now let’s end with a couple harder ones:

wh isk

whisk

And:

wh y

why

Silly Sentences

If you think your child is ready, see if they can read these:

When did you get to the park?

Now, which sandwich do you want?

If they read these smoothly, great! If they stumble, have them sound it out again to get it right.

That’s it for today. We’ll see you next time.