Familiar words phonics and ABCs

You’ve seen the illustrated A to Z (Minus Q and X) of Japan, yes? (Easier-to-view option.)

Did you already add it to your arsenal of teaching the ABCs and phonics to your young learners?

One helpful point to remember about teaching the ABCs and phonics is to use familiar base words the students already know or can learn quickly. That way, students can focus more on the sounds and less on needing to learn yet another word. There’s little point in teaching z-z-z-zirconium when z-z-z-zebra will do just fine, you see. (See Super Simple ABCs for more on this.)

Let’s say you’re teaching English to Japanese students. For a list of familiar words, try matching the ABCs to words in Japanese, as in that illustrated A to Z of Japan. Maybe it won’t always be an even match, but it will usually get the students thinking creatively.

I’m all in favor of creative thinking.