Why Your Child Forgets Phonics Sounds (And How 5 Minutes a Day Fixes It)
When I was teaching, there was one line I came back to almost every day:
"Just because we taught it, doesn't mean they learnt it."
It's one of those phrases that hasn't left me.
When you're teaching children all day every day, it's so easy to deliver a lesson, tick it off, move on and assume the job is done.
But teaching and learning aren't the same thing. Far from it!
Just because we have taught something to our class definitely doesn't mean that the whole class have learnt it.
This happens at home, too.
Your child comes home having learnt a new sound and you think "brilliant, they've got it!"
Let's say they come home one day having learnt the sound 'ai' at school. Then two weeks later, you point at 'rain' and they stare at you like they've never seen those letters in their life.
The important thing to remember is that this is completely normal. Most children don't just see something once and then learn it.
How Phonics Sounds Actually Stick
When your child is taught a new sound at school, it goes into their short-term memory. That's why they can read it back the same day.
But short-term memory is exactly that: short.
Without revisiting that sound regularly, it fades. Fast.
To move a sound into long-term memory (the part we actually need for reading) your child needs short, repeated exposure over time.
They don't need one big 30-minute phonics lesson on the weekend. Instead, just a few minutes as often as you can will help them recall their phonics sounds.
The "Little and Often" Rule
This is why 5 minutes a day beats 30 minutes once a week, every single time.
Memory doesn't work on intensity. It works on repetition.
A child who sees the 'ai' sound for 2 minutes every day for a week will remember it far better than a child who sits down for a long Sunday afternoon practice session.
So if you've been feeling guilty that you "only" manage a few minutes a day with your child, please stop. You're actually doing it exactly right.
Making It Easy on Yourself
I know finding even 5 minutes a day isn't always simple, especially with multiple children, work, and everything else you're juggling.
Short, regular practice is really all it takes. If you're looking for a simple way to make those minutes count, The Phonics App offers free practice on A-Z sounds with the correct English pronunciation, and no prep required.
