Phonics instruction focuses on teaching children letters and letter sounds. Children begin by identifying letters and learning the sound each letter makes. As children learn more sounds, they begin to combine them to form words and then combine words to form sentences. The whole-language approach is based on the belief that children learn to read through active involvement with literature. The focus is on exposing children to rich and meaningful reading materials rather than on teaching them to sound out words.
Some children seem to learn best with a phonics approach and others with whole language.
Both approaches have gone in and out of vogue. At home, you can combine phonics and whole language by spending time reading aloud to your child and talking about books, as well as pointing out the names and sounds of letters. All rights reserved.