You could cover all but the beginning of the word with your finger. Show the child how to blend the sounds. Many children have trouble sounding words out. Let them hear how you smooth out those sounds. Help the child look for something familiar inside big words.
Some words follow spelling patterns, like at, or ake .
These letters often appear together, making words that rhyme. Some big words are just little words put together. When dividing a big word into pieces, work on the easiest piece first. Be careful when you ask a child to divide a word in pieces, though. Some words look like they re made of smaller words, but they re really not.