Fun Phonemic Awareness Activities You Can Do Anytime (Even in the Car!)
Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear and play with individual sounds (phonemes) in spoken words. It’s one of the strongest predictors of future reading success—and the best part? You don’t need books, paper, or screens to practise it.
These games can be played in the car, at the kitchen table, while brushing teeth, or on a walk. They’re great for the whole family and make learning feel like play.
👂 1. I Spy… with a Sound
Instead of the classic “I spy with my little eye something beginning with…” use sounds instead of letter names.
“I spy something that starts with /s/.” (sun, socks, seatbelt…)
Make it harder by using the final sound: “I spy something that ends with /t/.”
🧠 2. Sound Swap
This game builds phonemic manipulation skills (changing one sound to make a new word).
You say: “Say cat. Now change the /k/ to /h/.”
Child says: “hat!”
Try other swaps:Change pig to wig
Change sun to fun
Start with the beginning sound, then move to end or middle sounds as they get more confident.
🎶 3. Clap the Syllables
Say words and ask your child to clap out the syllables (beats) in each one.
Examples:
banana = ba / na / na (3 claps)
dog = 1 clap
elephant = el / e / phant (3 claps)
You can do this with names, foods, animals, or anything you see around you.
🎤 4. Rhyme Time
Pick a simple word and take turns thinking of words that rhyme.
You: “Let’s find words that rhyme with cat.”
Child: “hat, bat, sat…”
Be silly too—nonsense words count: “zat, lat, blat!”
🚗 5. Robot Talk
You speak in “robot voice” by segmenting (breaking apart) the sounds in a word, and your child guesses what it is.
You say: “Can you guess this word? /b/ /e/ /d/”
Child: “Bed!”
Then let them be the robot and give you a challenge.
🧩 6. Odd One Out
Say three words. Two share the same beginning sound—one doesn’t. Ask which one doesn’t belong.
“Dog, door, sun” → Which word doesn’t fit? (sun)
“Fish, fork, cat” → Odd one out? (cat)
You can also play this with rhyming words or end sounds.
🏆 Why It Works
These short, simple games help your child tune into sounds—an essential skill before letters even come into play. You’re laying the foundation for spelling, reading, and writing success—and you’re doing it while having fun as a family!
