Phonics Phase 2: What Your Child Learns First
Phase 2 is where your child first learns that letters make sounds and that sounds can be pushed together into words. It runs through the Reception autumn term and it covers the sounds s a t p i n m d g o c k ck e u r h b f ff l ll ss, plus the first handful of words that cannot be sounded out. By the end of it most children can read a short word like cat or sit without help. That is the whole target. It is not a small one.
If your child has just started Reception and words like phase, grapheme and blending have started appearing in newsletters, this is the phase they mean.
What is Phase 2 in phonics?
Phonics in England is taught in a set order, and the order is usually described in phases. Phase 1 comes before any letters at all. It belongs to nursery and very early Reception and it is all listening: rhythm, rhyme, alliteration and oral blending, which is the game where you say "c-a-t" and your child shouts "cat" without a book in sight.
Phase 2 is the first phase with letters in it. Your child learns that a written letter stands for a sound, that the sounds can be said in order, and that saying them in order fast enough produces a word. Reception autumn is the usual slot. Phase 2 is the phase where reading stops being something adults do and becomes something your child can do.
Which sounds does Phase 2 teach?
In the Letters and Sounds sequence that most schemes descend from, Phase 2 covers s a t p i n m d g o c k ck e u r h b f ff l ll ss.
Two things to notice. The letters are not taught in alphabetical order, they are taught in an order that lets children build real words quickly, which is why s, a, t, p, i and n usually come first and give you sat, tap, pin, nip and a dozen others. And a few entries are two letters making one sound: ck, ff, ll and ss. Those are digraphs, and your child will be taught to see them as one thing rather than two.
Why does my child say "sss" and not "ess"?
Because sounds are what blend, and letter names are not. "Ess ay tee" does not turn into sat no matter how fast you say it. "Sss a t" does.
The bit parents get wrong most often is adding a small grunt to the end of a consonant. The guidance published for parents on Oxford Owl is to say the sound cleanly with no "uh" after it: it is "mmm" rather than "muh". Some sounds are bouncy and short, including b, d, g, k, p and t. Others are stretchy and can be held, including m, s, f, l, n, r, v and z. A "buh" on the end of every letter turns bat into "buh a tuh", which is three syllables and no word.
What do I do when blending will not come?
Blending is the hinge of the whole phase, and it arrives suddenly rather than gradually for a lot of children. Some do it in October. Some do it at half term after weeks of nothing. Both are ordinary.
Two habits help more than any resource. The first is to wait five seconds before you step in, because most children get there at about four, and a parent who jumps in at two is teaching them that stopping produces a rescue. The second is to give the sounds rather than the word. Saying "s-t-o-p" hands them the win because they still do the blending themselves. Saying "stop" ends the thinking.
The book that comes home is not the lesson. It is the victory lap.
What are tricky words in Phase 2?
Tricky words are the ones that do not play by the rules your child has learned so far. In the Letters and Sounds sequence, Phase 2 usually brings the, to, I, no, go and into. Little Wandle schools tend to meet is, I and the in the first half term, then a longer list in the second including put, pull, full, as, and, has, his, her, go, no, to, into, she, push, he, of, we, me and be.
There is no technique for these. They cannot be sounded out, which is the definition. Tell your child the word, let them finish the sentence, move on. Resist the urge to make a teaching moment of it.
What does Phase 2 look like in my school's scheme?
Not every school uses the word phase, which is why parents comparing notes in the playground often think their children are in different places when they are not.
| Scheme | What Phase 2 is called |
|---|---|
| Letters and Sounds | Phase 2, Reception autumn |
| Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised | Phase 2, Reception Autumn 1 and Autumn 2 |
| Bug Club Phonics | Pink 1 and Pink 2 |
| Essential Letters and Sounds | Phase 2 first sounds, then Phase 2 rest |
| Twinkl Phonics | Level 2 |
| Read Write Inc | Set 1 sounds. No phase numbers are used |
| Jolly Phonics | Groups 1 to 3 of the 42 sounds. No phase numbers |
| Sounds-Write | Initial Code units. No phase numbers |
If you want to work out which one your school runs, the book is usually the giveaway. A phase number with a school term beside it points to Little Wandle. A colour and a number, such as Pink 1, points to Bug Club. Sets and a frog called Fred mean Read Write Inc. There is a longer breakdown in our guide to the phases and in our guide to Little Wandle books.
Why is the book that comes home so easy?
Because it is supposed to be. In Little Wandle schools the same book has already been read three times in class that week: once for decoding, once for expression, once for understanding. The read you do at home is the fourth. Of course it sounds easy. That is the design.
Other schemes do the same thing in their own way. The book is practice, not a test, and the point of a matched book is that your child can get through it without being rescued. Decodable is not a badge printed on a cover; it describes the fit between one book and one particular child this week. Our explainer on decodable books goes into why that distinction matters.
What should ten minutes at home look like?
Short and boring, in the best sense. Sit next to your child rather than opposite them. Let them run a finger under the word. Wait five seconds. Give sounds, not words. If they get a word wrong and then correct themselves, say nothing at all; self-correction is the thing you want more of.
Stop while they still want more. A child who finishes wanting one more page comes back tomorrow. A child who is pushed to the end of the book learns that reading goes on until an adult is satisfied. If reading has already become a fight in your house, this piece is worth ten minutes.
Separately, keep reading much harder books aloud to your child at bedtime. That does a different job: vocabulary, comprehension and appetite. Their own decoding cannot reach those yet, and it should not have to.
How do I know if Phase 2 is going well?
Useful signs are concrete. Your child can hear the first sound in a spoken word. They can say the sounds in a three letter word in order. They can blend at least some words without you. They are not guessing from the picture, which is the exact habit matched books exist to prevent.
If your child is stopping on more than about one word in ten in a book sent home at their own level, the book is too hard for them today and the teacher will want to know. That is worth raising, calmly and specifically, rather than sitting on. It is not something to diagnose at the kitchen table.
What comes after Phase 2?
Phase 3, usually in the Reception spring. It brings the rest of the single letters and then the long vowel digraphs, including ai, ee, igh, oa and oo. Words get longer and the sounds start being spelled with more than one letter as a matter of routine.
Phase 4 follows in the Reception summer and adds no new sounds at all, which surprises a lot of parents. It works on words with consonants bunched together, such as stamp and crisp.
Where to go next
Phase 2 is the shortest distance your child will ever travel between not reading and reading. Ten calm minutes a day, five seconds of patience per word, and a book that is comfortably within reach will get you through it.
Lindo Phonics is not connected to Little Wandle, Read Write Inc, Bug Club Phonics, Twinkl, Essential Letters and Sounds, Jolly Phonics or Sounds-Write and is not endorsed by them. We match the published progression so a story only uses sounds your child has already been taught.
Common questions
What age is Phase 2 phonics?
It is normally taught in the Reception autumn term, so most children are four or five. Schools vary by a few weeks either way and that is not a problem.
What sounds are in Phase 2?
In the Letters and Sounds sequence, Phase 2 covers s a t p i n m d g o c k ck e u r h b f ff l ll ss. The first six letters are chosen so children can build real words straight away.
How long does Phase 2 last?
Roughly a term in most schools. Little Wandle schools split it across Reception Autumn 1 and Autumn 2, and other schemes use two bands such as Pink 1 and Pink 2.
What are the Phase 2 tricky words?
In Letters and Sounds they are usually the, to, I, no, go and into. Little Wandle starts with is, I and the, then adds a longer list in the second half term.
Should my child know letter names in Phase 2?
Sounds come first, because sounds are what blend together into words. Letter names arrive alongside and are useful later, but ess ay tee will never turn into sat.
How do I say the sounds properly?
Cleanly, with no uh on the end, so mmm rather than muh. Sounds like b, d, g, k, p and t are short and bouncy; m, s, f, l, n, r, v and z can be stretched out.
My child knows the sounds but cannot blend. What do I do?
This is the most common Phase 2 sticking point and it often clicks suddenly rather than gradually. Keep sessions short, play oral blending games with no book, and tell the teacher what you are seeing.
What is a digraph?
Two letters making one sound. In Phase 2 the digraphs are ck, ff, ll and ss. Your child is taught to see them as one unit rather than two separate letters.
Why is the book from school so easy?
Because it is practice, not a test. In Little Wandle schools the same book has already been read three times in class that week, so the home read is the fourth.
Should I correct every mistake?
No. Wait five seconds first, since most children get there at about four. If your child corrects themselves, say nothing; self-correction is exactly what you want to see more of.
My child guesses words from the pictures. Is that a problem?
It is the habit that matched decodable books exist to prevent. Cover the picture with your hand for that page and let the letters do the work.
How much should we read at home each night?
About ten minutes is plenty in Reception. Stop while your child still wants one more page rather than pushing to the end of the book.
What comes after Phase 2?
Phase 3 in the Reception spring, which adds the remaining single letters and then the long vowel digraphs such as ai, ee, igh and oa.
My child seems behind the others in the class. What should I do?
Ask the class teacher what they are seeing and what would help at home. Children move at different speeds in Reception, and a specific conversation with school is far more useful than guesswork.
A Phase 2 story your child can actually read
Pick your school's scheme and the point your child has reached, and we will build a story that uses only the sounds already taught, with your child's name on every page.
Make a phonics story First book free. No card needed.