A free 3-minute check that shows where to start
A child can know only a few sounds, can say the letter names instead, or can learn the sounds and lose them by the next day. Each one needs a different start. Do this check together. It takes about three minutes, and it uses eight letters, not the whole alphabet.
How to do it: do not teach and do not correct. Just listen, and tap what your child could do. Nothing you tap is sent anywhere.
Show your child this screen. Point to each letter in turn and ask: “What sound does this one make?” Tap each letter your child says the right sound for.
The same eight letters. Now tap each letter where your child said its name when you asked for its sound. If that never happened, tap nothing here.
Turn the screen away. Say each word below out loud and ask: “What sound does it start with?” Tap each word where your child says the sound.
One question for you. Has your child learned letter sounds before, and lost them by the next day?
A sound that is taught on Monday and not met again is gone by Tuesday. That is how memory works at this age. So is it normal for a child to forget letter sounds? At four, five and six, yes. What makes a sound stay is meeting it again the next day, and the day after, a few sounds at a time.
It is not a diagnosis, and it is not a test for dyslexia or anything else. Not knowing letter sounds yet, or losing them overnight, does not on its own mean a child has a condition. It checks eight letters, not the whole alphabet. If your child is six or older and sounds still will not stay after steady practice, tell their teacher what you saw and ask what the school has noticed.
More help: Letter sounds worksheets, level by level · Why can’t my child blend sounds? A free check
