Last Updated on October 5, 2023 by Editorial Team
The world has drastically seen an educational disruption since the pandemic. The traditional way of schooling has been challenged, and online education has taken over. It is now more significant than ever to know how to read and write. In today’s digital age, many online phonics courses are available.
While some are free, others come at a price. So, how do you choose the right one for your needs? You make an informed decision based on observations that can benefit your ward. These observations can be features to ideally look for in a free online phonics course. So, we will discuss many such features and some online courses you should go for to make your child learn phonics. Have a look below.
Online phonics course: Features to look out for
As a parent, it is obvious to keep looking for options that make learning easy and effective for your child. Therefore, an established online course can be of great help when it comes to learning phonics. Here are some features that you should look for in such a course:
- The course should have clear and concise lessons that explain the concept well: A good course will have short and simple lessons that explain the concept of phonics easily.
- The course should also provide ample opportunity to practice: A good course will not just stop at explaining the concept but will also provide ample opportunity to practice what has been learned. This is important because phonics is all about being able to identify the sounds of letters and being able to blend them to form words.
- It should have engaging activities and games to make learning enjoyable: A good course will use engaging activities and games to make learning phonics fun and enjoyable for your child. This is important because it will help to keep them motivated and interested in the lessons.
- The course should provide progress tracking so you can see your child’s progress: A good course will provide you with progress tracking features to keep track of your child’s progress. This is important because it will help you to identify areas where they need more practice and also give you an idea of how well they are doing overall.
- Experienced educators should design the course: A good course will be designed by experienced educators who are experts in phonics. This is important because they will be able to provide your child with the best possible learning experience.
- A reputable organization should accredit the course: A good course will be accredited by a reputable organization so you can be sure of its quality. This is important because it will give you peace of mind knowing that your child is getting the best possible education.
These are just some features you should look for in a free online phonics course with a certificate. Then, when you find a course that offers all of these features, you can be sure that your child will be able to benefit from it greatly.
Structured online phonics courses
The core goal of reading and writing is for a child to understand what they are reading and writing. And for it to happen, children should be able to identify new words and read fast and effortlessly without stumbling over the text. This process can be streamlined by getting trained in phonics. And free online phonics courses in such circumstances make for a good resort. So, here are 3 free and 3 paid online phonics courses that you must definitely look into.
Free courses
1. Twinkl Phonics CPD Training
Approved by the Department of Education, Twinkl Phonics CPD Training by Udemy is a free training course for kids. They will explore phonics and how it can benefit children’s reading and writing development. The course looks at some of the key concepts behind phonics teaching like:
- importance of segmenting and blending sounds, and
- how to use phonics to support early reading and writing.
By the end of the course, kids may better understand how to use phonics to support their reading and writing abilities which can be nurtured into proficient English-speaking natives.
2. Help your child to read and write
Help Your Child to Read and Write (Sounds-Write Phonics Program, Initial Code, Units 1-7) is a course that can benefit any parent who wants to help their child improve their literacy skills.
- The first section provides tips and tricks on how to better help your child learn to read
- The second section focuses on writing
Each section contains several lectures delivered by an expert in the field and downloadable resources and quizzes to test your knowledge. The course covers some fundamental English language aspects as well like:
- how to help your child build, write, and read simple CVC (consonant, vowel, consonant) words
- how to correct your child when they make a mistake in their reading or writing simple words, and
- have a basic understanding of how exactly phonics works
3. Free Reading
Free Reading is a free phonics online lessons program that comprises 40 weeks of instruction, 5 days per week, 30 minutes per day. The timings given for individual activities in the program are generous and help kids in multiple phonics facets like:
Print Concepts, Letter Sounds, Sounding Out, Word Recognition, Advanced Phonics, Irregular words 1-2, prefixes- suffixes, and many others. Students learn how different forms of print are read and gradually learn to excel through them at proficient English language skills. This course is a comprehensive take on all things reading, writing, and speaking phonically to have kids ready for a competitive real-life experience.
Paid courses
1. Learn English Phonics for beginners
Learn English Phonics for Beginners course is designed for complete beginners who want to learn how to read and write using phonics. The course starts with the basics of phonics and gradually builds up your knowledge so that by the end of the course, you will be able to read and write confidently using phonics.
The course includes clear explanations, fun exercises, and practical activities to consolidate your learning as you go along. There are also plenty of opportunities to practice what you have learned to build up your confidence.
By the end of this course, you will:
- Know what phonics is and how it can help you learn to read and write
- Have learned all of the consonant and vowel sounds in English
- Be confident in using phonics for more complex words
- Understand how to use phonics to spell words correctly
2. Teaching Phonics in Early Childhood by Queensland University of Technology
This free online course from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) will teach you how to effectively teach phonics in early childhood settings. Phonics is a teaching method involving breaking down words into their individual sounds or phonemes.
This course will cover the different stages of phonemic awareness, as well as how to teach phonics using a range of activities and games. By the end of the course, you will better understand how to support young children’s developing literacy skills.
This course is aimed at early childhood educators, teachers, and anyone who works with young children. It will be of particular interest to those interested in developing their knowledge of phonics and how it can be effectively taught in an early childhood setting.
3. All About Reading
All About Reading is a comprehensive reading program that helps children of all ages and abilities learn to read. Based on the Orton-Gillingham approach, All About Reading uses a multisensory approach to teaching reading, which has been proven to be effective for children with dyslexia and other reading difficulties.
The All About Reading program includes three levels:
- Pre-Reading
- Level 1, and
- Level 2
Each level builds upon the previous one so that children can progress at their own pace.
- Pre-reading is designed for children who are just beginning to learn to read. It introduces basic concepts such as letter sounds and simple words.
- Level 1 is designed for children who know some letter sounds but are not yet reading confidently. It teaches children to read by sound and sight and introduces more challenging concepts such as blends and digraphs.
- Level 2 is designed for children who are reading independently but may still need help with some of the more difficult concepts such as vowel teams and suffixes.
The All About Reading program is flexible and can be used in a variety of ways to meet the needs of individual children. It can be used as a stand-alone program or as a supplement to another reading program. It can be used in a classroom setting or at home. And it can be used with children of all ages, from pre-readers to fluent readers.
Take away
Whether you are a parent looking to help your child learn to read, or an adult wanting to improve your reading skills, these online phonics courses can help you reach your goals. These courses can help your child build a strong foundation in phonics thereby enhancing reading and writing.
So choose the course that best suits your needs and start your journey to better reading today!
I am Shweta Sharma. I am a final year Masters student of Clinical Psychology and have been working closely in the field of psycho-education and child development. I have served in various organisations and NGOs with the purpose of helping children with disabilities learn and adapt better to both, academic and social challenges. I am keen on writing about learning difficulties, the science behind them and potential strategies to deal with them. My areas of expertise include putting forward the cognitive and behavioural aspects of disabilities for better awareness, as well as efficient intervention. Follow me on LinkedIn