Over the last few days I’ve looked at some of the different types of phonics songs available on YouTube. If there’s one song that is a perennial favourite with teachers, it’s Phonics Song 2.
There are many things to like about it.
First, and most important, all of the letter sounds are produced properly for learning phonics. This will make it easier for children to accurately blend and segment individual sounds later on.
Next, Phonics Song 2 is a catchy tune, with simple lyrics. Children really enjoy singing the song, and, importantly, its memorable.
If I’m covering a class, I can know with some certainty that either the children will be familiar with the song, or, they’ll be able to pick it up quickly and enjoy singing along. I also know that by using this song and practicing the letter sounds, I won’t be interfering with the way the student’s regular teacher is presenting their phonics.
Another thing I like is the choice of words for each of the letters. This makes it easy to devise simple TPR actions for each individual word. The children will enjoy doing the actions, and it will help them remember the word and letter sound. When a child is stuck with a letter sound, you can try doing the TPR action to assist them, or lead them with ‘P is for…’.
Overall, I think Phonics Song 2 is an excellent tool for teaching phonics, and I play it almost every lesson I teach.
Although less popular, the second version of the Phonics Song 2 adds a few changes: less schwa on the letter sounds and changes some the target vocabulary to avoid difficult beginning consonant clusters.
