Children who don't know the names of the letters have a harder time learning letter sounds and understanding words. Before they can recognise and name many letters, children cannot comprehend and apply the alphabetic principle (knowing that there are systematic and predictable correlations between written letters and spoken sounds).
Youngsters whose understanding of the alphabet is not fully formed when they begin school require logically arranged education that will aid in the identification, naming, and writing of letters. Children can start learning letter sounds and spellings whenever they can recognise and name letters with ease.
Letter names come first, followed by letter forms, and then letter sounds, as the order in which children learn the alphabet. By reciting rhymes and singing songs like the "Alphabet Song," children can learn the names of the alphabetic characters. As kids play with blocks, plastic letters, and alphabet books, they pick up letter shapes. Letter learning is most effective when children are given several opportunities to observe, play with, and compare letters during informal but planned instruction. This training should include exercises that teach kids how to recognise, pronounce, and write each letter in both upper- and lowercase.
Understanding the alphabetic principle—the notion that letters and letter patterns replicate the sounds of spoken language—is essential for children's reading development. Children can apply these patterns to both known and unknown words and start reading fluently after they learn that there are predictable correlations between sounds and letters.
The aim of phonics training is to assist kids in understanding and mastering the Alphabetic Principle. The idea that written letters and spoken sounds have orderly and predictable links to one another is known as the alphabetic principle. Children learn the connections between the sounds of spoken language and written letters.
So we need to be very careful with the way of teaching and the pace of instruction while teaching the alphabetic principle.
