As the mother of a three-year-old who is allowed no television time at all, I was sceptical of this product but decided to give it a try. I was in for a surprise. Who knew teaching your child phonics could be this much fun?
Developed for four- to six-year olds, BBC Words and Pictures: Fun with Phonics is a multi-sensory programme that helps children learn English through the use of phonics. Phonics is a method of teaching English reading to children by first introducing the letter sounds and then building up and combining these sounds to pronounce whole words.
The bulky pack comprises a set of 44 books, each focusing on a different phoneme, as well as interactive DVDs and CDs, flash cards and a Talking Pen. While it may seem to weigh a tonne, the beautifully illustrated resource is packed with sounds, stories, animation and games for children, and is designed to be used over three years.
Children will love exploring the bright, colourful videos, charts and flashcards, while developing their skills at distinguishing different sounds. But without a doubt, it's the friendly Talking Pen that they will find most fascinating. It's a great way to pique your child's interest. Youngsters can use them to listen to phoneme sounds and record their own versions.
But this magic pen is more than just a recorder. Use the tip of the pen to touch the text in the books or flashcards and the words will be read out loud. My son loved running the pen over the pages and hearing them come to life with fantastic narrations. You can even download and play your own music on the pen.
Each book and DVD tells stories introducing the focus phoneme in words, phrases and then sentences.