Beginning Sounds

About Beginning Sounds

A big letter appears — B — and three pictures sit below it. Only one of them starts with that sound. Tap any picture to hear its name said out loud, so a child who cannot read yet can play entirely by ear. Every picture is filed under the sound it truly begins with, not just its first letter, so nothing here teaches the wrong thing. No timer and nothing to lose.

Beginning Sounds is one of our words & letters games for kids. This one plays in the iPhone and iPad app rather than in the browser, but 33 of our games are free to play right here — browse the full library to find them. It is also in our games for toddlers and preschoolers collection.

How to Play

• Look at the big letter at the top — tap it to hear it.
• Tap the pictures to hear what they are called.
• Choose the picture whose name starts with that sound.

Tips & Tricks

• Say the sound, not the letter name: 'b' as in ball, not 'bee', and without an 'uh' after it.
• Stretch the first sound out loud together: mmm-monkey, sss-sun.
• Go hunting round the house for things that start with the same sound.

What Kids Learn

Beginning Sounds teaches the first and most important step in reading: hearing that a spoken word starts with a sound, and matching that sound to a letter. Teachers call it phonemic awareness, and children who can hear first sounds usually find learning to read much easier.

The game is careful about it. Each letter's sound is said the way teachers say it, short and clean, without an "uh" on the end, and each picture is filed under the sound it really starts with, so a word like "knife" never turns up under K. Every picture can be tapped to hear its name, so a child who can't read yet plays entirely by ear.

• Matching a letter to the sound it makes
• Hearing the first sound in a spoken word
• Alphabet recognition in upper and lower case

Curriculum links

For teachers and homeschooling parents, here is where Beginning Sounds lines up with what children are taught at school:

• Common Core RF.K.2.D: Isolate the first sound in a spoken word
• Common Core RF.K.3.A: Know the sound each letter makes
• Ontario Language, Grade 1 (2023) B2.1: Phonemic awareness: isolate the first sound in a word
• Ontario Language, Grade 1 (2023) B2.3: Match letters to the sounds they represent

What Age Is Beginning Sounds For?

Made for ages 3 to 5, and especially useful in the year before and the first year of school. Three-year-olds can play with an adult saying the words with them; most four- and five-year-olds play alone. Once they know their letter sounds, Rhyme Time and Alphabet Catch are the natural next games.

Tips for Parents

Say the sound with them, stretched out: "sssun". Hearing you exaggerate the first sound makes it much easier to catch.

Play it in short bursts. Ten rounds a day does more than one long sitting.

When they get one right, ask for another word that starts the same way. Coming up with their own word is the real test.

Try It Without a Screen

• Play "I spy something beginning with…" using the letter sound, not the letter name.
• Put three toys on the floor and ask which one starts with a given sound.
• Sort the shopping into piles by first sound as you unpack it.

Beginning Sounds — Frequently Asked Questions