Learn the sounds.
Make the words mean something.

A reading task, with language support.

This may fit a child starting to read English at home or practising sounds taught in an English class. They do not need to read English already. Choose cards around what they have been taught, and introduce unfamiliar meanings before asking them to read or spell a word.

The deck’s recordings are in English, spoken by Simon in his accent from England. Cards and instructions are in English, with no translations. Most word cards are text-based; only three have word pictures. An adult needs to supply explanations, objects, actions or other illustrations when useful.

Sounding out is only part of reading.

The British Council’s discussion of phonics and additional-language learners recommends teaching vocabulary alongside letter–sound relationships. It explains that a child can sound out a word without understanding it when their spoken English vocabulary is still developing.

Our suggested routine below applies that distinction to the existing cards. It is our guidance, not a British Council programme or an independently evaluated teaching method.

Try it with “sat”.

1. Make the meaning clear. Sit down, describe the action and explain that sat tells us someone was sitting. Use your shared language if helpful. The aim is understanding, not a grammar quiz.
2. Teach the sounds. Introduce the sounds represented by s, a and t, using the recordings as a model. These belong to the deck’s first set. Spread this over sessions if needed.
3. Model blending. Point to each letter, say its sound, then blend the sounds into sat. Invite your child to try. Supply help when needed.
4. Practise and check. Use the reading card once the relevant sounds have been taught. Grade a helped answer as Again and an independent correct answer as Good. Add spelling when ready.
5. Use the word beyond the card. Say a meaningful sentence together or find it in reading material matched to the child’s taught sounds. The deck itself contains sound and word cards, not sentence lessons.

If your child can sound out the word but cannot explain it, revisit its meaning. If they know the spoken word but cannot blend it, model the sounds again. These are different tasks, and adding more cards need not be the answer.

One deck, with guidance for your family.

This is the same English Phonics for Kids package: 48 sound cards, 282 words with separate reading and spelling cards, and 18 tricky-word reading cards—630 cards in total. Its order draws on Letters and Sounds (2007), Phases 2–3, with ure omitted and 30 tagged extension words. Check the sequence against school teaching.

There is no separate ESL edition to buy. Existing owners already have these cards. The deck appears in Anki as Sound Road, with its original illustrations and parent guide.

Looking for an adult learner? Read the adult suitability guide.