Teaching a child to read. Help please!

[SpaghettiMeatballs]

DD (3) is interested in learning to read. We've been doing alphabet puzzles and learning to write her name in paint etc. I read to her a lot and now she says she would like to read the words.

Where do I start beyond continuing to teach her how individual letters sound.

She likes the iPad. Are there any games or apps anyone would recommend?

Are you using phonics for the letter sounds? Get Julia Donaldson's 'Songbirds' books level 1. It's ideal for early 'blending' the letter sounds together.

This is what I started with when my 3yo wanted to read and had learnt all her letter sounds. Then work your way through Biff and Chip from Oxford Tree.

Look for jolly phonics stage 2 on YouTube. Learn a few sounds in a week. Start with s a t p i n which can then be blended into different words. Is she at nursery yet? It might be worth asking the method they use so that she won't get confused if you teach it differently.

Alphablocks is brilliant for this, short episodes on YouTube or the CBeebies website, or there are DVDs.
Teach your monster to read, website and app run by the Usborne foundation, free.
hairy Letters app, also teaches letter formation.
When you are ready for books the Book People often have good deals on Oxford Reading Tree or Songbirds.

Starfall is a brilliant website, and free.

They have an app, but you need to pay for the full version. The website alone is very, very good though.

I have this book

Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons

It's quite brilliant. DS1 was a non reader starting Grade 1 and I used it over the summer holidays to get him started.

I've just started DS2 (4yo) on it as he has been showing signs of being interested in reading.

I did the phonics letter by letter and then dripped tiny bits of blending into bedtime stories. Keep an eye out for phonically easy words in titles, pictures and word balloons, spell them out yourself, and when you think she might be ready ask her to spell the odd easy word for herself.

Thank you all. The Songbird books look ace. She loves Julia Donaldson.

I've been trying phonics out with her when we are reading but she is just memorising them as though they are nouns rather than understanding they are sounds iyswim?

I shall check out the recommended apps. Thank you.

I was looking at Reading Eggs this afternoon. Has anyone used this system?

Jolly phonics on youtube. Brilliant!

Reading eggs and pocket phonics are great

Have got a free trial of Reading Eggs. She loved the first two lessons and was most displeased when I said that was enough for one day!

Fingers crossed she doesn't get bored with it.

My DS likes the phonics farm app on the ipad. He picked up the letter sounds really quickly and has started doing the blending activities. He loves earning the stickers and making his farm scene.

The phonics farm app is great for learning the sounds. You start off with a a t p I n on level 1 and then move through the levels. You have to pop balloons and build a train, DS didn't really like the other phonics apps but this one is definitely a hit with him. He is 3.5.

• s a t p i n