Is My Child Supposed to Know Letters and Sounds Before Kindergarten?

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Should My Child Know Letters and Sounds Before Kindergarten?

Are you wondering whether your child should know letters and sounds before starting kindergarten?

You’re not alone—and the short answer is: Yes, early literacy skills are more important than ever.

Why Early Literacy Matters Now More Than Ever

Today’s academic expectations are much higher than they used to be. All state standards now expect children to be reading simple books by the end of kindergarten. And reading—even just a single word like cat —isn’t as simple as it seems.

To read cat, a child must:

Recognize the letters c, a, and t by name
Know the sounds those letters represent
Blend those sounds together smoothly
Connect the word to something meaningful in their world

That’s a lot of mental work for a five-year-old!

Early Literacy Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated

These skills don’t need to be pushed, drilled, or turned into formal lessons. They can be introduced naturally at home—through playful, everyday interactions.

In fact, the earlier you begin, the easier it can be. Why? Because younger children are naturally curious and eager to learn from the adults around them. As they get older, they start to crave independence—and sometimes that means tuning us out (been there, right?).

Everyday Learning is Powerful

Did you know there are simple, no-pressure ways to help your child learn letters, sounds, and even begin blending them into words—all during the time you’re already spending together each day?

One of the Easiest Tools? Environmental Print

Teach Letters and Sounds Using Environmental Print

What is environmental print?
It’s the text that surrounds us: stop signs, cereal boxes, store logos, street names, and packaging.

Use it to your advantage. Point out letters, talk about the sounds they make, and invite your child to explore with you.

And here’s the part that often surprises parents—in the best way: You don’t need to plan out which letters to teach or follow a rigid system. You can start by simply noticing and naming letters and their sounds as they naturally show up in your day.

How This Skill Can Grow Over Time

Start by modeling it yourself:

“Look! That’s the letter S on the stop sign. It says /s/, like sun.”
“Your cup has a D on it—D makes the /d/ sound, like dog.”
“There’s the letter L on the license plate! L says /l/, like lion.”

Then, prompt your child to find letters with you:

“Do you see the letter S anywhere? It makes the /s/ sound, like in sun.”
“I spot an M—can you find it too? M says /m/, like in mad.”
“That sign has a B—just like your name, Beatrice! B makes the /b/ sound, like in ball.”

Eventually, your child starts doing it on their own: They might say:

“Hey! That says /t/, like tiger!”
“There’s an E—just like in elephant!”

This type of playful, no-pressure exposure helps your child connect letters with sounds in a natural way—and they’ll think it’s just a game.

But Before You Dive In...

One of the most crucial first steps you can take is learning the correct letter sound pronunciations.

In schools, teachers often use letter/keyword/sound cards to help children make strong, lasting connections. For example, they might say:

“A – apple – /a/”
“B – ball – /b/”
“C – cat – /k/”

The keyword gives children a familiar reference. If they forget a letter’s sound, they can recall the keyword and hold onto the beginning sound in their mind.

Want to Hear What the Sounds Actually Sound Like?

Head over to my YouTube video where I walk you through the correct pronunciation of each letter sound—so you can feel confident modeling them for your child.
👉 Watch the video here!

Choose the Right ABC Books to Support Learning Letters

Another fun and meaningful way to teach letter identification and sounds? Reading books together!

There are so many ABC books out there—and they can be a wonderful tool for introducing letters. But here’s an important tip to keep in mind: not all ABC books are created equal.

Remember those letter/keyword/sound connections? Many books (and toys or learning resources) use keywords that don’t actually begin with the correct letter sound.

For example:

"A is for Airplane"—but airplane starts with the /ĕ/ sound, not the short /æ/ sound.
"G is for Giraffe"—but giraffe begins with the /j/ sound, not the hard /g/ sound.

These may seem like small details, but they really matter when children are learning to connect letters with sounds for the first time.

Look for books that use:

Short vowel sounds (A is for Apple, E is for Elephant)
Hard consonants (C is for Cat, G is for Goat)

Already have ABC books at home or found one you love but it doesn’t use ideal keywords? Not a problem!

Now that you know the correct sounds and how to produce them, you can still use the book. Instead of focusing on the keyword, name it to build vocabulary and then say the correct letter sound.