Segmenting Sounds to Spell

Break a spoken word into its sounds so you can write it.

Segmenting is the opposite of blending. Instead of putting sounds together, you pull a word apart. This helps you spell. Say the word 'dig' slowly. Tap one finger for each sound: /d/ on the first finger, /i/ on the second, /g/ on the third.

Three taps means three sounds. Now write a letter for each sound: d-i-g. If you are not sure of a sound, say the word again and stretch it. Writers segment all the time, even grown-ups, when they meet a word they have never spelled before.

• 1Segmenting pulls a word apart into sounds.
• 2Tap one finger for each sound.
• 3Write a letter for each sound you hear.