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Free Evidence-Based Resources for Literacy Success
Letter-Sound & Word Skills for Kids:Andre Chronicles Issue #2
Our original comic book is a fun way for children ages 3–6 to build their onset and rime skills. They will practice listening for the first sound in a word (onset) and the rest of the word (rime). These skills help kids spot word patterns, break words into parts, and more easily decode new words.
Age: 3-6
Download the book free:
In this issue, Andre plays word games with his family. He listens for the first sound in words, matches them to letters, and even practices changing the first sound (onset) to make new words.
Tips for Caregivers
Here are some easy ways to practice onset & rime skills at home after reading together:
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Play Word Games: For example, say a word like cat and ask your child to change the onset to make new words (bat, hat, rat)
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Rhyming Practice: Find words that rhyme — helps with hearing and identifying sounds
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Create Word Families: Write down rimes (like -at, -op, -in) and think of as many words as you can that share those rimes
These make reading more interactive and fun, and they support your child’s phonological awareness — an important step in becoming a strong reader.
Additional Resources
You might also explore the FCRR Student Center Activities, which offers over 350 free activities for phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension — many suitable for pre-K to Grade 5.
Users may use the FCRR Student Center Activities resources if modifications are not made, the resources will only be used for non-profit educational purposes, and the copyright belongs jointly to the Florida Department of Education and the Florida Center for Reading Research. These resources may not be used for any commercial purposes. These resources on our site may be linked to but not reposted, reproduced, modified, or copied to other sites. For questions about the use of these resources, please contact The Florida Center for Reading Research at fcrr@fcrr.org.
Suggested Citation
National Center on Improving Literacy. (2025). Letter-Sound & Word Skills for Kids: Andre Chronicles Issue #2. https://www.improvingliteracy.org/letter-sound-and-word-skills-for-kids-andre-chronicles-2