Speech Sound Play introduces young children to reading and spelling in a way that makes sense to all brains!
IPA Phonemies are Speech Sound Monsters® Speech Sound Pics® prevent difficulties in learning to read spell with Mapped Words®.
Speech Sound Play with Speech Sound Pics®
This ten-day 'Phase 1' plan for reception classrooms focuses on phonemic awareness – the ability to hear, isolate, segment, and blend speech sounds. Developing this awareness helps children understand that words are made up of individual sounds, and that these sounds can be represented by letters. Once children grasp this concept, learning the role of letters in words becomes far more meaningful.
Phonemies (Speech Sound Monsters) speed up the process by making the sound value visible, starting with their names!
Before introducing learners to mapped words and mapped books, work through the 10-day plan.
Children understand that the Speech Sound Monsters each say a sound of English (the speech sounds we use when speaking English).
Children simply “follow the Monster Sounds to say the word!” The letters, which are the pictures of the sounds, are the secondary focus. The primary focus in Phase 1 is learning to blend the sounds together using Duck Hands and understand their order on the page.
Show the Code. Support Every Brain.
Words mapped with Phonemies make letter–sound mapping clear, so no child finds phonics difficult
The activities are designed for a Reception class and provide a structured lead-in to systematic phonics instruction. By day 5, children are ready to begin learning grapheme-to-phoneme correspondences for the first set of letters: s, a, t, p, i, n.
Before introducing learners to mapped words, work through the 10-day plan. It benefits not only young children, but also older struggling readers, learners with SLCN, those at risk of dyslexia, neurodivergent learners, and even EAL students who need stronger sound–symbol awareness.
All Aboard! The Reading Hut® is on a mission to:
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Screen children for dyslexia risk before they start learning to read and spell.
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Give non-speaking learners a voice with MySpeekie®, the world’s first one-screen AAC.
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Better support the 1 in 4 children at risk of reading and spelling difficulties, and those who are already instructional casualties (ICs)
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Inspire young children to love reading with the Story People and Speekie Peeps!
Miss Emma developed the world’s first bi-directional word mapping tool. MappedWords.com
The 10 Day Speech Sound Plan introduces learners to the concept that every word can be mapped!
We are introducing children to skills and concepts that will enable them to explore the whole alphabetic code. This matters because my doctoral research relates to a surprising phenomenon: phonics-trained teachers often haven't been shown all the letter sounds! They typically only know those taught in a synthetic phonics programme, which means they miss opportunities during the day to explore the grapho-phonemic structure of all words.
When using the Speech Sound Pics (SSP) Approach teachers are exploring the whole code along with the learners, with Mapped Words!
Phase 1 gives children the best foundation from which to self-teach and discover the whole code! The IPA Phonemies - Speech Sound Monsters - are vital because they show the sound value for the letters.
Together, we can prevent 1 in 4 from struggling to learn to read and spell moving forwards. This figure has remained the same in England since 2016. Fewer children are reading for pleasure, even if they can read. Synthetic phonics programme content is not enough. Teachers deserve more, so that they can better meet the needs of their neurodiverse learners. Are you in? It's just ten days. Tell every Reception Teacher you know!
If children don't (yet) know the letter sounds the Phonemies show them the sound (phoneme) sound value for each grapheme!
Children simply "follow the Monster Sounds to say the word!"
Download Mapped Words from MappedWords.com
Funded by Innovate UK, MyWordz® helps children make sense of written language by showing the full speech–sound structure of words in both directions: from print to speech and from speech to print. This is real-time word mapping that shows both graphemes (Sound Pics®) and their sound values – using IPA Phonemies - a world first.
MyWordz® is especially helpful for learners who have difficulty retaining spellings, self-correcting when writing, or decoding words with fluency. It is available as a website login, at MyWordz.tech, which is ideal for interactive whiteboards, and also as an app version. More details.
MySpeekie® is included within the MyWordz technology®. It enables non-speaking children to build and voice words using speech sounds on a single screen. This is another breakthrough in inclusive technology for children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN), developed by The Reading Hut. Training is delivered by Emma Hartnell-Baker aka The Neurodivergent Reading Whisperer®
My SLCN CIC is running a pilot in January 2026 and is designed to generate real-world evidence ahead of an independent evaluation by the Education Endowment Foundation. Participating schools will receive free access to the technology, straightforward onboarding for staff, and ready-to-use consent materials. Please do express an interest here MySLCN.com
MyWordz® tech includes the Code Mapping® Tool
This segments the words into black and grey and is an incredible innovation!
It is much easier to develop orthographic knowledge when the graphemes are clearly shown.
This segmentation is possible thanks to a ground-breaking Code Mapping® algorithm that maps words in both directions.
Try it for free at https://www.mappedwords.com/free-code-mapping
Help children avoid phonics learning difficulties – download the info flyer
Get started with the 10-Day Speech Sound Play Plan for Phonemic Awareness Mastery!
MyWordz® delivers Discovery Phonics for all words. Word Mapping Mastery® by The Reading Hut Ltd.
Meet the Phonemies® (Speech Sound Monsters®) through “Speech Sounds Play”, our 10-day Phonemic Awareness Mastery Plan: a neuro-inclusive alternative to Phase 1 of Letters and Sounds. Learn to Duck Hand® words. Every child included. Afterwards, visit MyWordz® - Word Mapping Tools with with MySpeekie® to Master the Spelling Code
❓ What is Phonemic Awareness Mastery?
Phonemic awareness mastery means a child can confidently hear, identify, and manipulate individual speech sounds (phonemes) in spoken words. These skills form the foundation for decoding, spelling, and understanding how spoken language maps to print. Without these skills children will find learning synthetic phonics difficult. To make it easier to develop phonemic awareness, and link it to phonics - even before introducing the graphemes, we use Phonemies.
❓ How does Speech Sound Play work before Core Phonics?
Speech Sound Play builds the essential listening and sound awareness skills children need before phonics begins. Through playful, structured activities using the Speech Sound Monsters (Phonemies), children develop the ability to hear and work with individual sounds. This prepares them for systematic synthetic phonics by giving them the speech–sound insight phonics assumes they already have.
During the ten-day plan, you will identify the children most at risk of struggling to understand synthetic phonics. It is essential to recognise these gaps early and take action. One effective way to intervene is by giving these children access to the Monster Spelling Piano app to learn the Core Code quickly and easily, and to MySpeekie® throughout the day. This allows them to figure out unfamiliar words and learn how to spell the words they need while writing.
They explore the words that matter to them in that moment. That is why it is called MyWordz® with MySpeekie®. Join us here!
Start with Speech Sound Play, the Phonemic Awareness Mastery Plan to use before Core Phonics.
Then begin the 30-Minute-Per-Day Core Phonics Routine and also use Discovery Phonics throughout the day.
The Speech to Print Spelling Routine (Monster Routine) lays the foundation for storing words in the Brain Word Bank.
Use the MyWordz® site to explore word mapping tools.
The goal? Word Mapping Mastery® for all. This makes reading fluency and accurate spelling possible for every brain.
Our 10-day standalone plan introduces children to the IPA-aligned Phonemies®, the Speech Sound Monsters®, and builds the essential skills they need before systematic synthetic phonics begins in Key Stage One. Each Monster says a sound of English.
"Use your Duck Hands, and Follow the Monster Sounds to Say the Word!"
Start the reception year with an upstream mindset: screen all children for dyslexia risk and ensure every child develops the phonemic awareness needed to make sense of phonics.
Children love mapping words with Speech Sound Monsters and quickly become hooked on wanting to read and write.
Easily map words and see the reading and spelling code with MyWordz® tech!
Follow MappedWords.com to see the MyWordz® with MySpeekie® tech in action and download Mapped Words®
Supporting a non-speaking child? You will LOVE MySpeekie®
We are going to build Spelling Brains without using a spelling programme!
It all begins with a strong early focus on phonemic awareness, phonological working memory, and essential underlying concepts. For example: Which sound is this a picture of? Using the Speech Sound Pics (SSP) Approach, we Show the Code and leave nothing to chance. The Spelling Brain knows, instantly, which word looks right. Miss Emma will show you how to make that happen for all learners within the neurodiverse classroom.
Speech Sound Play Unlocks Word Mapping Mastery®:
Mapped Words® They Need to Read. Speech Sound Pics® and Phonemies® Lead!
Use MyWordz® as a Phonics Spell Checker! By typing the word using the Phonemies keyboard you check they can spell (encode) the words. This will align with the DfE Writing Framework.
To train with Miss Emma and learn how to use the groundbreaking MyWordz® tech and give children the knowledge and confidence to spell words by knowing 'what looks right', without using a spelling programme, visit SpellingTeacherTraining.com
This Science of Spelling work is part of the wider orthographic mapping goal of achieving Word Mapping Mastery® for all minds, so that every child can communicate, read, spell and write with confidence
Start here with Speech Sound Play, then transition to using MyWordz® with MySpeekie®, the world’s first Word Mapping Mastery tool that shows the code in both directions: Print to Speech and Speech to Print. It is the only Speech to Print word mapper designed for children.
The Neurodivergent Reading Whisperer®: Let's Prevent Reading and Spelling Difficulties
A Sound Start to KS1 with Phonemies!
From the moment children step into school, they are welcomed with activities that build on what they already know—speech. We play with speech sounds, helping every child feel valued by mapping their names and celebrating their voices. Our Innovate UK-funded tech provides a voice for non-speaking children through the Phonemies Keyboard: a one-screen AAC. Through talking, singing, rhyming, painting, and puppet play, children explore sounds in a way that feels natural and engaging.
This is more than just a lead into phonics, it is an early screening opportunity to identify children at risk of struggling and a dedicated focus on speech, language, and communication needs, ensuring that every child gets the support they need from the very start. We prevent the struggle.
Speech Sound Play Before Speech Sound Pics!
The MyWordz® with MySpeekie® tech
During the 10-day Speech Sound Play Plan, you will need the MyWordz® tech so that children can start to explore the letters and sounds in any words they choose, not just the words that are mapped with the Core Code.
Use MySpeekie as a one-screen AAC for non-speaking children!
Get the Web Version
Register and confirm your email. You can then pay the £75 to use MyWordz.tech for 12 months.
If you would like to use the app version you can pay for licences once logged in (£5.75 per year) and use these links to access the app version with your login credentials
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/mywordz-for-members/id6739351608
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.thereadinghut.mywordz.members
One-Off Payment of £134.75 in the app stores!
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/mywordz-with-myspeekie/id6737770129
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mywordz.app&hl=en_GB
During the 10-day Speech Sound Play Plan, you will need the Monster Spelling Piano app. This tool accelerates the development of phonemic awareness by providing carefully scaffolded learning. Children can toggle between building words with Speech Sound Monsters® (Phonemies) or with Sound Pics® (graphemes), helping them make clear connections between sounds and print. They can also practise forming the letters s, a, t, p, i, n to prepare for phonics instruction.
Get the Monster Spelling Piano app to master the core phonics code.
One-time price: £14.95
Available on:
Apple (iPads)
Google Play (Android tablets)