Phonemes
Kids learn to read through phoneme awareness— hearing and understanding the 44 basic segments of sound in our language. For example

       • CAT contains three distinct phonemes: K-A-T.
         We combine the phonemes to form the word-
         sound, which is what carries meaning: CAT
         means something different from BAT.

Phonics
Next, children learn through phonics. They begin to understand that letters on a page stand for individual sounds. In CAT, the symbol C represents the phoneme K, and so on.

Fluency
Gradually, children learn to read in larger and larger chunks, developing fluency. They read at a faster pace, taking in syllable patterns, suffixes ("ing" or "ed"), and longer words.

Some children become fluent readers faster than others, needing only one or two exposures to a word to gain recognition. On average, though, kids need somewhere between 4 and 14 exposures.

Adult Guidance
All of this explains why it's important for us to ...
                
       • talk to young children. Talk a lot, using a wide
         vocabulary to acquaint them with a variety of
         sounds and meanings.

       • encourage kids to read, read, read! The more
          they read, the more fluent readers they'll
          become.