How to Know What Reading Phase Your Child Is In (Without Guessing or Testing)

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And what to do next—without a curriculum or complicated assessments

Teaching reading at home can feel like trying to hit a moving target.
One day your child sounds out cat, and the next they’re guessing cheese from a picture. Are they behind? Are they in the “right level”? What are you even supposed to teach next?

Here’s the good news:
You don’t need a fancy test or boxed curriculum to figure out what phase your child is in.

You just need to know what to look for, and how to respond.

Why “Reading Level” Doesn’t Tell You What to Teach

You might’ve been told your child is at a level C or J or 2nd grade. But reading levels don’t tell you how your child is processing words.

• Can they blend sounds on their own?
• Do they recognize word patterns—or are they memorizing?
• Can they spell words using the sounds they hear?

These are the kinds of questions that matter.

Reading happens in phases, not levels. And once you know your child’s phase, you’ll know exactly what to focus on next.

The 4 Phases of Reading

Most kids move through these developmental phases as they learn to read:

⭐ Phase 1: Getting Started

Knows some letter names or sounds, but not yet reading
🟢 Focus: rhyming, syllables, beginning sounds, and exposure to print

⭐ Phase 2: Starting to Sound It Out

Beginning to blend sounds and read simple words
🟢 Focus: phoneme awareness, sound-letter mapping, and CVC decoding

⭐ Phase 3: Starting to Read

Reading short words and decodable text with support
🟢 Focus: fluency, word chains, phoneme-grapheme mapping, and spelling patterns

⭐ Phase 4: Reading with Confidence

Reading independently with growing comprehension
🟢 Focus: syllable division, morphemes (prefixes, suffixes), and fluency with expression

So How Do You Know What Phase Your Child Is In?

Ask yourself:

• Can they read short words sound by sound?
• Are they guessing from pictures—or decoding from letters?
• Do they spell by sound, or copy from memory?
• Are they fluent, or still laboring over each word?

You’ll learn more from five minutes of watching them read than any leveled test will tell you.

What to Do Next

Once you know your child’s phase, you don’t need a curriculum. You just need the right routines for where they are.

Short. Simple. Focused.

• In Phase 1? Play rhyming games and teach letter sounds through multisensory play.
• In Phase 2? Use sound boxes, blending cards, and oral games to build decoding skills.
• In Phase 3? Try mapping words, word chains, and fluency grids—just a few minutes a day.
• In Phase 4? Work on syllable division, spelling rules, and meaningful reading discussions.

The key is to meet your child where they are, not where a grade-level chart says they should be.

Want Help Figuring It Out?

If you’re not sure which phase your child is in, or you want a simple plan to move forward, grab the free Reading Skills Roadmap.

It walks you through the 4 phases, helps you identify the best-fit phase for your child, and gives you clear next steps (no guessing required).

🎯 Sign up below to get the free Reading Skills Roadmap
(You’ll have a plan in under 10 minutes.)

Final Thought

Your child doesn’t need to be “caught up.”
They need to be seen, right where they are, and supported with routines that actually work.

You don’t need more curriculum.
You need clarity.

And you’re just one phase away from it.

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