Thrass Handbook Zimbabwe

What You'll Find Out

You will discover a clear way to teach children the sounds that make up English words using THRASS. We show you how to listen for sounds, say them, and match them to letters. This helps children read and spell with more confidence.

We make learning fun with games, toys, and things from everyday life. Together we will build simple steps you can use in the classroom and at home so children enjoy learning sounds.

How It Works

THRASS is a teaching system that helps children connect sounds to letters and letter groups.

• Phoneme - the smallest sound in a word (for example, the /b/ in "ball").
• Grapheme - the letter or letters that show a sound (for example, "sh" for /ʃ/ in "shoe").
• Phoneme awareness - hearing and using phonemes to make or break words.

Simple steps to begin:

1. Listen: Ask children to hear a single sound in a familiar word.

2. Say: Say the sound clearly and slowly.

3. Show: Point to the letter or letters that make the sound.

4. Play: Use a game or object to practise again.

Use examples from a child’s life: cup, cat, tree, sheep, bus. These help children link sounds to things they know.

Let's Try It Together

1. Take a toy car and say "car."

2. Ask the child to listen for the first sound: /k/.

3. Show the letter that makes the /k/ sound: "c" or "k".

4. Ask the child to repeat the sound /k/.

5. Put the toy car next to the letter "c".

6. Tell the child the answer is c.

Your Turn!

• Draw: Draw a bowl of fruit and write the first sound under each fruit (e.g., apple = /a/).
• Circle: Circle the picture that begins with the /m/ sound from a page of pictures (mouse, ball, sun).
• Match: Match toy animals to the letters that start their names (dog → d, cat → c, goat → g).
• Colour: Colour all pictures that have the /s/ sound at the start.

Can you find five things in your classroom that begin with the same sound and put them in a pile?