Sound Boxes

• Kindergarten–1st grade
• Ages 5–7
• Free, no sign-up

Sound Boxes trains a child to hear every sound in a word, which is the key skill behind spelling. The game says a word, your child counts the sounds, and then each sound drops into its own box. Later levels have words like ship and duck, with more letters than sounds.

▶ Play

About the game

How to play

1. Listen to the word. Tap Hear it to hear it again.
2. Say it slowly. Stretch out each sound.
3. Count the sounds. Tap the number.
4. Watch the boxes fill. One box for each sound.

For parents: what Sound Boxes practices

Sound Boxes practices segmenting words into single sounds, a building block for reading and spelling. It pairs with:

• Blending and segmenting
• Digraphs
• CVC words

Common Core: RF.K.2d (isolate and pronounce the sounds in three-phoneme words), RF.1.2d (segment single-syllable words into their sounds).

Getting the most out of it

• Turn the sound on. The game is about listening.
• Tap a finger for each sound: d-u-ck.
• Sh, ch, th and ck are one sound each.

Games are best as a reward or a warm-up, not the main lesson. Ten minutes of play after a short lesson works better than an hour of play on its own.

More games

• Sound BlenderHear c... a... t, blend it, pick the picture.Kindergarten–1st grade
• Ending Sounds HuntSort pictures by their last sound.Kindergarten–1st grade
• Beginning Sounds SortSort pictures by their first sound.Pre-K–Kindergarten

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Last reviewed: November 11, 2026

Questions parents ask