sHOULD STUDENTS SOUND OUT EACH LETTER IN A WORD IN ORDER TO READ THE WORD?

Answer 1

Sounding out each letter is a good way to start.
Of course if they don't know the rules it will lead them astray.

1. A single vowel is normally short sound. Example: not, but, fall.

2. When two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking.
This is more complex because the first vowel is sometimes short sound, and sometimes long sound, and sometimes either way.
Example short sound: been.
Example long sound: bean, fail, tree.
Example of pronunciation either way: Lead can be the mineral, which is pronounced with a short e; or it can be lead the horse, which is pronounced with a long e.

Of course there are more rules, and more exceptions to the rules, so eventually the children will have to recognize words, and be able to pronounce them in context, but sounding out each letter is a good way to start.

Answer 2

Not necessarily since a lot of letters are silent. If you are reading to yourself, you don't need to pronounce each letter. That would make reading a chore instead of a pleasure. If you're reading out loud, you can "picture" the word in your mind and be reasonably certain as to the pronunciation. If you stumble on it, I'm sure your teacher will correct you.

Answer 3

I think that if you are talking about young kids, or easy words then I would say yes. My niece is 7 and she can read very well. But, I had to teach her, that words like SIGN, NIGHT, and PHASE are words that you cannot sound out. I help her with her homework even over the phone. She brings home 13 words a week. Most of them are easy but since it was Halloween her two hard words were haunted and pumpkin. When she comes home with 13 words, I give here two of my own. Tricky words like naughty, sigh, cough, etc.. First I help her spell it, then she looks it up in the dictionary, reads the meaning to me. Then she finds a word for me to look up, we take turns kind of like a game. No one took time with me growing up so this is what I have come up with to help her and it works. She gets frustrated from time to time but usually only when her mom gets frustrated first. I try to make it fun for her. She loves to look them up and make me find one, too. She doesn't mind doing it at all but if she gets frustrated move on to something else then come back to it. Good Luck to you and your child.