Created by a Tamworth mum and a former Armidale kindergarten teacher, Sound Slam – the card game teaching kids the building blocks of reading – is having its official launch this Thursday, 12 December, at The Tiny Studio on Darling Street in Tamworth.
Reading is a fundamental skill that all Aussie kids should be assured of learning. Yet, according to the Grattan Institute, one-third of all Aussie students are poor readers, while 50 per cent of kids in regional and rural areas do not read proficiently.
Seeing the need to empower parents to ensure their kids have the best possible start on their lifelong reading journey, Anna O’Connor and Lucy Campbell created Sound Slam, a card game that helps children better understand words – with no screens, devices or set-up time required.
“Sound Slam is all about phonological awareness, it’s perfect for introducing the idea that all words are made up of smaller sounds,” said Anna, a primary school teacher with more than a decade of experience, including five years at The Armidale School.
“Just grasping the concept that words are made up of smaller parts is a huge leg-up because phonological awareness – being able to isolate and manipulate sounds within words – on the first day of kindergarten is a key indicator of a child’s future reading success.”
“Playing Sound Slam together is an easy way for parents to take a critical, early step with their kids on their lifelong reading journey.”
More than just a way for kids to get a head start in their education, Sound Slam is fun for the whole family – including parents and guardians.
“At such a young age, kids are so curious and eager, but they are also easily distracted and easily bored. We knew that if this was going to work, the game itself needed to be fun. Kids had to want to play it,” said co-creator Lucy.
“We’re both working mums, so we totally understand that at the end of a long day, organising a pre-reading lesson with a toddler is about as appealing as doing another load of washing.”
“We designed Sound Slam to be as easy for parents as it is fun for kids, all while everyone is learning the fundamentals of reading. It’s like hiding veggies in spaghetti bolognaise!”
The proof is in the pudding (or bolognaise), with Anna’s students raving about Sound Slam.
“It’s designed for kids aged from four to seven, but I play it with students in years two, three and four just because they enjoy it so much,” Anna said.
“When I walk into school, kids run up to me and ask, ‘did you bring your cards?’
“Sound Slam is also so versatile, with four different games to play that each build phonological awareness, all while giving kids the variety they love.”
Lucy says the desire to help parents feel empowered, rather than guilty, planted the seed that has sprouted into Sound Slam.
“In the space of a week about a year ago, two sets of parents each told me that their two-year-old child was already reading,” Lucy said.
“Logically, I figured these young kids had probably just memorised some books, rather than that they could actually read. But emotionally, since my two-year-old couldn’t read, I felt like I had failed her.”
“I wanted to take action but when I looked online, while there were plenty of ideas on social media about how to get kids reading, they were all so labour intensive.”
“I’m already up early to get things done on the family farm, then spend a full day at my desk. After all that, I want to spend quality time with my kids, but I don’t have the brainspace to create an educational experience for a toddler that is also fun and engaging.”
“So, I rang Anna to ask for some tips based on how she taught reading skills in her kindergarten class.”
That phone call was the start of a year-long process that involved countless calls, brainstorming sessions and discussions about the best way to engage the family in the magic of reading.
“Singing nursery rhymes is a great way to help build your kids’ pre-reading skills, but we know that a lot of mums and dads aren’t ‘Twinkle Twinkle’ parents,” Anna said.
“Your Sound Slam deck can just sit on the kitchen table. Play it with your preschooler for five minutes over your toast every morning and watch it make a difference.”
The full deck of 69 beautifully hand-drawn playing cards is available now from the Sound Slam website, as well as the set of three ‘Literacy Lesson in a Tea Towel’ to help you bring the Science of Reading to the heart of your home and the front of your mind.
Official Launch
You can buy a deck and play a hand of Sound Slam with Lucy at the game’s official launch event:
When: 5:30pm, Thursday 12 December
Where: The Tiny Studio, 22 Darling St, North Tamworth
How to play
Watch gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/MERQIkgj3mA
Aim: The first player with no cards left wins! This is achieved by matching your cards to the picture card in the middle.
1. Deal five cards to each player. Place the rest as a stack in the middle with pictures down.
2. Flip the top card over to start the game pile.
3. On each turn, based on the picture on top of the game pile players get rid of EITHER: One card with the same coloured background (pink, yellow, blue, green). One or more cards that rhyme.
One or more cards with the same initial sound (sound not letter, Shower and Sock start with different sounds).
One SLAMMER. You lucky duck! A SLAMMER helps you get ahead of other players. ‘Clap out’ the number of syllables in the picture. This is how many cards your opponents must pick up. For instance, if the SLAMMER is ‘umbrella’, clap out three syllables. Now choose who picks up three cards. It can be one person picking up all three or spread the three cards out over multiple players. The next person can play any card or cards to resume the game.
4. When a player can’t go, they pick up a card from the stack. Oh no! Their turn ends there.
5. If the stack runs out, keep the top card in play but shuffle the rest to create a new stack.
6. The first player to get rid of all of their cards and yell ‘Sound Slam’ wins!
Who will you beat?
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