Reading Short-Vowel Words
Students use letter-sound relationships to decode regularly spelled consonant-vowel-consonant words.
Illustrations are auto-generated and may be placeholders. They can be refreshed to match the narration.
Review Short Vowels
A vowel can make a short sound in a word. The vowels are a, e, i, o, and u. Short a is the middle sound in cat. Short e is the middle sound in hen. Short i is the middle sound in pig. Short o is the middle sound in log. Short u is the middle sound in sun. Say each word slowly and listen to the sound in the middle. In the word map, the first sound is m, the middle sound is short a, and the last sound is p. Blend the sounds to read map. When you see a vowel between two consonants, try its short sound first. Knowing these common vowel sounds helps you read new words.
Build CVC Words
A CVC word has a consonant, a vowel, and a consonant in that order. The letters CVC name the kinds of letters, not the sounds themselves. Build the word sit with three letter cards. Put s in the first box, i in the middle box, and t in the last box. The consonants s and t surround the vowel i. Touch each card and say its sound: s, short i, t. Then read the whole word: sit. You can change one card to build a new word. Replace s with h to make hit. Replace h with f to make fit. Watch the order of the letters as you build. Every letter has a place, and every letter sound helps you decode the word.
Blend Letter Sounds
Blending means joining separate sounds to read a whole word. Look at the word rug. Start at the left and move to the right. Point to r and say its sound. Slide to u and say the short u sound. Then point to g and say its sound. Now join the sounds without long pauses: rrruuug, rug. The word is rug. Keep your voice moving across the letters like a smooth slide. If the word does not sound right, start again and check each letter. Be sure to read the vowel in the middle. You can also cover the word and reveal one letter at a time. First read the sounds, then blend them, and finally say the word quickly: rug.
Read Word Families
A word family is a group of words with the same ending letters and sounds. The words cat, hat, mat, and sat belong to the at family. Each word ends with a and t, which blend to make at. The first consonant changes, so each word begins with a different sound. Start with the ending at. Add c and blend c-at to read cat. Add h and blend h-at to read hat. Try the same steps with mat and sat. Words in a family often rhyme, but look at every letter instead of guessing from a picture. Reading the shared ending can help you decode several words. You can make a list of words and check that each one is a real word.
Decode in Sentences
Use letter sounds to decode a CVC word when it appears in a sentence. Read this sentence: The dog can hop. If hop is new, look at each letter instead of skipping the word. Say the sounds from left to right: h, short o, p. Blend them to read hop. Then read the whole sentence again smoothly: The dog can hop. Ask two questions. Do the sounds match the letters? Does the word make sense in the sentence? Both answers should be yes. The picture or the other words can help you check your reading, but they should not replace sounding out the word. Point under each word as you read, pause at the period, and reread the sentence with a natural voice.