Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Mastering Those Short Vowels

What a busy week! I feel like it should be Friday. We have worked on tally marks, counting by 2's, counting by 5's, and reviewing short vowels. With our school being a Literacy First school, we have a certain continuum we have to follow when we teach phonics. My students who were at our school last year and received Literacy First instruction are a lot farther ahead of the students who did not. We are working on mastering our short vowel sounds in isolation as well as in context.

One of my anchor centers that I use for Literacy First is the word study center. This center is my favorite. I use the pocket chart almost ALWAYS! Students use this center to brush up on sounds and blending. Since we are trying to get those short vowel sounds down (what is with short e, I have SO many students who can't remember that sound!), I created a quick short vowel word sort. It is fall themed with pumpkin graphics, so that you can use it anytime during the fall season!

This word sort includes 30 word cards which include cvc words as well as words with initial and final consonant blends. There is also a recording sheet included so students can record 3 of the 6 short vowel words that they sorted. Although many students will sort the words by sight, I really encourage them to work with their teammates to READ the words because I sometimes the vowels can trick you!

Please visit my TpT store to download this freebie!