Grade by Grade
B. Foundations of Language · Sounds, Letters and Reading Words

Heart Words and Reading Smoothly

B2.4 B2.5 B2.8About 35 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can read common words like the, said, was and you quickly.
  • I can find the tricky "heart" part of a word.
  • I can read a short story smoothly, at talking speed.
  • I can read with expression, using the punctuation marks.

Words to know

high-frequency word
A word we see very often in books, like the, and, is, said.
heart word
A word with a tricky part that doesn't follow the usual sound rules. We learn the tricky part "by heart".
fluency
Reading smoothly, correctly, at a good speed, and with expression.
expression
Reading in a voice that shows feeling and meaning, not like a robot.
punctuation
Marks like . ? ! that tell your voice what to do.

Words you see everywhere

Some words show up in almost every book: the, a, and, is, to, you, said, was, I, of.

These are called high-frequency words. Reading them fast, without sounding out, helps you read smoothly.

Many of them can be sounded out: and, is, it, can, in, up, not, will, with, this, that. But some have a tricky part.

Heart words

A heart word has a part that doesn't follow the usual rules. Most of the word is regular. Only one part is tricky. We learn that part by heart! ❤️

Let's look at said:

  • s says /s/ ✓ (regular)
  • ai says /e/ ❤️ (tricky! We expect /ā/)
  • d says /d/ ✓ (regular)

So said sounds like "sed". Only the ai is a heart part.

said✓✓/s//e/ (tricky!)/d/said sounds like"sed"
In said, the s and the d are regular. Only the ai is a heart part to learn by heart.
WordRegular partsHeart part ❤️Sounds like
thethe says /uh/thuh
saids, dai says /e/sed
waswa says /u/, s says /z/wuz
of(none)o says /u/, f says /v/uv
toto says /oo/too
dodo says /oo/doo
youyou says /oo/yoo
theythey says /ā/thay
haveh, va is short and the e is silenthav
oneno says /wu/, e is silentwun
Common heart words

A spelling fact

English words almost never end with the letter v. So we add a silent e: have, give, love. That's why have has an e!

Worked example

Let's learn a heart word

Learn the heart word was.

  1. Say the word: was. Tap the sounds: /w/ /u/ /z/. That's 3 sounds.
  2. Match sounds to letters: w = /w/ ✓. a = /u/ ❤️. s = /z/ ❤️.
  3. Draw a heart over the a and the s. Those are the tricky parts.
  4. Say the letters while you write it: w-a-s. Then read it: was.
  5. Practise reading it fast in a sentence: "The cat was on the bed."

was = w + ❤️a + ❤️s. It sounds like "wuz".

Reading smoothly (fluency)

Good readers read:

  1. Correctly (accuracy): they read the words that are really there.
  2. At a good speed (pace): like talking. Not too slow, not racing.
  3. With expression: their voice shows meaning.

Punctuation marks tell your voice what to do:

  • . a period: stop and take a little breath.
  • ? a question mark: your voice goes up at the end, like you are asking.
  • ! an exclamation mark: say it with strong feeling!
The cat sat.stop and take a little breathCan I ride with you?your voice goes upYes!say it with strong feeling
End marks tell your voice what to do: a little stop at a period, up at a question mark, strong feeling at an exclamation mark.
Worked example

Let's read with expression

Read this little story:

Sam has a red sled. "Can I ride with you?" said Pam. "Yes!" said Sam. The two of them zip down the hill. It is so much fun!

  1. First, read it slowly and carefully. Sound out any word you don't know. (Heart words here: said, you, two, of, the.)
  2. Read it again. This time, read a little faster, like you are talking.
  3. Look at the marks. At ? your voice goes up: "Can I ride with you?" At ! say it with feeling: "Yes!"
  4. Read it a third time with your best storyteller voice. Each time gets smoother!

Reading the same story 2 or 3 times makes it smooth and full of expression.

Fix-up tip

If something you read doesn't make sense or doesn't sound right, stop. Go back and re-read the sentence. Look carefully at every letter of the tricky word.

Just for fun

A parrot would be amazing at echo reading! 🦜 It copies every word you say, with the same voice. (But it might want a cracker after every page.)

Hands-on activity

Heart word hunt and echo reading

You need: a favourite picture book, sticky notes, and a red crayon.

  1. Write 5 heart words on sticky notes: the, said, was, you, of. Draw a red heart over the tricky part of each.
  2. Hunt for them in the book. Stick the note beside each one you find.
  3. Echo reading: A grown-up reads one sentence with expression. You read the same sentence back the same way.
  4. Do it for a whole page. Then read the page by yourself!

Look for: your voice going up at question marks and getting excited at exclamation marks.

Your turn

1

Read: the, and, is, said, was

2

In said, which letters are the heart (tricky) part?

3

Read: I said, "Do you like it?"

4

What should your voice do at a period?

5

Read with feeling: We won!

6

Which word is a heart word: of or on?

7

Read: They have one dog.

More practice: warm-up

1

Read: you

2

Read: to

3

What punctuation mark makes your voice go up?

4

Read: The cat is on the mat.

5

Read: was

More practice: on your own

1

Read these quickly: this, with, that, will, have

2

Read: Is it snowing? How does your voice sound?

3

Why does give end with an e, even though the i is short?

4

Read a sentence 3 times: The red fox ran to the den. What changes each time?

5

You read "The dog ate a bun" as "The dog ate a bug." It doesn't make sense with the picture of a bun. What should you do?

Challenge

1

Read with expression: "Help!" said the fish. "Can you get me out of the net?"

2

Find the heart part in they.

3

Read this story smoothly: Max and Kim went to the park. They had a snack. Then they ran up the big hill. What fun!

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which part of said is the heart (tricky) part?

2.

Which word is a heart word?

3.

When you see a question mark, what does your voice do?

4.

What does reading fluently mean?

5.

What should you do when a sentence doesn't make sense?

6.

Why does have end with e?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: High-frequency words should be read instantly. Most can be decoded; for those with irregular parts ("heart words"), Grade 1 students learn the regular parts by sound and only memorize the tricky part (B2.4, B2.5). Fluency means accuracy, appropriate pace and expression (B2.8). Expression grows from understanding.

How to help at home:

  • Practise 5 heart words a week, not a long list. Write them, read them in sentences, hunt for them in books.
  • Use repeated reading: the same short decodable book 3 days in a row. Celebrate how much smoother it gets.
  • Use echo reading (you read a sentence, they repeat) and choral reading (read together).

Common difficulties:

  • Memorizing word shapes. Research does not support memorizing lists by shape. Linking letters to sounds (even partly) works much better.
  • Speed over accuracy. Fluency is not racing. If your child is making many errors, slow down and use easier text.
  • Ignoring punctuation. Point to the mark and model the voice change.
  • Guessing from pictures. Pictures help with meaning, but the eyes must go to the letters to read the word.

If reading stays very slow and effortful after lots of practice, talk with the teacher; Ontario schools screen early reading in Grade 1.