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

Sounds, Letters and Reading Words: Unit Review

B1.1 B1.2 B1.3 B1.4 B1.5 B2.1 B2.2 B2.3 B2.4 B2.5 B2.6 B2.7 B2.8About 40 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can listen carefully, take turns and use clear words when I talk.
  • I can hear, blend and break apart the sounds in words.
  • I can read words with short vowels, digraphs, blends, long vowels and heart words.
  • I can read smoothly and figure out what words mean.

Words to know

blend
Push sounds together to make a word.
segment
Break a word into its sounds.
digraph
Two letters, one sound, like sh.
heart word
A word with a tricky part to learn by heart.
fluency
Reading smoothly, correctly, at a good speed, with expression.

Let's review!

You have learned a LOT in this unit: how to listen and talk, how to hear the sounds in words, the letters and their sounds, and how to read all kinds of words. This review has a few questions from every lesson. Try each one, then press Show answer to check. If a part feels tricky, go back to that lesson.

Listening and Talking Together

1

Name 2 things a good listener does with their body.

2

Your friend tells you about her skating lesson. Ask one on-topic question.

3

What should you do if someone is still talking and you want to speak?

Using Your Voice, Face and Words

1

What does a shrug usually mean?

2

Make it clearer: "Get me that." (You want your green boots.)

3

Put the linking words in order: last, first, then, next.

Hearing Sounds in Words

1

Clap the syllables in snowman. How many?

2

What is the last sound in cup?

3

What is the middle sound in hen?

4

Say a word that rhymes with bee.

ship has 4 letters...ship...but only 3 sounds/sh//i//p/Count sounds with your ears,not by counting letters!
Remember: sh is two letters but one sound, so ship has 3 sounds.

Blending and Breaking Apart Sounds

1

Blend: /j/ /u/ /m/ /p/

2

How many sounds in nest?

3

How many sounds in shop?

Letters and Their Sounds

1

What letter comes after p?

2

Is o a vowel or a consonant?

3

Put in ABC order: sun, moon, cloud.

Reading CVC Words and Word Families

1

Read: mud

2

Write 2 more words in the -op family: hop, ___, ___

3

Change the i in pig to e. What word is it now?

Digraphs and Blends: sh, ch, th, ck, fr, st and More

1

Read: chick

2

Is th in bath a digraph or a blend?

3

Which word starts with a blend: drum, shut, thin?

kitkit: short /i/kitekite: long /Δ«/
Remember magic e: add a silent e and the vowel says its name. kit becomes kite!

Long Vowels: Magic e, Vowel Teams and Bossy r

1

Read: hope. Why does the o say its name?

2

Read: sleep

3

Read: farm

4

Read: light

Heart Words and Reading Smoothly

1

Which part of was is tricky?

2

Read with expression: Can we go sledding?

3

What 3 things make reading fluent?

Word Meanings: Sorting, Opposites and Word Parts

1

What is the opposite of wet?

2

What does unlock mean?

3

Make a compound word: sun + flower

Riddle time

What starts with e, ends with e, and has only one letter inside?

An envelope! βœ‰οΈ

How to use this review

  • Do the review over two or three short sittings. Ten minutes at a time is plenty for a 6-year-old.
  • Do the listening and sound questions out loud. Your child does not need to write for these.
  • For reading questions, have your child point to each letter and read aloud.
  • Write down which section had mistakes. Then go back to that lesson's activity and practice.
Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Your friend is telling you about her trip to the lake. Which question is on topic?

2.

Which word starts with the same sound as moon?

3.

Blend these sounds: /c/ /l/ /a/ /p/

4.

How many sounds are in fish?

5.

Which letter comes right before k?

6.

Which word is in the -ug family?

7.

Which word starts with a digraph?

8.

Which word has a silent e?

9.

Which word has a heart (tricky) part?

10.

Which word is the opposite of tomorrow?

For parents and teachers

Use the review to find what to practise next.

  • Trouble with listening, taking turns or on-topic questions β†’ revisit Listening and Talking Together.
  • Trouble showing feelings or using clear, linking words β†’ revisit Using Your Voice, Face and Words.
  • Trouble hearing first, middle or last sounds, rhymes or syllables β†’ revisit Hearing Sounds in Words.
  • Trouble blending sounds into words or counting sounds β†’ revisit Blending and Breaking Apart Sounds.
  • Not sure of letter names, letter sounds or ABC order β†’ revisit Letters and Their Sounds.
  • Guessing at short words or mixing up short vowels β†’ revisit Reading CVC Words and Word Families.
  • Reading sh, ch, th as separate sounds, or dropping sounds in blends β†’ revisit Digraphs and Blends.
  • Missing the silent e or vowel teams β†’ revisit Long Vowels.
  • Slow on the, said, was, you, or reading without expression β†’ revisit Heart Words and Reading Smoothly.
  • Mixing up same and opposite, or word parts β†’ revisit Word Meanings.

Remember: reading skills build slowly over the whole Grade 1 year. Short, cheerful daily practice works better than long sessions.