Decoding Practice

Unit 1

a ant

e egg

i in

o ox

u up Sound City Reading

 Entire contents © 2008 By Kathryn J. Davis
7223 Cedar Lane Drive
Germantown, TN 38138
(901) 737-4466
All rights reserved.

Permission is hereby granted to teachers, parents, and

tutors to reproduce student materials in this book
for individual or classroom use. Permission is granted
for school-wide reproduction of materials.
Commercial reproduction is prohibited.

Printed in the United States of America

  Table of Contents 
Suggestions for Using This Book ....................................................................... v
Notes About the Alphabet and Sound Story................................................... vi
Pronunciation Guide ........................................................................................ viii
Sound Story - Part 1 ............................................................................................ ix
Sound Story - Part 2 .......................................................................................... xiv
Alphabet Chart .................................................................................................xvii
Beyond the Alphabet Chart .......................................................................... xviii
Vowel Code Chart ............................................................................................. xix
Beginning Consonant Blends............................................................................ xx
Ending Consonant Blends ................................................................................ xxi

1-1 Use with Sam, Come Back!

Short a - Part 1 ....................................................................................................... 1

Short a - Part 2 ....................................................................................................... 3
Short a - Part 3 ....................................................................................................... 5
A, a, was, what ...................................................................................................... 6
_ck ........................................................................................................................... 7

1-2 Use with Pig in a Wig

Short i - Part 1........................................................................................................ 8

I, have ..................................................................................................................... 9
Short i - Part 2...................................................................................................... 10
I, have, little ......................................................................................................... 11
Short i - Part 3...................................................................................................... 12
like, five ................................................................................................................ 13
_x ........................................................................................................................... 15
Short o - Part 1..................................................................................................... 16

1-3 Use with The Big Blue Ox

Short o - Part 2..................................................................................................... 18

Short o - Part 3..................................................................................................... 20
Suffix _s with plural nouns ............................................................................... 22
from ...................................................................................................................... 23
go .......................................................................................................................... 24
to, do, who, two .................................................................................................. 25

iii
1-4 Use with A Fox and a Kit

Suffix _ with verbs.............................................................................................. 26

Suffix _s review with short a words ................................................................ 27
Suffix _s review with short i words ................................................................. 28
Suffix _s review with short o words ................................................................ 29
Suffix _ing with verbs ........................................................................................ 30
are ......................................................................................................................... 31

1-5 Use with Get the Egg!

Short e - Part 1 ..................................................................................................... 32

Short e - Part 2 ..................................................................................................... 34
Short e - Part 3 ..................................................................................................... 36
Suffix _s review with short e words ................................................................ 38
he, we, me ............................................................................................................ 39
The, the ................................................................................................................ 40
see, here ............................................................................................................... 41
come ..................................................................................................................... 42
Beginning blends st, sc, sk, sm, sn, sp, sw ...................................................... 43
Beginning blends bl, cl, fl, gl, pl, sl .................................................................. 44
Beginning blends br, cr, dr, fr, gr, pr, tr .......................................................... 45

1-6 Use with Animal Park

Short u - Part 1 .................................................................................................... 46

Short u - Part 2 .................................................................................................... 48
Short u - Part 3 .................................................................................................... 50
Short u - Part 4 (with beginning blends) ......................................................... 52
Suffix _s review with short u words................................................................ 53
Mixed review of short vowel words ............................................................... 54
Review sentences................................................................................................ 55
Ending consonant blends - Short a words ...................................................... 56
Ending consonant blends - Short e words ...................................................... 58
Ending consonant blends - Short i words ....................................................... 60
Ending consonant blends - Short o words...................................................... 62
Ending consonant blends - Short u words ..................................................... 63
Sentences ............................................................................................................. 65
you ........................................................................................................................ 66
for.......................................................................................................................... 67
Sight word review .............................................................................................. 68

iv
 Suggestions for Using This Book
This book can be used to provide decoding practice for beginning
readers. Students can practice “sounding out” short vowel words. Each
group of short vowel words is divided into three sections. The words in the
first section contain continuous consonants only; the consonant sounds can
be held indefinitely. Examples of continuous consonants are sssss, mmmmm,
and ffffff. The second set of words begins with continuous consonants, and
ends with stopped consonants. Stopped consonants, such as t, d, and g,
cannot be held. Using stopped consonants at the end of words does not
present a huge difficulty to beginning readers. The third set of words has
stopped consonants at the beginning of the words. These will be the most
challenging to read since the student must learn to connect the sound of the
beginning consonant to the vowel sound to recognize the word and
pronounce it accurately.
Students also practice reading words with _ck, _x, suffixes _s and _ing,
beginning consonant blends, and ending consonant blends.
After reading a list of words, students will immediately apply the new
material by reading some of the same words in sentences. Sight word pages
are also included to provide a review of readiness words.
In my classroom, I introduce each new phonics pattern at a pocket
chart using picture/word cards. These are available at

www.soundcityreading.com

After students have been introduced to words with the new pattern, I
have them read the appropriate decoding sheets from this book. They read
the pages for me in their small reading groups, taking turns, one column,
row, or sentence at a time. Then I send the sheet home to be read aloud to
parents.
The sheets could also be used for independent study at school or to
study with a partner.
I use a Sound Story, included in this book, to introduce the letter and
phonogram sounds at the beginning of the year. I post the alphabet and
sound pictures for reference throughout the year. See the notes that follow
about the Sound Story.
The order in which the short vowels and consonant patterns are
introduced matches the first grade sequence in the Reading Street 2008 series
by Scott Foresman. This book correlates with Unit 1.

v
 Notes For Teachers and Parents About the Alphabet and Sound Story

The alphabet has twenty-six letters, but the sound story has forty-two pictures.
One of the things that makes it difficult to learn to read is that there are more
sounds in our language than letters of the alphabet. To compensate for this, some
letters are used to represent more than one sound. Other sounds are represented by
pairs of letters that give up their original sound to form a totally new sound. It
sounds complicated, but here is a short summary of the alphabet sounds. It’s really
not too hard. Think about how you form the sounds with your mouth as you
pronounce each sound.

The alphabet has twenty-one consonants: b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, qu, r, s, t,

v, w, x, y, z. Each consonant represents a sound. When you pronounce a consonant
sound, you do something with your tongue, throat, or lips to create the sound. For
example, when you say the n sound, you press your tongue against the roof of your
mouth. When you say the m sound, you press your lips together.

Two consonant letters, c and k, represent the very same sound. In this program,
each one has its own sound picture, but the sounds are the same.

There are five extra consonant sounds that are designated by pairs of letters, as
follows: ch/chicken, sh/ship, th/thumb, th/this, ng/ring.

One more consonant sound does not have a typical letter pattern to represent it.
It is the sound you hear in garage, measure, and vision. The dictionary shows this
sound as zh.

The other alphabet sounds are called vowel sounds. You pronounce a vowel
sound by “opening your throat.” You don’t put your lips together or touch the inside
of your mouth with your tongue to pronounce a vowel sound. You just change the
shape of your mouth. For some vowel sounds your mouth is stretched wide, for
others, you drop your jaw and open your mouth more. For some vowel sounds (ou/
ouch and oi/oil) you change the position of your mouth as you pronounce the sound.

The alphabet has five vowels: a, e, i, o, u. Each vowel can represent two sounds.
The first sound for each vowel shown on the alphabet chart is known as the “short”
sound, for no particular reason. The second sound for each vowel is known as the
“long” sound. To show a long vowel sound to beginning readers, educators often put
a straight line over the vowel like this ā.

(Sometimes people use a curved line that looks like a smile, ă, over vowels to
show the short sound. I don’t do this because it seems to create more confusion for
the student.)

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis vi Decoding Practice Unit 1

 In addition to the five short vowel sounds and five long vowel sounds, there are
five more vowel sounds that I call the “special” vowel sounds. These sounds are: ä/
all, ö/to, ü/push, ou/ouch, and oi/oil. On the alphabet chart, two dots are used over
the a, o, and u, to indicate the “special” sound. This gives the student a visual
reference point to remember that this is not the usual sound. The two dots are
called an umlaut, and they mean “different from the regular sound.”

Altogether, we have talked about these sounds: 20 consonant sounds shown with
21 alphabet letters, 5 consonant sounds shown with pairs of consonants, 1
consonant sound without a distinct letter pattern, 5 short vowel sounds, 5 long vowel
sounds, and 5 special vowel sounds. This gives us 41 different sounds, 26 consonant
sounds and 15 vowel sounds.

Note: Everyone does not agree on the exact number of sounds in our language.
When you look at different programs, you’ll find that each is a little different.

How to Study the Story and Alphabet Chart

Read some of the story aloud to the student each day until you have read all of
the story. For individual students, you can use the story in this book. For groups,
the same sound story is available in a larger format. As you finish each section of
the story, point to the sound picture, model the sound, and have the student repeat.
If necessary, explain how to place the tongue, lips, and position of the mouth so that
the student can pronounce the sound correctly.
Use the alphabet chart with pictures to review the letter sounds, and the
remaining vowel and consonant charts to introduce the “beyond the alphabet”
patterns as needed. Use the truck charts to practice the beginning and ending
consonant blends.

Important: If you model and explain a sound to the student but the student
still doesn’t pronounce the sound correctly, DON’T continue to correct the child.
Just nod approval and continue with the lesson. Some sounds are difficult for young
children to pronounce. Allow them to use their best approximation. Often, students
will automatically correct these sounds over a period of time as they mature. If the
problem continues, then a speech teacher should be consulted.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis vii Decoding Practice Unit 1

 This chart is for the teacher, to show the correct sound for each letter or letter pair.

Pronunciation Guide
Vowel Sounds Consonant Digraph Sounds

a ant th thumb
e egg th this
i in sh ship
o ox ch chicken
u up ng ring
ā baby No set
pattern
measure, garage, vision, azure

ē me
i tiger
ō go
ö, ū to, tulip
ū music
ä ball
ü push
ou, ow out, cow
oi, oy oil, boy
© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis viii Decoding Practice Unit 1
 A Sound Story
About Audrey and Brad - Part 1

One Saturday morning, Audrey and Brad sat in the

den, watching the pendulum swing back and forth on
the clock on the wall, “t, t, t, t.” They were bored.

“Hey, Mom,” said Brad. “Can we walk down to the

park?” “Yes,” said Mom. “Be sure you are back in
time for your violin lessons.” Soon Audrey and Brad
were swinging as high as they could at the park.
They could hear the loud sound of the chains
screeching as they went back and forth, “i, i, i, i.”

Then they jumped down and ran around the park

playing chase. Before long, they were out of breath.
Brad could hear himself breathing hard, “h, h, h, h.”

They ran home and their Mom drove them to their

violin lessons. Mrs. Russ was pleased to see them.
“Did you practice every day?” she said. “I did,” said
Audrey quickly. Brad replied that he had practiced,
too.

Soon they were playing music. Each violin made a

beautiful sound as they pulled their bows across the
strings. The sound was “l, l, l, l, l.”

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis ix Decoding Practice Unit 1

Just as they arrived home from their music lesson,
they heard the “n, n, n” sound of the engine on a
big delivery truck. It pulled into their driveway
and the delivery man handed Mom a package.
Audrey and Brad were pleased to see that new
books had arrived from their book club.

As they went into the house, they could see dark

clouds gathering overhead. Soon, lightning was
flashing and rain was pouring down. The wind
blew hard enough to make the branches on the
trees sway back and forth. Audrey and Brad could
hear the sound of the wind forcing it’s way into the
house around the front door, “wwwwww.”

“Well,” said Mom. “The weather is so bad, this is

the perfect time to go over your math facts.” It
was Brad’s turn to go first. “Uuuuhhh,” was all he
could say as he looked at the flashcards. He had
not been practicing his math facts. When Audrey
had her turn, she got every one right.

They ate lunch and then Audrey and Brad and Dad
got into the car to go to basketball practice. The wind
had stopped blowing, but it was still drizzling. At the
gym, all the kids on the team warmed up by dribbling
a basketball. “B, b, b, b,” was the sound of the balls
bouncing on the hardwood floor. Then they practiced
passing and shooting.

After basketball practice they went home. Soon,

Mom called Audrey and Brad to dinner.
“Mmmmmm,” they said when they saw their
plates. They were having scrambled eggs, ham,
and muffins. It looked delicious.

Just as they sat down to eat, they heard a loud

“Rrrrrr” coming from the back yard. They ran to
look out the back door. Chewie had cornered a
neighborhood cat in the yard. She was growling at
the cat.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis x Decoding Practice Unit 1

The cat had no intention of putting up with Chewie.
She reached out and scratched Chewie right on the
nose, “fffff.” Chewie cried out in pain as the cat quickly
jumped over the fence and ran away.

“Poor, Chewie!” said Brad. “She’ll know to leave

cats alone, next time.” He reached into the
refrigerator and pulled out a soft drink. “Kssss,”
was the sound of the air rushing out as he pulled
the tab off the can.

After dinner, the whole family watched a movie

together. It was pretty good. One character was a
man who couldn’t hear very well. He kept saying
“Ehh?” whenever someone spoke to him. He
couldn’t understand a word they were saying.
“That man should get hearing aides,” said Mom.
“He could hear much better with them.”

The following Monday morning, Audrey and Brad

took the bus to school. As Audrey slipped into her
desk, she saw that a classmate had brought a
snake to school in a cage. They talked about the
snake during science class. It slithered around in
its cage, flicking its tongue in and out with a soft
“sssss” sound.

Audrey worked hard all morning. After lunch, her

class went outside for recess. She enjoyed jumping
rope with her friends. The rope made a “j, j, j”
sound as it slapped the concrete.

After recess Audrey realized that her throat was

hurting. It had been sore all day, but now it was
worse. Her teacher sent her to the office to see the
school nurse. Audrey opened her mouth wide and
said “oooooo” while the nurse examined her throat.
Then the nurse took her temperature. “You don’t
have a fever,” said the nurse. “It will be all right
for you to go back to class.”

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xi Decoding Practice Unit 1

Back in the classroom, Audrey picked up her
pencil to begin her afternoon assignment. “Ccc,”
the lead broke on her pencil as soon it touched the
paper. She reached into her desk to get out
another sharpened pencil. It was a good thing she
had an extra one.

At 2 o’clock, Audrey heard a knock at the door, “d,

d, d.” It was her father, Dr. Davis, coming to help
students work on the computers in the back of the
room. It wasn’t Audrey’s turn to work on the
computers, today, so she smiled at her dad and
then continued working on her assignment.

At the end of the day, Audrey and Brad met their

bus group in the hall. Their bus teacher waited for
their group to be called. As they stepped outside,
they could barely see their bus in the distance,
already on its way. “AAAaaa!” screamed Audrey
and Brad. All the children were upset. “It’s OK,”
said the teacher. “We’ll call your parents to come
pick you up.”
The children waited in the office for their parents.
They could hear the sound of the vacuum cleaner
as Mrs. Taylor vacuumed the rug, “vvvvv.”

Brad was thirsty, so he asked for permission to go

to the hall to get a drink of water. He went
straight to the water fountain. He turned the
handle and leaned over to swallow the gushing
water. “G, g, g, g,” went the water as it streamed
out of the faucet. “G, g, g, g,” went his throat as he
guzzled the water.

When Mom arrived at school she took them

straight to the doctor’s office to get Audrey’s throat
checked. She wanted to be sure it wasn’t strep
throat. As they waited in the waiting room, they
watched the fish swim back and forth in a large
aquarium. They could hear the the “p, p, p, p”
sound of the air pump pushing air into the water.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xii Decoding Practice Unit 1

Audrey looked up when she heard the “k, k, k”
sound of the receptionist’s heels stepping across
the tile floor. “I need to ask you a question about
your insurance,” said Mrs. Kendrick to Audrey’s
mother. “Certainly,” said her mother, as she
stepped to the office counter.

When Audrey’s exam was finished, the doctor

said that she didn’t have strep throat after all.
Mom was relieved. As Audrey, Brad and Mom
returned to their car, Brad accidentally stepped
on a piece of yucky bubble gum. “Yyyy,” he said.
He tried to scrape it off on the edge of the
sidewalk.

Mom took the kids to the park on the way home.

They sat at a picnic table and had a snack that
she had packed. It was a pretty day. They could
hear a mourning dove cooing in the distance,
“coo, coo, coo.”

Suddenly they heard a loud buzzing sound,

“zzzzzzz.” They turned to see an enormous
swarm of bees moving through the air. It landed
in a pine tree near their picnic table. Other bees
flew around in the air nearby. “Let’s go home,”
they all yelled in unison. And that is exactly
what they did.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xiii Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Sound Story - Part 2

A few weeks later, Audrey and Brad and mom

and dad heard about a great new movie about a
boy and his dog. So, they decided to go to the
theatre. At the theatre, someone in front of
them started talking on a cell phone. “Shhh,”
Mom said, leaning forward in her seat.

The movie was action packed and very exciting.

Before they knew it, the movie was over. They
were the last people to leave the theatre. As
they walked along the rows, they heard a
squeaking sound, “eee, eee, eee.” It was a tiny
mouse scurrying along the floor under the
seats. He was collecting dropped pieces of
popcorn.

At first, they didn’t see the mouse. Then it ran

right by Mom’s foot. “Oh!” she exclaimed,
jumping up on the nearest seat. “It’s a mouse!”
Audrey and Brad giggled a little. They were
not afraid of a mouse.

The next morning Audrey and Brad didn’t go to

school, because it was Saturday. It was cold in
the house. Mom got up while it was still dark
to boil water for some hot tea. A soft “ttthhhh”
sound could be heard as the steam escaped
from the tea kettle.

Dad was up early, too. After his shower, he

shaved with an electric razor. “Tttthhh,” was
the sound that it made as he trimmed off his
whiskers.

Before long, it was light enough to see outside.

The sky was overcast, so the sun was covered
by the clouds. Audrey sat up in bed and looked
out the window. “Ooooo,” she exclaimed. “It
snowed last night!”

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xiv Decoding Practice Unit 1

By this time Mom was calling everyone to come
to breakfast. Brad pulled a paper out of his
backpack and carried it downstairs. It was his
spelling test for the week. He proudly hung it
on the refrigerator. At the top of the paper was
a large red A.

When they were finished eating, Brad and

Audrey got dressed and went outside. A white
blanket of snow covered the ground.
Everything was quiet. They looked up and saw
a large crow sitting in the tree beside their
driveway. He flapped his wings and let out a
loud “aw, aw, aw, aw” before he flew away.

As Audrey and Brad walked down the

driveway, their feet crunched in the deep snow.
Ch, ch, ch, ch. A few snowflakes were still
falling. The whole neighborhood was beautiful.

Audrey and Brad decided to have a snowball

throwing contest. They took turns throwing
the snowballs at the basketball backboard that
stood beside the driveway. “Nnnggg,” went the
backboard as Brad’s snowballs hit. “Nnngg,” it
sang out again as Audrey’s snowballs hit, too.

Then Audrey and Brad decided to build a

snowman. They rolled up balls of snow for the
head and middle part of the snowman. Then
Brad rolled up a huge ball of snow for the
bottom of the snowman. He rolled until he
couldn’t go any farther. “Uuuuhh,” he said as
he pushed hard against the giant snowball.
“That’s as far as I can go.”

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xv Decoding Practice Unit 1

Audrey noticed some icicles hanging down
from the front porch. As she reached up to
get an icicle, she slipped on the icy concrete
and fell. “Ou,” she said in a loud voice as her
elbow hit the icy pavement. Brad went to
help Audrey up. She stood up carefully and
rubbed her arm. She decided to leave the
icicles where they were.

After Audrey and Brad finished the

snowman, Dad and Mom came outside to
shovel the snow off of the front driveway.
They all took turns shoveling the snow.
Audrey and Brad worked hard, too. After a
long time, the driveway was clear. “You two
did a great job,” said Mom. “Thanks for your
help.”

“Hey, now we have room to use our new pogo

stick,” said Brad. He ran into the garage and
brought it out. He started to jump up and
down with it on the driveway. “Oi, oi, oi,”
went the coiled spring on the pogo stick as he
bounced up and down. When he got tired,
Audrey took a turn jumping, too.

Finally both of the children were worn out.

They were tired, cold, and wet from being out
in the snow all morning. They went inside
and changed into some warm dry clothes.
Audrey’s mom used the hair dryer to dry her
damp hair. “Zzzzhhhh,” was the sound of the
hair dryer as it blew. (The sound in
measure, vision, garage, azure)

After eating peanut butter and jelly

sandwiches and apples for lunch, everybody
picked out a good book and curled up in front
of the wood burning stove in the den to read
for a while. They spent a cozy afternoon
reading together.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xvi Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Here are the letters from Part 1 of the Sound Story, in alphabetical order.
Look at the letters and say each sound.

aA bB cC dD eE

f F gG hH iI iĪ jJ

kK lL mM nN oO

pP qu Qu rR sS tT

uuU
U vV
v Vw W
w Wx X x X
y Y yzYZ

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xvii Decoding Practice Unit 1

These are the “beyond the alphabet” sounds from Part 2 of the Sound Story. They include the long vowel sounds, special
vowel sounds, and consonant digraphs. Look at each letter or letter pair and say the sound. Then say the sounds for all of
the vowels on the next page.

Long Vowels

ā ē i ō ū

Special Vowels

ä ö ü ou oi

Consonant Digraphs

th th sh ch ng

This last consonant sound is found in various words, but it does not have a set pattern.

garage
vision
measure
azure

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xviii Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Vowel Code - This chart shows the sounds for each of the five vowels.
Practice saying the sounds going across the rows and down the columns.

Short Vowels Long Vowels Special Vowels

a ā ä

e ē

i i

o ō ö

u ū ü

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xix Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Beginning pr
Consonant
Blends
tw
tr
A consonant blend is dw
simply a pair of
st
consonants
(sometimes three)
that come before or
br
after a vowel. For
sp cl
cr
instance, st is a
consonant blend
found at the
beginnning of the
word stop and at the
sm fl
end of the word fast.
Both consonant
sounds in a blend are
dr
pronounced, with the
sounds coming close
sn gl
together. Practice
saying these fr
consonant blends.

sc gr pl

sk scr sl

sw spr bl

squ str spl

Beginning Consonant Blends

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xx Decoding Practice Unit 1

 ind
Ending and end und
Consonant Blends

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis

The ending consonant blends ist ust
are easier to pronounce when ast est
they are connected to the
preceding vowel sound. On
these charts, the vowel sound
should be pronounced, along
amp emp ond ump
with the ending blend. Practice imp
reading each ending blend on
each chart. These are the most

xxi
common ending blends. ost unt
ant ent
int
elp omp ulp
alp
esk isk ont usk
ask
Ending Consonant Blends

Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Ending Consonant Blends

The ending consonant blends are easier to pronounce when they are connected
to the preceding vowel sound. On these charts, the vowel sound should be
pronounced, along with the ending blend. Practice reading the ending blends
on each chart.

amp and
ask
ant
act
ast

aft alc
asm

asp apt alp

a Ending Consonant Blends

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xxii Decoding Practice Unit 1

 end
eld
ent
elf
emp
ect elk

empt ext elm

eft elp
esk

ept elt
est

e Ending Consonant Blends

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xxiii Decoding Practice Unit 1

 imp

ind
isc
int
isk ild

ict ilk
ist

ism ift ilm

isp ipt ilt

i Ending Consonant Blends

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xxiv Decoding Practice Unit 1

 ond

omp ont

ompt oft

ost opt olf

o Ending Consonant Blends

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xxv Decoding Practice Unit 1

 ulb
und
ulf

ump unt
ulk

uct ulp
usk

uft ulpt
ust

upt ult
usp

u Ending Consonant Blends

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis xxvi Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short a - Part 1 Practice reading the words.

a ant

an am ax

fan ham sax

man ram fax

ran Sam wax

Nan yam Max

van mass

lass

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 1 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

A a was Sight Words

1. Nan has a fan.

2. A man has a van.

3. Sam has a sax.

4. A man ran.

5. A man has an ax.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 2 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short a - Part 2 Practice reading the words.

a ant

hat lad map

sat had lap

rat fad sap

mat sad nap

vat mad zap

fat add yap

rag sag

nag lab

wag yak

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 3 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

A a was Sight Words

1. A man had a hat.

2. Nan had a nap.

3. A man ran a lap.

4. A rat was fat.

5. Was it bad?

6. A man was mad.

7. A man was sad.

8. Nan was at a lab.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 4 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short a - Part 3 Practice reading the words.

a ant

can bag pan

cat bat pat

cap bass pad

cab bad Pam

cam gap pass

gas tan tag

Jan tap tam

jam tab dad

jazz tax Dan

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 5 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

A a was what Sight Words

1. Pam has a pan.

2. Dan has a cat.

3. Dad had a hat.

4. Pat has a bat.

5. Max was sad.

6. Sam has a cap.

7. Sam has a gap.

8. What can wag?

9. What can pass a cab?

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 6 Decoding Practice Unit 1

_ck after a short vowel Practice reading the words and sentences.

_ck Jack

sack tack back

lack quack Jack

pack rack Mack

1. Mack can pack a sack.

2. Jack has a fat cat.

3. What can quack?

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 7 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short i - Part 1 Practice reading the words.

i in

if ill Liz

in fill quiz

fin hill fizz

win will miss

fix quill hiss

mix mill rim

six sill him

vim

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 8 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

I have Sight Words

1. Will I win?

2. I will win

3. I will mix it.

4. Liz will miss him.

5. Nan is ill.

6. Max will wax his van.

7. Sam will hit it.

8. I have a cat.

9. I have a van.

10. I have a sack.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 9 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short i - Part 2 Practice reading the words.

i in

it sip fig Rick

sit rip wig sick

lit hip rig Nick

hit lip hid lick

fit yip rid

quit zip lid

mitt quip rib

sic fib nib

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 10 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

I have little Sight Words

1. Max will zip it.

2. Sam is six.

3. Liz will miss it.

4. It is his mitt.

5. Nan hid.

6. A man hit him.

7. I lit it.

8. It is a little cat.

9. Pam has a little bag.

10. I will have a little sip.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 11 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short i - Part 3 Practice reading the words.

i in

kit dig big pit

kiss did bin pig

Kim dip bit gill

kin dim bill tin

kip dill Bill tip

kill Jill bib till

kid Jim pin Tim

jig jib pill tic

pick tick kick quick

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 12 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

i in

1. A big pig has a wig.

2. It bit him.

3. Kim will kiss him.

4. His bib is little.

5. Bill will fix it.

6. Did Pat dig it?

7. I have a little pig.

8. A cat is fat.

9. A man is in a cab.

10. Did Jim miss?

11. A man is in a van.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 13 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

like five Sight Words

1. Jack is five. Tom is six.

2. I like his little cat.

3. I am five.

4. I like Jan.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 14 Decoding Practice Unit 1

_x at the end Practice reading the words and sentences.

_x box

Max wax fix

fax six

tax mix

1. Max will mix it.

2. Sam will fix it.

3. Rick will wax his van.

4. Jim is six.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 15 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short o - Part 1 Practice reading the words.

o ox

off mom ox

on moss fox

Ron Ross lox

loss

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 16 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

o ox

1. A cat is on a mat.

2. A mad cat sat on a rat.

3. A hat is on a cat.

4. Ron has a hat.

5. Mom has a pan.

6. Ross can fix it.

7. An ox is on a hill.

8. A fox hid.

9. Mom was mad.

10. Dad was sad.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 17 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short o - Part 2 Practice reading the words.

o ox

log mop not

fog hop hot

hog lop lot

sob wok rot

Rob sod odd

fob nod lock

rock rod sock

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 18 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

o ox

1. Mom will mop.

2. Moss is on a log.

3. What can hop?

4. A hog is a big pig. It is not little.

5. Rob will mix it.

6. A wok is a pan.

7. A log will rot.

8. Ross is not hot.

9. Bill will lock it.

10. A fox is on a rock.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 19 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short o - Part 3 Practice reading the words.

o ox

box top pod

boss tot pot

Bob toss pop

bog Tom pox

jot cot doll

jog cod dog

job con dot

John cob don

got dock

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 20 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

o ox

1. A pot is hot.

2. Bill will sit on a hill top.

3. A cat sat on a box.

4. Rob did his job.

5. Bob can jog.

6. Tom will toss it.

7. A dot is on a pot.

8. A dog is on a log.

9. A fox got on a box.

10. A lid is on a pot.

11. A dog is on a dock.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 21 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Suffix _s with nouns - plural nouns Practice reading the words and sentences.

_s Suffix Study

cat kid mop

cats kids mops

pan hill pot

pans hills pots

hat pig lock

hats pigs locks

map pin job

maps pins jobs

1. Six cats sat on a box.

2. Mom has six pots.

3. Six kids will jog.

4. Ron has six hats.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 22 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

of from Sight Words

1. Mom has a lot of pans.

2. Bill has a lot of cats.

3. Jack has a bag of rocks.

4. Pam has a box of fans.

5. His hat is from his dad.

6. I ran from a big dog.

7. Tom is from Little Rock.

8. Jim has a lot of dogs.

9. A cat ran from a dog.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 23 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

gō Sight Words

1. I will go.

2. Mom will go.

3. Dad will go.

4. Will Sam go?

5. Sam will go in a cab.

6. Will Rick go?

7. Rick will not go.

8. A lot of kids will go in a van.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 24 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

tö dö whö twö Sight Words

1. Dad will go to his job.

2. Two dogs ran to Tim.

3. A fox ran to a rock.

4. Tom will do his job.

5. Will Jan mop? Jan will do it.

6. Who is six? Max is six.

7. Who can do it?

8. Rick can do it.

9. Who has a dog?

10. I do not have a dog.

11. Rick has two cats.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 25 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Suffix _s with verbs Practice reading the words and sentences.

_s Suffix Study

nap sit hop

naps sits hops

wag fill nod

wags fills nods

pack win pop

packs wins pops

tap rip lock

taps rips locks

1. Tom locks his van.

2. A dog wags.

3. Pam fills a box.

4. Jack packs his caps.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 26 Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Read the words.

_s Suffix
Study

Nouns - Verbs -
Persons, Action
Places, Words
Things

cat tap
cats taps

hat wag
hats wags

cap add
caps adds

bag bat
bags bats

pal dab
pals dabs

map nag
maps nags

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 27 Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Read the words.

_s Suffix
Study

Nouns - Verbs -
Persons, Action
Places, Words
Things

kid sit
kids sits

hill win
hills wins

pig fill
pigs fills

pin zip
pins zips

kit hit
kits hits

pill dig
pills digs

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 28 Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Read the words.

_s Suffix
Study

Nouns - Verbs -
Persons, Action
Places, Words
Things

pot jog
pots jogs

cob hop
cobs hops

mop nod
mops nods

doll pop
dolls pops

log sob
logs sobs

dot rot
dots rots

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 29 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Suffix _ing with verbs Practice reading the words and sentences.

_ing Suffix Study

pack pick rock

packing picking rocking

pass lick toss

passing licking tossing

wax fizz lock

waxing fizzing locking

quack mix dock

quacking mixing docking

1. Rick is waxing his van.

2. Jack is packing his bag.

3. A dog was licking a can.

4. Ross is tossing a rock.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 30 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

are Sight Words

1. Two dogs are licking him.

2. His kids are going to miss him.

3. His caps are in a box.

4. Five little cats are on a rock.

5. His bats are in a bag.

6. Two kids are doing a jig.

7. Six pigs are on a hill.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two, are

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 31 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short e - Part 1 Practice reading the words.

e egg

fell men mess

well hen less

sell hem yes

yell fez

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 32 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

e egg

1. Pam will sell a fan.

2. Yes, Tom will win.

3. A hen fell in a well.

4. Mom will hem it.

5. Six men jog.

6. A fez is a hat.

7. Sam is yelling at a dog.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 33 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short e - Part 2 Practice reading the words.

e egg

net leg red

met Meg wed

set egg fed

let web led

vet neck Ned

yet Ed

wet

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 34 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

e egg

1. Ned fed his little dog.

2. Meg sells a lot of eggs.

3. Who has a red cap?

4. Ed will not go yet.

5. A web was on a dock.

6. Mom will let Sam go.

7. Jan met a lot of kids.

8. A dog bit his leg.

9. I have not met him.

10. What is in his net?

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 35 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short e - Part 3 Practice reading the words.

e egg

pen beg ten

pet bet tell

pet Bess Ted

pep Ben keg

jet bell Ken

Jeff bed den

get deck

peck

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 36 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

e egg

1. Jeff will go to bed.

2. Ned will go in a jet.

3. Jack ran to get his pet.

4. I will tell him what to do.

5. A fox was in a den.

6. Bess will sell six bells.

7. Ben will not get wet.

8. I have a box of pens.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 37 Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Read the words.

_s Suffix
Study

Nouns - Verbs -
Persons, Action
Places, Words
Things

bed sell
beds sells

pen pet
pens pets

net yell
nets yells
web beg
webs begs

egg tell
eggs tells

bell get
bells gets

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 38 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

hē wē mē Sight Words

1. We will get a pet.

2. He ran to get his sack.

3. Tell me what to do.

4. He will miss me.

5. We get on a jet.

6. He is fixing his van.

7. Mom will let me go.

8. What did he win?

9. We can not go.

10. We have a job to do.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two,

are, he, we, me

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 39 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

The the Sight Words

1. He will get the logs.

2. We ran to the top of the hill.

3. The fox is in its den.

4. Dad gets in the van.

5. The egg fell.

6. Mom is mad at the dog.

7. The cat is licking me.

8. Sam is fixing the box.

9. Did he get on the jet?

10. The man will get a map.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two,

are, he, we, me, the

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 40 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

sēe hēre Sight Words

1. Who can see the red fox?

2. Here is a little box.

3. The dog is not here.

4. I like to see the pigs.

5. The kids will be here at ten.

6. We see the bags in the van.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two,

are, he, we, me, the, see, here

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 41 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

come Sight Words

1. Sam will come to see me.

2. His dog will come back.

3. We have come to get a pet.

4. The kids come up the hill.

5. Did he come on the bus?

6. No, he did not come on the bus.

He was on a jet.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two,

are, he, we, me, the, see, here, come

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 42 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Beginning consonant blends - s blends Practice reading the words.

st sc sk sm sn sp sw

stick scab spin

stop skin spot

stem skill spill

stack smell sped

step smack swim

still snob swell

stiff snip
tw
dw snack twin

dwell twig

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 43 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Beginning consonant blends - l blends Practice reading the words.

bl cl fl gl pl sl

black clef glob

bless class glen

block flop plop

clip flat plan

clog flock sled

clam flap slip

click flip slot

clap flag slam

clock glass slap

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 44 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Beginning consonant blends - l blends Practice reading the words.

br cr dr fr gr pr tr

brick frog prom

brag Fran trim

brim grab track

crab grill trip

crock grin trim

drip grass trick

drop grip

drag press

dress prick

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 45 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short u - Part 1 Practice reading the words.

u up

fun muff hum

sun huff sum

run hull mum

us fuss fuzz

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 46 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

u up

1. I will run.

2. We have fun!

3. Mom will fuss at us.

4. Pam can hum.

5. What has fuzz?

6. Jan has a muff.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 47 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short u - Part 2 Practice reading the words.

u up

up rug sub

nut hug rub

hut mug luck

mutt mud

suds

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 48 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

u up

1. Jill runs up the hill.

2. The pig was in the mud.

3. I’ll huff and I’ll puff.

4. The mug was hot.

5. The eggs fell on the rug. It was a mess.

6. His dog is a mutt.

7. I will hug him.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 49 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short u - Part 3 Practice reading the words.

u up

puff bun cut

pup buzz cup

putt bus cub

pus bug cuff

jug bud dug

gum but dull

gull tub tux

Gus tux duck

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 50 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

u up

1. A bug is on a rug.

2. It was dull.

3. Nan cuts a lot.

4. Bill has a tux.

5. Gus is on a bus.

6. A man dug up six jugs.

7. Jan got a little pup.

8. The duck is quacking.

9. The gull is going up.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 51 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Short u - Part 4 Practice reading the words.

u up

stuck snug drum

cluck stuff gruff

truck plug bluff

club plum glub

stun scum plus

grub smug

spun stub

slum swum

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 52 Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Read the words.

_s Suffix
Study

Nouns - Verbs -
Persons, Action
Places, Words
Things

rug run
rugs runs

nut cut
nuts cuts

cup hum
cups hums
tub rub
tubs rubs

bug hug
bugs hugs

cuff tug
cuffs tugs

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 53 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Mixed Review Practice reading the words.

Mixed Review Of Short Vowel Words

red will box

am ten gets

if up cuff

bus cat big

in on mix

off six eggs

sun had cup

miss tub it

but yes not

jazz us maps

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 54 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

Review Sentences

1. His dog is on his bed.

2. It is a big red dog.

3. Dan has six cats.

4. A cat can get up on a van.

5. A lid is on a pot.

6. Mom will mix it.

7. Tim is on a bus.

8. Tom has fun.

9. I am not sad.

10. A fox runs.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 55 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

cast hand ramp ant

last band damp rant

past land lamp pant

fast sand camp plant

vast stand tamp slant

mast grand stamp scant

blast brand clamp grant

gland cramp

bland tramp

strand scamp

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 56 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

fact raft mask asp

tact daft task rasp

pact craft bask gasp

act draft cask clasp

tract graft ask grasp

bract flask

talc Alps adapt chasm

scalp apt spasm

rapt plasm

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 57 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

nest bend tent belt

best mend bent felt

test send lent melt

west lend dent pelt

rest tend sent welt

vest fend vent smelt

jest pend went dwelt

lest rend pent

pest spend Kent

quest blend spent

crest trend Brent

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 58 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

swept left held help

kept deft weld yelp

slept weft meld kelp

crept cleft

elk self elm next

elf helm text

insect hemp tempt desk

object attempt eskimo

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 59 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

mint quilt blimp gift

tint silt limp sift

hint tilt skimp lift

lint jilt primp rift

glint kilt crimp drift

print gilt scrimp swift

squint lilt

flint stilt

splint wilt

sprint spilt

script gild

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 60 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

disk fist milk film

risk list silk

brisk mist bilk

frisk twist ilk

grist wind

wisp disc prism strict

lisp

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 61 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

cost pond stomp soft

lost fond romp loft

frost bond tromp

blond pomp

frond clomp

font golf prompt opt

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 62 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

punt rust dump tusk

bunt dust jump dusk

hunt just hump husk

runt must bump musk

stunt bust lump

blunt crust pump

brunt trust stump

grunt plump

trump

clump

slump bulb

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 63 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Ending Consonant Blends Practice reading the words.

tuft gulf gulp sulk

engulf pulp bulk

hulk

skulk

sculpt cusp result refund

cult fund

insult

duct erupt adult

deduct abrupt exult

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 64 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

Sentences

1. A frog jumps in the pond.

2. We must pick up the mess.

3. The gift is from Mom and Dad.

4. We see an egg in the nest.

5. I see five ants in the grass.

6. The kids jump on the bed.

7. Tom went to see Bob.

8. I will ask Mom to help me.

9. We will rest in the tent.

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 65 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

yöu Sight Words

1. Will you help me?

2. I like you.

3. Did you see the fox?

4. You must come to see me.

5. You will go on the bus.

6. Did you get lost?

7. You and I will have fun.

8. Do you have a pet?

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two,

are, he, we, me, the, see, here, come, you

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 66 Decoding Practice Unit 1

Practice reading the sentences.

fōr Sight Words

1. The box is for you.

2. The pen is for dad.

3. The pans are for mom.

4. The pup is for the kids.

5. I have a gift for you.

6. The belt is a gift for dad.

7. The tent is for camping.

8. We like to run for fun.

Review: a, A, was, what, I, have, little,

like, five, of, from, go, to, do, who, two,

are, he, we, me, the, see, here, come, you,

for

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 67 Decoding Practice Unit 1

 Practice reading the words.

Sight Word Review

a, A, was, what,

I, have, little,

like, five,

of, from,

go,

to, do, who, two,

are,

he, we, me,

the,

see, here,

come,

you,

for

© 2008 by Kathryn J. Davis 68 Decoding Practice Unit 1