Split digraphs, or magic e, are the focus of these four pages for Year 1. Pupils join snake, kite, bone and cube to pictures, then pair words that share a vowel sound but spell it another way: rain with gate, boat with rope, blue with flute. After that they drop home, time, prize and name into sentence gaps. The sheet ends with one sentence of their own using cake. Answers are included, and the work matches England National Curriculum word reading.
Reading - word reading
“Apply phonic knowledge and skills as the route to decode words”
Pupils must read each split digraph word before they can match it to a picture or a sentence.
Reading - word reading
“Respond speedily with the correct sound to graphemes (letters or groups of letters) for all 40+ phonemes, including, where applicable, alternative sounds for graphemes”
The Sound Family Match puts ai, oa, ie and ue next to their a-e, o-e, i-e and u-e partners.
Reading - word reading
“Read accurately by blending sounds in unfamiliar words containing GPCs that have been taught”
Reading prize, time and home in the Sentence Match means blending across the split vowel.
Pupils join snake, kite, bone and cube to the right pictures.
Four words (rain, boat, pie, blue) to pair with rope, bike, gate or flute by vowel sound. The first answer is filled in.
Pupils write a letter to show which gap each of home, time, prize and name fills, such as It is _____ for bed.
One line for a short sentence of their own that uses the word cake.
After teaching a-e and i-e
Use the Picture Match straight after the input. It takes a few minutes and shows who reads kite as kit.
Paired talk
Let pupils argue out the Sound Family Match in pairs. The blue and flute pair usually needs the most talk.
Writing starter
Put the cake sentence on the board as the day's first task, then check for the split digraph in the spelling.
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