How to Teach CVC Words

The main phonics skill you will be focusing on in Kindergarten is CVC words. Typically, I spent about 2-3 months working on decoding, blending, spelling and fluency with just CVC words! Once your students are able to read CVC words, their reading ability will skyrocket! Here's how to teach CVC words in Kindergarten.

What is a CVC Word?

Do your students know what a CVC word is? My first year in K, mine had NO clue. The principal came in for an observation and asked them what the term “CVC” means. I had never taught them the consonant-vowel-consonant pattern that a CVC word is (which will help them especially when trying to spell!). Make sure to cover exactly what a CVC word is before you try to start blending and reading them!

This anchor chart is a great visual for them and is easy to refer back to. You can find it in the CVC Words Unit here. ​

Two Types of Blending

To start teaching CVC words, you need to understand that there are two types of blending your students will need to be able to do before they can read a CVC word. The two forms of blending are oral blending and decoding. Oral blending is hearing three separate sounds with a short pause between each one, then being able to repeat the sounds, and say the word. For example “/h/…/a/…/t/”, your students should repeat “/h/…/a/…/t/”, then say “hat” quickly after. You can read more about oral blending here.

The second form is decoding a CVC word. To decode, or read a CVC word, students will look at a word, say each sound, then blend it together to say the word.

Your students need to practice BOTH of these skills in order to be successful and fluent readers. One cannot exist without the other!

Modeling How To Blend

The way you model how to blend can be an effective teaching strategy. Here’s how oral blending practice looked in my classroom:

Step 1: Tell the students exactly what you are doing “Today we are blending, or putting together sounds, to make words.”

Step 2: Model (I Do). Say each sound. Model how to blend sounds to say the whole word, while holding up a finger to show each sound, then swiping your fingers across as you say the word.

Step 3: Practice (We Do, You Do). “Listen to these sounds. Repeat the sounds and then put together to say the whole word.” Say a word sound by sound and let your students repeat, then blend the word together.

Once your students are able to orally blend, you can use the same modeling strategy to practice reading a CVC word.

For more ideas on how to teach blending, you can watch this YouTube video here: CVC Word Blending Strategies

Done-for-you Phonics CVC Words Unit

If you are looking for lesson plans, assessments, centers, and worksheets to help you teach CVC words- make sure to check out the CVC Phonics Unit- available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store here.

Also available for First Grade teachers here. You can try a free lesson to practice CVC words here– straight from this unit!

I hope that this post was helpful in understanding how to teach CVC words to your students. For more posts about CVC words, make sure to check out these posts here:

•How to Build CVC Fluency

•3 Activities to Practice CVC Words