CVC Words

Beginning readers have to start somewhere, and for most, that is with letter sounds (also known as phonemes). Once early readers have mastered individual letter sounds, it is time to start stringing them together to form words. And the best way to begin that is with CVC words.

CVC stands for consonant-vowel-consonant. CVC words are three-letter words beginning and ending with a consonant. In most cases, the vowel in the middle of a CVC word will use short vowel sound. Some examples of CVC words include cat, vet, lit, bog, and pug. 

Pro Tip: When teaching CVC words, be sure to listen to the sound the vowel in the middle makes. Though most words that follow the CVC pattern will sound as you expect them to, there are some notable exceptions, such as the word put, which uses a different sound for the U than the short U found in the words pup or cut. 

Below are more examples of CVC words. For a comprehensive list of CVC words, see the activity section after this article.

Most CVC words are predictable, with the vowel in the middle making a typical short vowel sound. But there are exceptions to this rule. The word put is a true exception to the CVC rule, as other words with the UT ending do follow the CVC rule, but there are other exceptions as well.

AY or OY Words

The letters AY actually make a long A sound, as in the words pay and say. Because these letters work together to form one sound, they are known as a vowel team. 

The letters OY are what is called a diphthong. Here the two letter sounds can both be heard, but they cannot be separated, 

Words that use these spelling patterns are not true CVC words and are best avoided until your child is ready for more advanced spelling patterns. 

AW, EW, and OW words

As with OY, the letters AW cannot be separated from one another, and are therefore a diphthong sound, not part of a CVC word. This is true of the letters OW as well, when used in words like cow and frown, while the same letters become a vowel team in words such as know and grow. The letters EW are part of an advanced spelling pattern that makes an “oo” sound as in the words grew and flew. When teaching CVC words, avoid these spelling patterns, as they will only lead to confusion.

R-Controlled Vowels

The letters AR, ER, IR, OR, and UR are known as R-controlled vowels. An R-controlled vowel is a vowel sound that is changed, or “controlled” by the R following it. Some examples include car, tern, bird, fort, and curt. These vowels do not use the typical short vowel sounds, and as such should not be taught with CVC words.

Reading ultimately comes down to learning how to blend letters together. This can be hard for new readers to do, and attempting to hold multiple letter sounds in their heads can be overwhelming. Most teachers begin blending with CVC words because they are short. Reading CVC words only requires a child to remember 3 letter sounds at a time. A true CVC word also uses only the first sounds a child learns: basic letter sounds and short vowel sounds.

CVC words are also good for new readers because they do not require that a reader understand the sounds formed by multiple consonants together (whether that be letter blends such as BL or GR or digraphs—two letters together that make one sound, such as SH or CK.) Because each letter in a CVC word can typically only represent a single sound, it is easier for a new reader to identify the sounds that go into the word, and therefore decode the complete word.

Pro Tip: Some letters do make multiple sounds. The S for example, can make either an S sound or a Z sound. The /s/ most often appears at the beginning the CVC word (as in sit) while the /z/ sounds appears at the end (as in his.) When working on CVC words, make sure your child knows all the sounds a letter can make. 

Reading CVC words requires readers to have strong phonemic awareness. Phonemic awareness means not only understanding that letters make a sound and knowing what sound(s) each letter makes, but being able to manipulate those sounds—to break them apart and put them back together again. Doing so allows readers to decode the sound each letter makes individually and then blend them together to form words.

Pro Tip: The sound a letter makes is called a phoneme. The English language has 44 phonemes. In written form, a phoneme is represented as as the sound a letter makes between two slash marks: /f/. 

The same letter can be represented by more than one phoneme. For example, the letter C can be represented by /k/ as in cat or /s/ as in celery.

The way a letter (or combination of letters) is written is called a grapheme. The same phoneme can be represented by more than one grapheme. For example, the phoneme /f/ can be written either with the grapheme f or with the grapheme ph. The phoneme /j/ can be represented with the graphemes g, j, or dge.

Beginning readers do not need to understand or be able to recognize all 44 phonemes and the graphemes associated with them. Many of these are more complicated and will be introduced as their reading journey progresses. What is essential when beginning to read is understanding the sounds made by the 26 individual letters that make up the alphabet. 

Beginning readers with a strong foundation in letter sounds who can successfully blend CVC words will then move on to blending more difficult words (often words with two consonants sitting together in a CCVC or CVCC pattern, such as grin or wisp.

When teaching CVC words, it is a good idea to focus on a single short vowel sound at a time. Short vowel sounds can sometimes sound similar to one another, which can lead to confusion for new readers. Focusing on a single sound at a time allows a reader to master that sound before moving onto the next. Below are some ways to work on CVC words with your child.

Begin by asking your child identify the sounds each letter in a word makes. Then work on blending these sounds together to read the CVC word. This can be done orally or on paper.

Below is an example of a CVC blending activity you can try with your new reader.

Begin by asking your child identify the sounds each letter in a word makes. Then work on blending these sounds together. This can be done orally or on paper.

Below is an example of a CVC blending activity you can try with your new reader.

Once your child has begun to read CVC words, try giving them fluency grids to practice on. A fluency grid is a chart featuring multiple words that use the same spelling pattern, in this case CVC words. Repeated exposure to these words will build fluency, allowing children to more quickly map these words to their brains.

Below is a sample fluency grid using only Short A CVC words. 

Offer these grids one sound at a time until your child has mastered each individual short vowel sound. Then move on to mixed fluency grids like the one below.

One of the best ways to practice short vowel sounds is by reading short vowel specific books. While printed passages are good start, the sense of accomplishment a child feels from completing a physical book cannot be rivaled. This achievement can make a child feel like a "big kid."

Grounded in the Science of Reading and designed in consultation with Orton-Gillingham trained literacy specialist Marisa Ware, the Charge into Reading Decodable Readers take the guesswork out of learning to read!

The Short Vowel Beginning Reader Set is perfect for children who know their letter sounds and are ready to begin decoding or "sounding out" words. Each book in the set focuses on a single short vowel sound, building reading confidence one sound at a time. Compelling storylines paired with a strict scope and sequence make for a series that children won't just be ABLE to read, but that they will actually WANT to read.

Spelling and reading go hand in hand. While learning to read the words on a page is easier than understanding the letters that go into forming a word, CVC words are also an excellent tool in learning to SPELL a word. For students working on how to spell words, here’s a good activity.

Begin by saying a CVC word aloud, or by showing your child a picture of a CVC word and asking them to say the word aloud. Then ask them to tap out each individual sound in the word. Once they have identified the letter SOUND, ask them it identify the letters that make each sound. If they’re ready, ask them to write out the word so they can see it spelled out. If they are not ready, write the word for them so they can read what they have just spelled. 

For extra fine motor practice, ask them to draw their own picture of the image.

Below is an example of a completed CVC Word Builder activity by my son, Sammy Vitale. For a downloadable version, including cut-out letters and pictures, see the activities listed below the article.