Kids learn to read consonant digraph words in kindergarten. First, beginners learn short vowels: a_ (as in words like hat, Pam), i_ (as in him, sit), o_ (as in hot, mop), u_ (as in run, bug), and e_(as in hen, pet). Next, kids practice these simple short vowel cvc words quite a lot, gain some […]
Effective Phonics Books & Lessons
Learning to read is a great migration. A child’s brain goes through an incredible transformation, linking areas that were previously unconnected. When a child isn’t exposed to science-based reading instruction, this process often goes awry.
When elephants migrate, younger elephants often get lost. An older, experienced elephant stops to help. She guides the younger one back to the herd step-by-step. Young readers deserve the same sort of guidance. Our printable phonics books guide young students through each of the most common phonics sounds in a step-by-step fashion.
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Our printable phonics books can help your student learn to read with confidence. Close the gap between your student's level and potential with gradual, systematic instruction. Our 70+ printable phonics books can gently lead your student toward independent reading.
Kids that struggle with reading are intelligent. We must teach them in a way that works. Cognitive Science and Reading Research have shown that kids learn best with explicit, systematic phonics instruction. Yet, many classrooms across the world expect kids to guess at words and "catch on." As a result, many kids struggle with decoding. Our books can help kids learn to read effectively the first time. Our books can also help struggling readers gain ground.
Browse Our Phonics Books Library
Reading Elephant phonics books are carefully designed for beginners and kids that fall behind in K-2 reading skills. Reading Elephant books are methodically written to ease your student into reading success.
Why can’t I find books my student can read? I’ve gotten every easy reader. My student can’t even read those.
Sound familiar?
Tired of your student’s reading difficulties? Of the tears during reading time? Looking for fun, effective learn-to-read books that match your student’s unique level? Our phonics books are for you.
Reading Elephant phonics books were created to get all kids reading. Many books inadvertently teach kids to guess, memorize and "catch on." But learning to read is a process. Kids need to build strong foundational skills in decoding and word analysis. Without carefully designed incremental steps, many kids fall behind.
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So our printable phonics books introduce sounds one at a time. Kids master one phonics unit before learning another. Sounds are added gradually. Kids read with confidence and build a strong reading foundation.
Reading Elephant offers printable, systematic phonics books that allow kids to practice: short vowels, consonant digraphs, consonant blends, silent e and long vowel phonics sounds.
Print them all from your home computer!
Browse Our Phonics Books Library
My student just memorizes books. He thinks memorizing is reading.
All Reading Elephant books encourage kids to read words sound-by-sound. Our books encourage kids to analyze phonetic units. Kids cannot memorize the books because there are no repetitive phrases or sentences. As a result, kids build transferable reading skills. In other words, they can begin reading words in the real world (not just in a book they've memorized).
My child looks at the pictures to read. When the picture is taken away, he can’t read the words!
Our pictures are carefully drawn so kids cannot use them to guess at the words. The pictures are there for fun and to color. No child should rely on pictures to read.
Browse Our Phonics Books Library
Reading Elephant books are a fun, effective, step-by-step guide to reading success.
What do Reading Elephant books offer?
- Systematic text that introduces sounds gradually, and allows kids to practice each new phonetic unit
- A gentle path toward independent reading
- A way to build confidence in beginners and struggling readers
- Fun, amusing stories and pictures
- Carefully written books that offer extensive practice on common phonics sounds
- a simple, progressive guide to introducing phonics sounds
- Extensive review. Kids get to practice old sounds with new sounds
- Easy access. You can print them all from home!
- A fun path toward independent reading
Browse Our Phonics Books Library
What phonics rules do our books cover?
Our phonics books cover a broad range of phonics rules. There are many books in each set. As a result, beginning readers are able to develop fluency (reading speed). Our phonics books cover the following phonics rules:
- 1) short vowels
- 2) consonant digraphs
- 3) consonant blends
- 4) silent e
- 5) long vowel digraphs
Our short vowel books allow kids to master short vowel sounds in the following order:
- a_ as in mat, sat, fan, ham, cap
- i_ as in lit, sit, fin, him, kit
- o_ as in got, hot, Ron, hop, cop
- u_ as in cup, hut, fun, hum, tub
- e_ as in met, set, fell, pen, let
Since our books are systematic, kids learn how to read one short vowel word type at a time. For example, short a books include sentences like: “Pam had a bat.” Later, short e books contain sentences like: “The cub ran to the den.”
Our step-by-step approach helps struggling readers master all short vowel words.
Next, our consonant digraph books introduce consonant digraphs in the following order:
- sh as in wish, dish, ship, shell…etc.
- th as in bath, math, moth, path…etc.
- th as in then, this, that…etc.
- ch as in chop, chill, chip, Chad…etc.
- _tch as in batch, witch, match, patch…etc.
- _ck as in deck, kick, Rick, chick…etc.
- _ing as in king, ring, sing, wing…etc.
- _ng as in long, song, wrong, strong…etc.
- _ang as in sang, rang, pang, bang…etc.
- wh_ as in when, whale, wheel, whim…etc.
Again, our consonant digraph books are systematic. Each book set focuses on one phonics sound. Thus, the sh digraph books include sentences like: “Shell got on a ship to get fish.” Later, our _ang digraph books include sentences like: “Jill got a pet with fangs.”
Our books teach phonics sounds in incremental steps.
Next, our consonant blends books teach kids to read two letter sounds in a row. Consonant blends words include words like spot, land, track, west, and sand. Our consonant blends books give kids extensive practice with a step-by-step approach that builds confidence.
Consonants Blends Series Now Available!
These books introduce your child to consonant letters and sounds - learning to recognize these is a crucial step in reading mastery.
Next, our silent e books teach kids to read the following phonics rules:
- a_ e as in lake, bake, lane, make, mane…etc.
- e_e as in Pete, these…etc.
- i_e as in hive, bike, dive, tile, mile, mine…etc.
- o_e as in hope, cope, hole, rope, rose…etc.
- u_e as in duke, use
- Our silent e books build a strong reading foundation.
Silent E Book Series Now Available!
Reading Elephant silent e books teach kids to read words with an e at the end. It's the fourth series of our printable phonics books.
Our long vowel books teach kids to read:
- ee as in peek, seek, seem…etc.
- ea as in leave, real, seal…etc.
- ai as in sail, mail, tail…etc.
- _ay as in bay, day, say…etc.
- oa as in boat, soap, boast…etc.
- ow as in glow, slow, row…etc.
- igh as in sigh, light, might…etc.
- _y as in my, cry, fly…etc.
- ____y as in funny, bunny, granny…etc.
Our long vowel series, like all our books, are methodically written. Kids learn one phonics sound at a time. They get to practice extensively.
Give your student a solid reading foundation. Our phonics books give kids the skills to read independently and with confidence.
Phonics Books With a Proven Approach
Reading Elephant phonics books are based on proven approaches and sound research. Furthermore, their sequential, progressive nature eases kids from easy to more challenging reading territory. Kids can have fun with phonics by starting simple and moving methodically toward complex. Moreover, gradual progression allows students to gain confidence. In addition, they build fluency and become more precise readers.
Our books are appropriate for kindergarten through second grade, but preschoolers can also learn from the simpler ones. The phonics stories are meant to engage and entertain, all while establishing fundamental building blocks for a bright reading future.
Thank you for visiting Reading Elephant!
Chunking as a Sight Word Strategy
Kids need to learn to read and spell sight words. These are words that break the phonetic code in some way. For example, “there” is a sight word, because although the /th/ and /r/ sounds are regular, the e_e sound is not. If we spelled “there” phonetically, we would write “thair.” There are about 100-150 […]
Halloween 1st Grade Phonics Story
In this FREE Halloween 1st grade phonics story, kids can practice reading short vowels, silent e, long vowel digraphs and some common sight words. [Scroll down for the free Halloween story pdf.] In Kindergarten, kids usually master short vowel words like mat, fun, and patch. Throughout 1st grade, students need to continue to practice these […]
Halloween Kindergarten Phonics Story
I’ve written a festive Halloween kindergarten phonics story called Pam’s Pumpkin. It includes short vowel words and consonant digraph words. There are some sight words in the story including: have, said, was, some, orange, were, some, one, of. You can also use this for first graders who are working on fluency or are in a […]
Kindergarten spelling lists
Kindergartners should work on spelling phonetic words and sight words. When they work on phonetic words, they should write the word sound-by-sound. When they spell sight words, they should write the irregular aspects of the sight word from memory. Do not have your kindergartner work on memorized lists of words each lesson. Instead, construct your […]
Fluency Reading Strategies
Do you have a student that can decode accurately, but reads slowly? If so, your student may need to read more leveled texts. This is the only proven tactic of all the reading fluency strategies. It is difficult for a young child to read for extended periods of time, because, for early readers, decoding is […]
Silent e Worksheet
Kids usually learn the silent e sound towards the end of Kindergarten or beginning of first grade, depending on your state and district standards. Silent e is a significant milestone, because for the first time, kids branch off from short vowel words (ex. Hat, met, sip, dog, cup) and read long vowel words (ex. bake, […]
Short a Phonics Words
Kids work on reading short a phonics words in early Kindergarten. They are the first words kids need to master. Some short a phonics words include: mat, Sam, fan, fat, ran, yak, tap, mat, Pat, Pam, man, bat, cat, lap, Dan, rat, rad, tad, dab, nab, mad, sad, pad, fad, wag, lag, sag, bag, yap, […]
R-Controlled Reading Passages
I’m so excited to release Reading Elephant Series 15, the r-controlled reading passages. These stories introduce ar, er/ir/ur, and or phonics sounds. The stories introduce r-controlled sounds gradually and they also introduce more sight words. You can enter our shop or click the link below for a FREE sample: ar Book ar words Our r-controlled […]
Sounding Out Words and Why Kids Struggle
Your student is in Kindergarten. He knows letter sounds. Yet, when he tries to string letters together to form a word, he forgets the first or middle sound. “H-aaaa-t… um does that say hit?” he says. Sounding out words is a critical early reading skill. Some kids really struggle to blend sounds. If a child […]