SH CI CH TI Worksheet

The /sh/ sound is one of the trickiest sounds in English, because it is not spelled just one way. Third graders already read words like shore and fish with confidence, but the same quiet /sh/ also hides inside ancient, machine, and vacation, where the letters on the page look nothing like sh. This SH CI CH TI worksheet gathers all four spellings in one place so students can see the pattern instead of guessing at it. Once a reader knows that ci, ch, and ti can each say /sh/, whole families of longer words open up and spelling them becomes far less mysterious.

This 3rd grade consonant digraphs worksheet moves from sorting, to spelling, to writing across three short parts. In Part A, students read twelve words in the word box, decide which spelling makes the /sh/ sound in each one, and copy the word onto a line under the matching heading. A labeled picture above every column — ship, musician, chef, and station — models that spelling before students begin. Part B gives six unfinished words and asks students to fill in sh, ci, ch, or ti. Part C asks for two original sentences, one built on a ch word and one on a ti word from the box. Use it as independent morning work, as a word study center, or as a quick check after a phonics lesson.

What’s Included

• 1 print-ready PDF worksheet
• Answer key
• A 12-word sort across four /sh/ spellings, 6 complete-the-word items, and 2 sentence-writing prompts

There are three reasons this SH CI CH TI worksheet helps students learn the pattern. First, the sort puts all four spellings side by side, so students compare them instead of meeting each one weeks apart. Second, the complete-the-word section makes students produce a spelling rather than simply recognize it, and that is the step that carries over into their own writing. Third, the sentence prompts push the new words into real use, so the learning does not stop at the page. The included answer key lets students check their own work and lets a teacher grade a class set in about a minute.

Teachers and parents can stretch this skill in a few easy ways. Read a favorite chapter book aloud and have students raise a hand every time they hear the /sh/ sound, then find the word in print to see how it was spelled. Build a classroom chart with four columns and add new words to it all month long. Play a quick sorting game with word cards, or challenge students to spot a ti word on a food label, a menu, or a road sign. Saying the words out loud while looking at the letters is what makes the pattern stick.

Related Resources

• H Digraphs Fill in the Blank Worksheet
• Beginning Digraphs Fill in the Blank Worksheet
• NG/NK Digraph Worksheet
• 44 Sounds of the English Language (Have Fun Teaching video)