The R-Controlled Vowels Fill in the Blanks Worksheet gives 1st graders a word box and ten sentences to practice ar, er, ir, or, and ur sounds. Answer key included — perfect for no-prep phonics practice.
This Mort OR sound phonics reading comprehension worksheet has 1st graders read a silly story full of OR words, then answer five fill-in-the-bubble questions. Includes an answer key for quick, no-prep phonics and reading practice.
The Mark's Barn Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - AR Sound gives first graders a short story full of AR words, then five questions to check understanding. Answer key included for quick, no-prep phonics practice.
A First Grade Harry and the Bear reading comprehension worksheet that teaches the AIR sound through a fun rhyming story and five multiple-choice questions. Includes an answer key — perfect for no-prep phonics and reading practice.
This ure sound worksheet pairs an original 1st grade phonics story with five comprehension questions and an answer key, so students practice reading sure, pure, and picture inside real text.
When R comes along, vowels change their tune!
In 1st grade, kids learn that when the letter R follows a vowel, it changes the vowel's sound. These are often called "bossy R" sounds. They learn ar as in car, or as in fork, and the three spellings that sound the same: er = ir = ur, as in her, bird and fur. Kids read and spell words with these patterns and spot them in short stories. The aha moment comes when they realize "c-a-r" is not "cat" with an R, but a whole new sound!
Bossy R can be tricky, so we use clear phonics routines and lots of reading in context.
Give kids sound boxes and have them tap each sound in a word like "farm": f-ar-m. The ar goes in one box because it makes one sound. Then they spell the word. Seeing r-controlled vowels as one sound unit makes reading and spelling easier.
Why it works: the National Reading Panel found that systematic, explicit phonics teaching clearly improves how children learn to read.
Try it withR-Controlled Vowels Fill in the Blanks WorksheetWorksheetsOpen it →Model reading a short story full of ar words, pausing to point out each pattern. Then kids reread with a partner and highlight every ar they find. Decodable stories let kids practice the pattern in real sentences.
Why it works: showing first, practicing together, then letting kids try alone is the "gradual release" model teachers have relied on for decades (Pearson and Gallagher, 1983).
Try it withMark's Barn Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - AR SoundWorksheetsOpen it →Say a word like "chair" or "bird" and have kids write the r-controlled spelling on a whiteboard. Quick daily checks show which patterns need more practice before moving on.
Why it works: researchers who compared ten study methods found practice testing is one of the two that work best (Dunlosky and colleagues, 2013).
Try it withHarry and the Bear Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - AIR SoundAssessmentsOpen it →First graders love games with silly sounds. Try these!
WorksheetsEveryone says "Arrr!" as a pirate whenever they read an ar word. Car, star, jar, arrr!
Open Mort Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - OR Sound →WorksheetsRead the story and hunt for every or word. Who found the most? Fork, horn and corn count!
Open Mort Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - OR Sound →
AssessmentsRead a silly story about a smell and spot the tricky ure words along the way.
Open What's That Smell? Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - URE Sound →Teacher favorites right now: R-Controlled Vowels Fill in the Blanks Worksheet, Mort Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - OR Sound and Mark's Barn Phonics Reading Comprehension Story Worksheet - AR Sound.
R-controlled vowels are vowels followed by the letter r, which changes the vowel sound. Common examples are ar in car, or in corn, and er, ir and ur in her, bird and fur.
Most children learn r-controlled vowels in 1st grade, after short vowels and often after silent e. They keep practicing them in 2nd grade, especially the three er, ir and ur spellings.
They all make the same sound, so kids need to memorize which spelling goes in each word. Sorting words by spelling and reading them often helps kids remember.
Go on a word hunt in a favorite book and list every word with ar, or, er, ir or ur. Read the list together, then make up a silly sentence using three of them.
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