English · Kindergarten–Grade 1
Free CVC words worksheets
Free printable CVC words worksheets for kindergarten and grade 1: missing vowel and build-the-word pictures, read and write lists for every short vowel, CVC sentences, a sort by vowel sound and 20 picture flash cards. Answer keys included.
Missing vowel: 15 CVC pictures
Fifteen pictures with the first and last letter given; say the word and write the missing short vowel. Vowel key at the bottom. Answer key on page 2. Free printable PDF.
Build the word: 12 pictures, three boxes each
Twelve pictures with three empty sound boxes; say each sound on a finger and write one letter per box. Answer key on page 2. Free printable PDF.
Read and write: short a and short e words
Sixteen CVC words with short a and short e to read aloud and write twice on ruled lines. Free printable PDF.
Read and write: short i and short o words
Sixteen CVC words with short i and short o to read aloud and write twice. Free printable PDF.
Read and write: short u and mixed review
Eight short u words plus eight mixed-vowel words to read and write twice. Free printable PDF.
CVC sentences: fill in the picture word
Eight short sentences made of CVC words and a few sight words (the, is, on, in, a); write the pictured word on the line. Answer key on page 2. Free printable PDF.
Sort 20 words by vowel sound
A word bank of twenty CVC words to sort into a, e, i, o and u columns by their middle sound. Answer key on page 2. Free printable PDF.
CVC flash cards: 20 picture and word cards
Twenty cut-out cards, each with a picture and its CVC word, four per vowel. Free printable PDF.
CVC words (consonant, vowel, consonant: cat, bed, pig, dog, sun) are the first words children read by sounding out, and the words on which the five short vowels are learned. These eight worksheets give a kindergartner or first grader the full sequence on one page: hear the middle sound and write the vowel, build whole words in sound boxes, read and write lists for each short vowel, read sentences made only of CVC words, sort words by their vowel, and practice with picture flash cards. Every picture is a simple bold drawing of a word in the set (cat, hat, map, bed, hen, pig, six, dog, fox, bus, cup, sun and more), so children can name it without help. The five sheets with answers have a key on page 2.
What's in this set
- Missing vowel. Fifteen pictures with the first and last letters given; write the short vowel in the middle box. Vowel key (a as in apple...) at the bottom. Answer key.
- Build the word. Twelve pictures with three empty sound boxes each; one letter per box. Answer key.
- Read and write: short a and short e. Sixteen words to read aloud and write twice.
- Read and write: short i and short o. Sixteen more words, same layout.
- Read and write: short u and review. Eight short u words, then eight words mixing all five vowels.
- CVC sentences. Eight sentences made of CVC words plus the, is, on, in, a, has, I, see; write the pictured word on the line. Answer key.
- Sort the words by vowel. A bank of twenty words to sort into a, e, i, o and u columns. Answer key.
- CVC flash cards. Twenty cut-out cards with a picture and its word, four per vowel.
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How to use these worksheets
Print at 100% on A4 or US Letter. Do the sheets in order over two or three weeks; each one assumes the skill of the one before. Say sounds, not letter names: /c/ /a/ /t/, then "cat".
- Missing vowel. Have the child say the word slowly and stretch the middle: "c-aaa-t". The vowel key at the bottom is there for the child to point at, not just to read. If a or e is the sticking point (it usually is), do the two a and e lists first.
- Build the word. Tap one finger per sound before writing: three sounds, three boxes. Children who write "ct" or "cta" need more oral segmenting before more paper.
- Read and write lists. Read the whole list first, then write. Writing each word twice while saying its sounds is what fixes the spelling. The colored circle marks words with no picture: read those from the letters alone.
- CVC sentences. Read the sentence, name the picture, sound it out, write it. The sight words (the, is, on, in, a, has, I, see) should be read by sight; tell the child those words if they stumble rather than sounding them out.
- Sort by vowel. Read each word in the bank aloud and listen for the middle sound before placing it. Four in each column is a built-in check.
- Flash cards. Picture side up: say the word, then check the letters. Word side up: read it, then check the picture. Keep the cards a child gets wrong in a small pile to repeat the next day.
Common mistakes to watch for
- Guessing from the picture. The child says "kitten" for the cat or "puppy" for the dog. Give the CVC word and move on; the pictures are prompts, not a vocabulary test.
- Mixing a and e, or i and e. The most common vowel confusions. Pair the sound with the mouth shape: a is wide open, e is a small smile.
- Writing letter names. "See ay tee" instead of /c/ /a/ /t/. Model the sounds every time.
- Leaving out the vowel. Sound boxes fix this: three sounds, three boxes, the middle one is always a vowel in this set.
Frequently asked questions
What are CVC words?
Consonant-vowel-consonant words with a short vowel sound: cat, hen, pig, mop, bug. They are the first fully decodable words, so they are where reading by sounding out begins, usually in kindergarten.
What order should the vowels be taught in?
Most programs start with short a, then i or o, then e and u, because a is easiest to hear and e is easiest to confuse. The read-and-write sheets follow that order: a and e together so the confusion is met early, then i and o, then u with a review.
Which sheets have answer keys?
Missing vowel, build the word, CVC sentences and sort the words have the answers on page 2 of the PDF. The read-and-write lists and the flash cards have nothing to mark.
What comes after CVC words?
Consonant blends (bl, cl, st: see the cl blend worksheets), digraphs (sh, ch, th) and then long vowels with silent e. The phonics worksheets page has the wider set.
Can I use these in a classroom?
Yes. The PDFs are free for home and classroom use. The flash cards laminate well; the other sheets can go in a plastic sleeve for dry-erase practice.
More phonics practice
Before CVC words: the letter worksheets for letter sounds and the handwriting worksheets for forming them. Alongside: the phonics worksheets (word families, digraph sort, vowel sort) and the cl blend worksheets. For children who still need pencil control before writing words, the name tracing worksheets and shape tracing worksheets come first.
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