So What Are CVC Words, and Why Does My Child Need to Practice Them? - Clever Noodle

So What Are CVC Words, and Why Does My Child Need to Practice Them?

Jacquelyn Davis

So what’s the talk about your Kindergartener or 1st grader learning CVC words?  Early learners first master sound-letter correspondence, coming to understand that each letter has a name and also a sound (or sounds).  Once children learn this, it’s time for them to start decoding (sounding out) words and blending the sounds together.  Children must be explicitly taught to blend letter sounds together to form words, rather than saying isolated letter sounds.

That’s where CVC (Consonant-Vowel-Consonant) words come in. Cat, Gap, and Beg are examples of CVC words.  Examples of CCVC words are frog, plum, and swam.  CVCC words are Consonant - Vowel - Consonant - Consonant, with some examples being: risk, wilt, and pond.  

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In the English language, the letters a, e, i, o, and u are vowels and the rest of the letters are consonants (with the exception of the letter y, which sometimes serves as a vowel).  Using CVC words is a good way to help children understand that words have a beginning, middle, and end. Students can usually learn to decode these words quickly and that builds their confidence in being able to read, which in turn creates enthusiasm to practice reading.

When students learn these patterns, they can learn to read words more fluently. Reading fluently means that you are able to read with a combination of accuracy, speed, and expression. Reading fluency improves reading comprehension, helping children better understand what they read. Choppy readers stop so often that by the time they complete the sentence, they frequently have lost the meaning.  

As students advance in their reading skills and master CVC words, they move on to CCVC, CVCC and then CCVCC words.  With this progress, children begin learning the initial 22 blends and 17 final blends – understanding how letter sounds work together.  See the full the list of initial and final blends below with examples. (Note: Popped! The Reading Game Starring Balloon Dog includes all 22 initial and 17 final blends with 250 CVC, CCVC, CVCC, and CCVCC words.)

Here’s why mastering the CVC word patterns matters:

  1. Phonemic Awareness: CVC words help children develop phonemic awareness, which is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds in words. By working with CVC words, children learn to recognize the sounds represented by individual letters and blend them together to form words.
  1. Decoding Skills: CVC words are often simple and easy to decode, making them ideal for beginning readers. By mastering CVC words, children build foundational decoding skills that are essential for reading fluency and comprehension.
  1. Building Vocabulary: CVC words are commonly used in early reading materials and form the basis of many simple, high-frequency words. By teaching CVC words, educators help children expand their vocabulary and develop a strong foundation for reading more complex words in the future.
  1. Confidence Building: Working with CVC words provides children with opportunities to experience success in reading. As they master these basic words, children gain confidence in their reading abilities and are motivated to continue learning and exploring new words.

Overall, teaching CVC words is a critical component of early literacy instruction that lays the groundwork for developing strong reading skills and fostering a love of reading in children.

And once children master CVC words, they can more on to CCVC, then CVCC, and CCVCC.  

CVC Words

CVC words are one-syllable, three-letter words that follow the pattern of consonant-vowel-consonant. In this word pattern, the middle vowel is always a short sound. 

CCVC Words

CCVC words follow a pattern of consonant-consonant-vowel-consonant. Although they only have one more letter than CVC words, they can present a challenge for early readers. Why? Because they contain digraphs of initial blends, such as "sh," "ch," and "th." In order to read CCVC words accurately, children have to learn how to blend these letters together to make one sound. 

CVCC Words

CVCC words follow a pattern of consonant-vowel-consonant-consonant. With CVCC words, the two-letter consonant digraph comes at the end of the word, rather than the beginning (final sound blends).

Initial and Final Blends

Initial Blends (CCVC)

Examples

bl

blob

br

brag

cl

clam

cr

crab

dr

drum

dw

dwam

fl

flat

fr

frog

gl

glad

gr

grab

pl

plan

pr

prop

sc

scab

sk

skip

sl

sled

sm

smog

sn

snot

sp

span

st

stop

sw

swag

tr

trim

tw

twig

 

 

Final Blends (CVCC)

Examples

_ct

fact

_ft

raft

_lb

bulb

_ld

held

_lf

self

_lk

milk

_lm

film

_lp

help

_lt

wilt

_mp

bump

_nd

pond

_nt

tent

_pt

kept

_sk

mask

_sp

gasp

_st

mist

_xt

next