AskThena

CVC words

Three-sound words, consonant, vowel, consonant, like cat, pen and sun: the first words children read by blending. Lists by vowel, a game that says every sound, and cards to print.

Thena, a marble statue of a young Athena

Blend it

Tap each sound button, say the sounds faster and faster until they make a word, then pick its picture.

Your sticker book

0 of 24 stickers. Finish a round of any game to win one, and get three stars to make it shiny.

Kept on this device only, like the garden. Nothing is sent anywhere.

CVC words by vowel

Tap a word to hear its three sounds, then the word. Words with the same vowel are a good place to start: change the first sound of cat and you have bat, hat and mat.

a words

e words

i words

o words

u words

What is a CVC word?

C stands for consonant and V for vowel, so a CVC word is a consonant sound, a vowel sound and another consonant sound: c-a-t, p-e-n, s-u-n. Each letter writes one sound, which is why they’re the first words children can read all by themselves.

Children in the US meet them in kindergarten, where Common Core asks them to hear each sound in a CVC word and blend simple words. A handful of letters is enough to start: s, a, t and p already make sat, pat, tap and at.

Words like duck and bell count as CVC words too, because ck and ll each write one sound. Thena’s game shows them with a line under the two letters, the way classrooms mark a sound written with more than one letter.

Next steps

Reading starts with sounds.

In Thena’s lessons every sound is said clearly, and children tap, blend and read with her, at their own level.

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Thena waving hello