Page 1 of 4
Look at rain
- rain
- train
A and i sit side by side.
They make one sound: ay.
That is a vowel team.
Get Ready
Two vowels side by side make one sound.
Words to know
- vowel teamTwo vowels side by side that make one sound.
Learn It
Page 2 of 4
The first one says its name
- boat
- seat
Try the first vowel’s name.
In boat, the o says oh.
In seat, the e says ee.
Page 3 of 4
Not a word? Try again
- bread
Try ea as ee. Breed? Not the word.
Try another sound: eh. Bread!
Page 4 of 4
Two ways to say ay
- cake
- rain
Cake has a silent e.
Rain has a vowel team.
In both, the a says ay.
Your Turn
Answer each question in the yellow box.
Question 1 of 8
What sound does oa make in boat?
Question 2 of 8
You read bread as breed. What now?
Question 3 of 8
How many sounds does ai make in rain?
Question 4 of 8
Read seat. Which vowel says its name?
Question 5 of 8
Try ea as ee in bread. Does it make the word?
Question 6 of 8
Which word has a vowel team?
Question 7 of 8
Which two words have the same a sound?
Question 8 of 8
Ea as ee gives breed. What do you do?
What You Learned
- Two vowels side by side can make one sound.
- Try the first vowel’s name.
- Not a word you know? Try another sound.
For the grown-up
A vowel team is a digraph made of vowels (ai, ea, oa). "When two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking" is a useful first guess, not a law: bread, said and book all break it.
The real method is to try the first vowel’s name, and if that makes a word the child does not know, try another sound. A non-word is a signal, not a failure. Some teams, like oo, simply have to be learned as themselves.