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English worksheets · Reception, Year 1

Phonics worksheets

Printable phonics practice for early readers: hearing sounds, blending simple words and reading common digraphs.

Printable phonics worksheet

Printable sample · Reception & Year 1

Sound it out

Read each word aloud. Write the missing sound.

Reception & Year 1 · English

Sound it out

NameDate

Read each word aloud. Write the missing sound.

  1. 1.c _ t (a small pet)
  2. 2.s _ n (it shines in the sky)
  3. 3.p _ g (a farm animal)
  4. 4._ ip (a boat)
  5. 5._ in (under your mouth)
  6. 6.r _ _ n (falls from clouds)
  7. 7.tr _ _ (it has leaves)
  8. 8.b _ _ t (sails on water)
  9. 9.Read: vop, zeb, jick
  10. 10.Write a word that ends in -ck.
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Reception & Year 1 · EnglishAnswer key

Sound it out — answers

Suggested answers. Accept sensible alternatives where noted.

  1. 1.c _ t (a small pet)a — cat
  2. 2.s _ n (it shines in the sky)u — sun
  3. 3.p _ g (a farm animal)i — pig
  4. 4._ ip (a boat)sh — ship
  5. 5._ in (under your mouth)ch — chin
  6. 6.r _ _ n (falls from clouds)ai — rain
  7. 7.tr _ _ (it has leaves)ee — tree
  8. 8.b _ _ t (sails on water)oa — boat
  9. 9.Read: vop, zeb, jickNonsense words — check blending
  10. 10.Write a word that ends in -ck.e.g. duck, sock, back
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Phonics

How phonics supports reading

Phonics teaches children to connect sounds with the letters that represent them, then blend those sounds to read words. Reception starts with single letters and short words like cat and sun. Year 1 adds digraphs such as sh, ch, ai and ee, plus alternative spellings.

Schools follow their own phonics programme, so the order of sounds may differ. Use these sheets alongside your child's school sounds rather than instead of them.

Phonics

Real and nonsense words

Reading made-up words such as 'vop' shows whether a child is truly blending rather than recognising words by sight. Mix a few into practice once real words are secure.

Year-group applicability

Which years practise phonics?

Designed around primary-school skill progression; your school's order may differ.

  1. ReceptionHear and say initial sounds, match single letters to their sounds and blend short three-letter words such as cat, pin and sun.All Reception worksheets →
  2. Year 1Read words with common vowel digraphs such as ai, ee, oa and ow, and alternative spellings of familiar sounds.All Year 1 worksheets →

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Keep practising

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