Phonics Games for Beginning Readers

In today’s fast-paced educational landscape, teachers are constantly seeking innovative methods to engage students and enhance their literacy skills. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is through Phonics Games. These interactive and enjoyable activities not only captivate young learners but also reinforce essential phonics skills that are crucial for reading success.

Imagine a classroom buzzing with excitement as students dive into fun, no-prep literacy centers focused on the specific phonics skills they are learning. With the right resources, you can transform learning into an adventure! In this blog post, we’ll explore how incorporating phonics games into your curriculum can foster a love for reading while building foundational skills. Get ready to discover a treasure trove of engaging activities that will make phonics instruction both effective and enjoyable!

These printable board games provide an interactive way for students to review essential phonics skills while playing with a partner. Colorful game boards and simple instructions make learning phonics a FUN and ENGAGING experience for students.

Which phonics sets are included in the Phonics Games?

CVC Words (240 Games)
CVCe Words (200 Games)
Blends Words (200 Games)
Digraphs Words (160 Games)
R-Controlled Vowel Words (160 Games)
Vowel Team Words (160 Games Coming 11/17/24)

What’s included for each skill?

Each phonics skill includes 10 different activities with 4 games per activity. This offers plenty of practice to help students master each skill.

To give you an idea about how many games that is, here’s a visual of what’s included in just one of the phonics sets:

How to Prep the Phonics Games

One of the best things about the Phonics Games is that they are all full-page activities- no cutting or small pieces that can be lost! Just print and play! You may want to consider laminating for durability in case you plan on having your students play more than once.

Let’s take a look at each Phonics Games set.

CVC Word Phonics Games

CVC (consonant, vowel, consonant) words are the perfect place to start once students begin to master basic letter sounds. These words are only 3 letters, and the vowel sound is short. Here’s a look at each of the 10 types of phonics game activities.

1. Spin, Map, Write and Cover

Students spin the spinner, map the sounds of the word, write the word and cover the word on their side of the board. The first player who covers all of their words first wins!

2. Spin, Read and Cover

Students spin the spinner, read the word and cover the picture that matches on their side of the board. The first player to cover all of their pictures wins!

3. Roll, Move, Map and Graph

Students take turns rolling a die, moving their marker, mapping the sounds of the word and writing the word on the lines.

4. Roll, Map, Build and Cover

Students roll a die, map the sounds in the word, write the word and cover the word on their side of the board. The first player who covers all of their words first wins!

5. Roll and Map

Students roll a die, pick a word in that row and map each sound of the word into a box.

6. Spin, Map, Graph and Write

Students spin the spinner, move their marker, map the sounds of the word, graph the letters in the boxes for each sound and write the word on the lines. Extra fun has been added with the “go back” and “go ahead” spaces.

7. Spin, Tap, Graph, Write, Cover

Students spin the spinner, tap the sounds, graph each sound in the boxes, write the word and cover the word with their color on the board. The player who covers the most words wins!

8. Roll and Write Missing Sounds

Students take turns rolling a die, picking a word in that column and writing the letter that makes the missing sound to complete the word.

9. Spin, Graph, Write and Find

Students spin the spinner, graph each sound of the word in the boxes, write the word on the lines and cover the picture that matches with their color. The player who covers the most pictures wins!

10. Roll, Move, Tap and Blend

Students take turns rolling a die, moving their marker and taping each sound of the word. Then they blend the sounds to read the word. The player who reaches the end of the board first wins!

The other 5 Phonics Games sets have the same activities from above. Let’s take a look!

CVCe Word Phonics Games

CVCe words are words that follow the pattern of Consonant-Vowel-Consonant-e. The silent e at the end makes the vowel long.

Here are some of the CVCe games in action:

Blend Word Phonics Games

A blend word is a word that combines parts of two or more words to create a new word with a different meaning.

Here are some of the S-Blend Phonics Games in action:

Digraph Word Phonics Games

A digraph is a combination of 2 letters that make one sound. These words can be tricky at first, but once students have the chance to practice in a game format, they are sure to build fluency with these skills.