CVC Word Games

What Are CVC Words?

The term CVC in ELA stands for Consonant-Vowel-Consonant. Once children get past the basic two-letter words, it’s time for them to come face-to-face with three-letter words. These are known as Consonant-Vowel-Consonant words or CVC words.

CVC words are short and simple three-letter words made up of a combination of three letters in a sequence of — a consonant, a vowel, and another consonant. For example, "cat" and "dog" are CVC words. 

What  Are Vowels?
 

Vowels are the letters in the English alphabet that represent letter sounds where air leaves the mouth without any blockage by the tongue, lips, or throat. The 5 vowels are — a, e, i, o, and u.

• Short vowels: Vowel sounds that are pronounced briefly without a significant change in their sound. (Examples: bat, red, lip, hop, fun)
• Long vowels: Vowel sounds that are pronounced for a longer duration and that often have a different tone. (Examples: cake, see, time, bone, cube)

Note: The letters y and w are consonants that work like vowels in certain situations. When they come just before a vowel, they work as consonants. When they are a part of a vowel team like 'ay' or 'ow', then they function as vowels. For example, tray, brown. 

What Are Consonants?

Consonants are the letters in the English alphabet that represent speech sounds created by partially or completely blocking the airflow in the vocal tract. In simple words, the letters that are not vowels are consonants. The 21 consonants are — b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v, w, x, and y.

Why Is Learning CVC Words Important for Kids?

CVC words are a fundamental part of early reading and spelling in ELA. They consist of three letters, with a single consonant at the beginning, a vowel in the middle, and another consonant at the end. 

• Reading and Spelling: CVC words are some of the first words kids learn to read and spell because they are simple and sound out easily. 
• Blending: CVC words play an important role in teaching children the skill of blending. Blending is the process of smoothly joining individual letter sounds together to pronounce a word. The simple structure of CVC words allows children to practice blending without the added complexity of consonant clusters or multiple vowel sounds.
• Phonics: Teaching and practicing CVC words helps children develop basic phonics skills and build a strong foundation for reading and writing. CVC words help children understand phonics, the relationship between letters and sounds, teaching them to sound out and read new words effectively.
• Learning complex words with ease: These words enable children to really call out sounds and practice them easily. Gaining familiarity with CVC words help children learn longer and more complex words effortlessly.
• Early vocabulary: CVC words form the basis of a child's early vocabulary, allowing them to express ideas and understand simple texts and sentences.

When and How to Introduce CVC Words to Kids

• The perfect time to begin with CVC words is when your child has managed to get completely comfortable with all letter sounds. 
• Before getting CVC words into the mix, try and familiarize your child with some common sight words comprising two or three letters. Then, you can begin by showing your child a few CVC words. 
• Explain how various sounds have been fused to form a complete-sounding word. 
• CVC words use short vowel sounds. You can help your child practice these sounds well with CVC online games.

Importance of Introducing CVC Words to Kids through CVC Words Games

• Interactive learning: You can make CVC words fun for kids with CVC words online games. These games include fun characters, interactive techniques and colorful backgrounds that are both visually appealing and conceptually stimulating. 
• Fun and active engagement: Online CVC word games engage the young learners and help them practice CVC words without them realizing that they are actually studying an important ELA concept. This helps form a love for ELA learning.
• Effective practice: CVC online games incorporate different strategies to learn and practice CVC words. Children practice beginning sounds, segmenting words, middle sounds, sequencing letters to make words, blending three sounds to make words, rearrange alphabet sounds and much more.
• Working with word families: Through online games, children get to work with word families. These online CVC word games introduce them to various methodologies to practice CVC words successfully which subsequently results in better comprehension and clarity.

What Are the 5 Best Fun CVC Games and Activities for Kids?

Here are 5 fun online CVC word games for kids offered by SplashLearn:

1. Guess the Word: Hip and Hop Game
2. Explore Middle Sound With Short Vowel I Game
3. Explore Middle Sound With Short Vowel E Game
4. Make Words With the Middle Sound: wig and jam Game
5. The Ultimate Word Families Challenge: mat, sit and tip Game