Phonics pattern

Other vowel teams

These vowel teams spell sounds that are not the long vowels: oo as in book and as in moon, au and aw as in haul and saw, ew as in grew. Several have two common sounds, so the student learns to try one and check the word makes sense.

Spellings: oo, au, aw, ew, ui, ue

How to teach it

Teach one team at a time with its sound or sounds. For oo, teach both and practice choosing: does it sound like a real word?
Read lists, sort words by sound (book, moon), and contrast with patterns already known.
Dictate words. For aw and au, aw usually comes at the end or before n or l, au in the middle.

Practice words

Read them across, then down. Point under each word as it is read.

moon
soon
pool
boot
broom
hook
wood
cook
stood
crew
flew
blew

Decodable sentences

The cook stood by the stew pot.
A hawk flew over the woods.
Sue has a blue suit.

Spoken warm-ups

No print. Say the prompt; the student answers aloud. Sounds are written between slashes.

Spoken warm-ups for Other vowel teams
You say	The student says
Listen: /m/ /oo/ /n/. What word?	moon
Say ‘hook’. Say each sound.	/h/ /oo/ /k/
Say ‘pool’. Change /p/ to /t/. What word?	tool

Common errors

Reading oo with the wrong sound (book as /b/ /ū/ /k/). Try the other sound and check it is a word you know.
Spelling /aw/ with o. Accept aw or au while the position rule is new, then teach it.
Confusing ew and ow in reading. Underline the team and say its sound before blending.

Which lessons teach this

If you teach UFLI Foundations, this pattern comes up in these 8 lessons. Teach from your own manual.

Literacy Trail is an independent tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the University of Florida Literacy Institute. It contains no UFLI lesson content, only lesson names and order.

Questions people ask

Are these words from an assessment?

No. The practice words, sentences and warm-ups here are written for teaching and are kept separate from the words in the Literacy Trail assessments, so practicing never teaches the test.

When is a student ready for other vowel teams?

When they read and spell the pattern before it (long vowel teams) accurately and without prompting, most of the time. Keep reviewing earlier patterns for two minutes a session while the new one settles.

How long should practice take?

A few minutes a day beats one long session a week. Read the word list once or twice, dictate three or four words, and read a sentence or two. Rate how it went and bring the pattern back on a short schedule if it is shaky.

Plan sessions for this pattern automatically

Start the 15-day free trial and add a student. When they reach other vowel teams, Literacy Trail plans the sessions for it automatically, and a Needs support or Developing rating brings it back for review.

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