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Short a phonics books

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Today I’m sharing a set of printable books to help your child master the short a word families!

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

(This post contains affiliate links.)

Have you seen my sets of free sight word readers?  With 88 books at last count, it’s a giant collection of themed little books that help your child master the basic sight words.  They can be used to supplement your reading curriculum or to use alongside This Reading Mama’s free beginning reading curriculum.

But what about those little phonetic words?  Like cat, hop, and pin?

I’ve shared many word family resources.  Your child can practice reading short vowel words with printable word family houses, read ‘n stick mats, milk cap spelling mats, and even Uno and Crazy 8’s.

But sometimes you need a little something extra.

Introducing… my Measured Mom Phonics Readers! (featuring word families)

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

I created these as a stepping stone for my Four, who knows about 20 sight words quite well – but hasn’t grasped “sounding it out” with ease.  He gets the concept and can sound out a short word with help, but it’s not automatic.

This is my little guy who’s always loved having his own little books. In fact, I created my little letter books for him. Those books of songs and rhymes helped him to learn his letters.  My little sight word readers have helped him learn concepts of print and basic sight words.

So I thought… why not create a new set of little books?  These would have a new purpose: to help him learn to “sound it out.”

What these books are (and are not!)

  • My Measured Mom Phonics Readers are not stories.  Writing a story with word family words that makes any kind of sense is extremely hard.  Sorry, but I’m just not that creative.
  • The books are not entirely phonetic.  I am not crazy about books with words you can only sound out.  They are typically awkward, contrived, and hard to make sense of.
  • My Phonics Readers are simple. These are for children just starting to sound out words.  For children who are starting to read short vowel words with ease, you’ll want to look into other decodable books.
  • These readers are designed to use by themselves or alongside Reading the Alphabet.  This Reading Mama introduces the word family “at” in lesson 7, which makes that a perfect spot to stop and read this set.  (Of course I’ll be creating the other short vowel sets for lessons 14, 20, 26, and 31!)
  • These books are designed to be companions to my sight word readers.  If your child is reading through them, he might be ready to try these short a word family readers after set 5.

Inside a book

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

After reading the word family name on the cover, your child will open the book and read the opening sentence: “I can read the ___ family.”  The page on the right will be a word within that family.  I chose to make these words big, bold, and colorful.  The word family ending matches the color on the cover so that your child can begin to recognize the word family and read it as a chunk.

You’ll also notice there is no picture clue on that first page.  I want kids to really focus on the letters when reading the word for the first time.

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

When your child turns the page, he will read the word within a simple sentence using sight words that have been taught in my sight word readers.  This set of short a books fits right after sets 1-5, in which the words a, the, see, I and look have been taught.

Next, your child has the chance to read another word within the family.

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

Turning the page, he can read it in a sentence and attempt another word.  This pattern continues for a total of six word family words in each book.  The end of each book often has a harder word with a digraph (ch, sh, th, wh) or a blend (fr, cl, etc.).

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

On the last page, your child can read each word in a long list of rhymes.

Tips for using these books with your child

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

  • Make sure your child reads the cover before reading the book. Help him say the vowel and consonant sounds and blend them together.
  • When reading the big new word, direct your child to the word family if he’s stuck.  It’s not uncommon for a new reader to say that the word family is “am” but then read “ram” as “rat.”  Help him flip back to the cover, identify the family, and then put that family at the end of the consonant.  (“Remember to read all the way to the end of the word!”)
  • Those words with beginning blends are tough for new readers.  My little guy would read “c-l” and “am” but put them together as “cam.”  Be patient and work on those words together.  One day it will click!

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

  • If your child enjoys these, give him many opportunities to read them. Read to Grandma over Skype, read to Daddy, read to himself.  I suggested my Four read one of the books to Daddy, and I was thrilled when he decided to read the entire set.
  • Celebrate! You might want to make a sticker chart with each book’s title. Let your child put up a sticker after he reads a particular book.

How to assemble

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

Print pages 2-29, front to back. (Page 1 is my Terms of Use – be sure not to print it or they will all be messed up!)  I like to print on light or medium cardstock.

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

Each book will be two full sheets of paper, front to back.  Cut on the horizontal center of each book.  (I love our paper cutter! I’ve used it for years.  A little pricey on Amazon, but you might be able to get it at Michaels with a coupon.)

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

Fit the pages together in their proper order.

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

Fold.

Teach kids to read short a word families with these FREE printable mini-books!

Staple on the fold with a long-armed stapler.

I hope you love these!  We’re pretty excited about them around here. 😉

Get the rest of the books!

free phonics books collection

Get your free phonics books!

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD

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Word Slider Cards

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Get our expanded, updated set of over 300 short vowel word slider cards! Each card has updated clip art and comes in both color and black and white.

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Reader Interactions

85 Comments

  5. Nicole

    I just found your website thru a Pinterest pin. I will definitely peruse thru your boards and website.
    I have a 7yr old foster child who’s repeating the 1st grade and her reading skills are severely lacking.
    She needs fun & different options to be motivated.

    Thanks for these options

    Reply to this comment

    • Anna Geiger

      I hope you find things here to work for her, Nicole! Thanks so much for visiting. Feel free to ask specific questions in the comments or contact me via my contact form in the menu bar.

      Reply to this comment

  6. Talia

    My daughter is just about finished with this first set, and I just have to say thank you! She has become so much more confident with her reading and short a words she’s reading fluently in our other books. I look forward to reading through the rest of the series.

    Reply to this comment

  10. Ilda

    Hi,
    I love your page.
    I really wanted to download the phonics books (the family words booklets) but i’m really having a hard time. No options for download??? Please Help.
    thank you

    Reply to this comment

    • Anna Geiger

      Hello, Ilda! I’m so sorry for the delay in responding to you. Do you see where it says “Get your free short a phonics readers by clicking HERE” ? It’s near the end of the post. Click on the word HERE and they’ll pop right up!

      Reply to this comment

  18. Tolu

    God bless you for sharing this. I live in the netherland and i really want to teach my son to read in English. He is 6 now and i know this is overdue. But with these resources i believe we will make good progress. Thanks alot.

    Reply to this comment

  22. Seema Bardeskar

    I made these books for my daughter… She is loving them. Trying to put more effort and also appreciates and loves the factor that I made them for her. Thank you for sharing your wonderful resources. They are superb ?

    Reply to this comment

    • Kate Dowling

      Hi Amy!

      This is Kate, Anna’s assistant. I just tested this to be sure it works. Please enter your email address when asked, and the file will be sent to your email. When you open your email, you will click on the blue link that says, “CLAIM YOUR OFFER.” Enjoy your free books!

      Reply to this comment

    • Kate Dowling

      Hello Ajiah!

      This is Kate, Anna’s assistant. I just tested this, so I know how it works! Please enter your email address when asked, and the file will be sent to your email. When you open your email, you will click on the blue link that says, “CLAIM YOUR OFFER.” Enjoy your free books!

      Reply to this comment

    • Kate Dowling

      Hi Karen!

      This is Kate, Anna’s assistant. After you click on the big green box, you’ll be asked to enter your email address. Once you do that, the file will be sent to your inbox, so please check your email. Enjoy your free file!

      Reply to this comment

  28. Phyoe Khet Mon

    Hello!

    I have found out that these sets are not free anymore and asked to buy bundle. Is it possible to get them free again. Really appreciate your generosity for sharing very valuable resource for children. Thank you so much.

    Reply to this comment

  29. Amira

    Hi

    Thanks for such well thought-out resources. I couldn’t access the phonic book resources, although I entered my email address and was directed to enter a password which led me to download other resources but not the phonic books.

    Reply to this comment

    • Kate Dowling

      Hi Nyx!

      This is Kate, Anna’s assistant. Please click on the green box that says, “CLICK HERE TO GET THE FREE PRINTABLE.” Then enter your email address when prompted, and go check your inbox. You should be sent the file immediately. Open the email from Anna, and click on the blue link that says something like, “CLAIM YOUR OFFER.” Once you click the blue link in the email, the file will open. Enjoy!

      Reply to this comment

      • nyx

        Hi Kate, thanks for replying, I can’t find the green box that says “click here to get the free printable” on this page, but I can find it on other pages, is there any way for me to download it? Please help me, thank you!

        Reply to this comment

        • Kate Dowling

          Hi Nyx!

          That’s very strange! The green box is between the image of Anna’s hand stapling a book, and an image that says, “Free Printable Phonics Books 130+.” If you still can’t find it, I suggest trying a different browser. For example, switch to Firefox or Chrome if you’re using something different. I’m not sure why the box doesn’t show up for you. I hope that helps!

          Reply to this comment

  31. Verona

    Hello. I’m a suscriber and have been scrolling through the (honestly really useful) resources here, but I can’t seem to access any of these phonic books. No matter how much I click onto the banner, nothing happens on either of my browsers. What can I do?

    Thank you!

    Reply to this comment

    • Kate Dowling

      Hi Verona!

      This is Kate, Anna’s assistant. I’m sorry you’re having trouble! Please turn off your ad-blocker, and if you still have trouble, try viewing the website in Google Chrome. That is Anna’s favourite browser for her website. I have success with Firefox. Thanks for giving it another try!

      Reply to this comment

    • Kate Dowling

      Hi Odessa! This is Kate, Anna’s assistant. Please be sure you’re following all the printing directions above in this post, and that you are printing the correct pages. Here’s a note you might have missed: “Print pages 2-29, front to back. (Page 1 is my Terms of Use – be sure not to print it or they will all be messed up!) ” All the best!

      Reply to this comment

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