R blends worksheets
Sound boxes (Elkonin boxes) for 16 r-blend words · 1 page + answer key
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Sound boxes show what a blend is: two sounds, two boxes. On this sheet, crab gets four boxes (c, r, a, b) and drum gets four (d, r, u, m). Your child reads the word, touches a dot for each sound, and writes one letter per box.
Words with a blend at both ends (crust, print, trust) have five boxes, a good stretch for confident readers. Words like crack and brush end with a digraph, so they still have four boxes.
R-blends are the blend group children most often misspell, especially tr and dr (chruck for truck). Segmenting each sound slowly is the fix.
Tips for using it
- For tr and dr, have your child say the t or d by itself first, then add the r.
- Use coins or counters on the dots before writing letters.
Variations
All blends worksheetsQuestions
Why does truck sometimes sound like 'chruck'?
Before r, our mouths start moving toward the r early, which makes t sound a bit like ch. Slow segmenting helps children hear the t.
How many boxes does crust need?
Five: c, r, u, s, t. Blends at both ends each keep both sounds.