Short Vowels — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. How do you break picnic into two CVC parts?
A) pic-nic
B) pi-cnic
C) picn-ic
D) p-icnic
Picnic splits into pic-nic. Each part is a CVC chunk with short i. When two consonants sit between two vowels, the word usually splits between them, and each chunk keeps its short vowel sound.
2. How do you break napkin into two CVC parts?
A) n-apkin
B) na-pkin
C) nap-kin
D) napk-in
Napkin splits into nap-kin. Both chunks are CVC: nap has short a, kin has short i. Splitting two-syllable words into CVC chunks helps Grade 1 readers tackle longer words one syllable at a time.
3. Which word has the short a sound?
A) bed
B) hot
C) bag
D) bug
Bag has short a. Bed has short e, hot has short o, and bug has short u. Distinguishing between all five short vowels is a key Grade 1 phonics skill.
4. Which word has the short e sound?
A) cat
B) net
C) mop
D) sun
Net has short e. Cat has short a, mop has short o, and sun has short u. Each short vowel has its own distinct sound, and Grade 1 readers practice hearing them one at a time.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. We packed sandwiches for our picnic in the park.
Picnic is pic-nic, two CVC chunks each with short i. Breaking multi-syllable words into CVC chunks makes them easier for Grade 1 readers to decode.
2. I wiped my mouth with a napkin after lunch.
Napkin is nap-kin. Nap has short a, kin has short i. Two-syllable words with CVC chunks keep each short vowel sound intact, a helpful decoding rule for Grade 1.
3. A rabbit hopped into its den underground.
Den is a CVC word with short e. Practicing short e in Grade 1 helps readers distinguish it from short i and short a, which often get confused.
4. I put on my winter cap and gloves.
Cap has short a in the CVC pattern c-a-p. It belongs to the -ap rime family with map, nap, and tap, all sharing the short a sound.
5. The frog jumped on a log in the pond.
Log has short o in the CVC pattern. It belongs to the -og rime family with dog, fog, and hog. All -og words share the short o sound in Grade 1 reading.